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What if(s)
Instead of asking, did you work hard today?We created opportunities for rest? Instead of pushing and striving,We allowed yawning and slowing down! Instead of stretching into the unfamiliar,We permitted taking as much time as needed! Instead of pushing our bodies and spirit,We worked along with their wisdom? Instead of being uncomfortable in social contextWe encouraged… Continue reading
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Overdeveloped Patterns
I have been coming up against a pattern of being generous with money. Telling myself I can do this and finding myself constantly being asked to accommodate. Here is. a poetic response to the frustration and anger I felt in response. Continue reading
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What I learnt from you – An ode to my clients – 2022
Here is a poetic representation of what being with clients in 2023 To be chosen to walk alongside as you tread decisively to reclaim,Bravely returning into adverse inner experiencing many to detail. Integration journey, kindling compassion and kindness for the self,Trusting the instincts of the body, completing impulses previously shelved. Forming relational spaces is an… Continue reading
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The lure of the unknown
Being with uncertainty is not for the faint-hearted,Our brain wants to know & plan, ever so calculated. Body interferes with fidgets & ickiness,Sensations range from numbness and fizzy to flightiness. Every pore of the body wants to return to the familiar,Predictability is the human superpower; it rests on the borders. Scanning for a way out… Continue reading
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What I learnt from you – An ode to my clients @2021
Every year, I reflect on what I have learnt by being with my clients. I have recognised that no course that can teach me the subtle art of relational safety & trust. I have to understand by listening and attending to the unspoken between us. I use the keywords from what I hear to construct… Continue reading
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Kindness is a superpower
I recently read the quote by #Rachel Naomi Remen and it touched me deeply. I wanted to explore it in an embodied sense. These words emerged from somewhere unknown. They spoke to me and I penned them down. “The places in which we are seen and heard are holy places. They remind us of our… Continue reading
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Embodied Role Reversing
In times like now, when our differences are dominant, how does one seek harmony? Reversing roles, a beautiful tool in #Psychodrama is one way to be in the shoe of another, long enough for embodied empathy. Being on the periphery is a heartache,There is nowhere to hide; NADA breaks. Repeatedly, reminders with words such as… Continue reading
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Spiralling back in Trauma recovery
No one really addresses the #trauma #spiral. I am speaking about the process of despair when we return to adaptive responses. This phenomenon often occurs when our nervous system is activated. Going back to vigilance can override the progress made towards safety & stability. Often clients express these times as a failure, it foregrounds remorse… Continue reading
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Sitting besides
There are some poignant moments in the therapeutic work I do that I think about often. I reflect on them as times when my mouth feels dry and there are no words to soothe the enormity of our felt sense. I am capturing one such time when we (they & I) stumbled through it harbouring… Continue reading
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SELF-Attunement
Most of the clients I work with experienced mis-attunement with their primary caregivers in their early years. At the beginning of therapy, we focus on developing an inner felt sense of warmth, care & safety. Eventually, this exploration settles. The internal world opens up. Positive emotions enter like a fresh breeze opening their grip on… Continue reading
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Lost connection
Pondering on the barriers to human connection. Especially now when there are fewer incentives to cultivate new relational spaces. As I wrote this poem, I was overcome with deep sadness and grief. I hope for our outlook to change and a new wave of relatedness. How does one make a warm connection in a world… Continue reading
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Body-Language
I have come out of a 2-day workshop. I have an yearning to deepen my connection with the body and its resourcefulness. Each day, I feel enamoured by its beauty, intelligence and wisdom. This poem comes from a well of sadness that embodied knowing does not find its rightful place in therapy & life. An… Continue reading
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Hope
I have been reflecting on hope as a life force that keeps us going. In spite of the many times of sinking, hope allows us to try again. These past two years have created moments of many challenges. Death, loss, separation and suffering to name just a few. A fraction of hope is a precious… Continue reading
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Complex Trauma
I work with numerous clients who are experiencing complex trauma. The paradox is that the source of the trauma stems from the betrayals of our loved ones, the inner circle of trust and safety. Due to the nature of the manifestation and its toil on mental/ emotional health, it takes a long time for trauma… Continue reading
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Self-centred
An acrostic poem for trauma healing During a recent session, I recommend becoming self-centred to my client. I moved towards them in the virtual space between us. They, in response, had a visceral reaction to my ask. We spoke at length about the societal norms and meanings often associated with the word. It conjured up… Continue reading
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Of what has been lost #Trauma
A traumatic experience is closely intertwined with grief. It carries a tragic feeling of what has been lost and yet not found. I have tried to capture this poetic extract based on the work with clients. To hold space for grief is an important part of the therapeutic work. Distanced from me, the body, Ignoring… Continue reading
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Cross Roads
Just like a relationships, therapy every so often reaches a crossroad, Feels like things are stuck and nothing seems the same anymore. Familiar patterns prompt us to shift, disappear or press pause, Now feels urgent and there is a darkness prevails all over again. This is what always happens you say to yourself silently, Betrayal,… Continue reading
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2022 Favourites series
I thought I would write a few blogs of 2022 favourites. The first one I wanted to share is my social media reflections. In the past 3 years, my Instagram/Facebook page has been an important vehicle for bringing attention to being with my practice. I am proud of the 400+ posts that have been intentionally… Continue reading
About Me
Namaste, I am Jaya, a culturally attuned, neurobiology-oriented, Melbourne (Naarm) based Expressive arts therapist, Psychodramatist & Somatic Practitioner. I have learnt over a decade of practice that trust, safety, and unconditional positive regard are the sacred grounds for shaping the therapeutic process. Unearthing somatic wisdom, self-compassion, and imagination equips us to befriend our inner world and readies us for change. I am committed to trauma-informed care, affirmative and inclusive approaches. Look me up here https://jaya-narayan.com/
Musings of an expressive arts therapist, Psychodrama director and Somatic Practitioner 