Body awareness: are we aware of our body?

Mainly understood as the movements and gestures (in addition to the cadences and tonalities that are printed on the speech), Paraverbal communication is made up not only of the most visible body movements, but also of a series of micro-movements. that are almost imperceptible to bodily awareness.

A simple exercise that shows such subtleties is observed when two people walk in the same lane in opposite directions and pass each other. There is an acute and superior perception that leads to capturing those micromovements that indicate that one should deviate to one side and the other person to the other, so as not to collide. If any of them hesitate in the movement of choosing the flank, they may collide.

Body awareness: micro and macro movements

It does not seem difficult to capture macromovements, those that manifest themselves most obviously to perception, such as very expressive hand movements, incisive or seductive glances, body postures and tones of speech that denote aggression such as raising the voice, accompanied by frowning (and obviously insulting verbalizations), body or head turns, shoulder movements, etc.

But this mobility is not comparable with movements such as actions, in terms of jumping, running, developing a specific activity (cooking, reading, working, etc.), although it is part of them. Actions are made up of a series of coarse and fine movementsin addition to verbal language, which finishes delineating it, complementing it and giving it meaning.

Gestures and expressions

More complex is the capture of extra-fine mobility, composed of micro-movements, many of them almost imperceptible to the eye. Some of this class make up the repertoire of a synergy that articulates numerous muscles.

There are hundreds of muscles around the eyes that give each person the particular type of look. If these were cancelled, the gaze would become livid and inert, like that of old porcelain dolls. Around the mouth, there is another muscle group that gives expressiveness to the face (beyond laughter or displeasure, which would be the responsibility of gross movements). The lips themselves contain a gestural multiplicity and depend on this muscle group.

In view of the speech of our partner, A simple raise of the eyebrow or a sarcastic bite of the lip can trigger multiple responses. according to the semantics that are projected in such gestures, and even more so if it is not metacommunicated. For this reason, it is extremely difficult to construct a minimally accurate hypothesis about someone’s reaction to another.

Emphasis cannot be placed on the verbal, nor on historical intrapsychic or cognitive factors, or attributions of meaning, without taking into account paraverbal communication. Factors that focus attention on the interlocutor, without involving the sender in the interaction circuit. This is an intellectual or scientific version of the phrase “Looking at the speck in someone else’s eye,” and it is the classic interpretation that is made from the linearity we alluded to previously.

If we analyze the fact interactivelyit is very difficult to raise awareness of certain gestures that can create an overwhelming chain reaction: a fine mobility, for example, a minimal gesture, can trigger a gross mobility (hand movement, passionate gestures) and from this the consequent actions can occur.

The horse that knew how to count

A representative example of the above is described in one of the footnotes of the book. The theory of human communication (1967). This is Mr. von Osten’s horse, which performed sums with a result so precise that the public was stunned.

His owner told him out loud the figures he had to add and the horse, in response, began to hit the ground with one of his front legs until he reached the exact figure. Scholars, informers and others were trying furiously to discover what the trick was. Meanwhile, the fame of von Osten and his horse grew.

The relationship between owner and animal was very close and emotional. One day, a series of observers managed to unravel the trap that was not really a trap, since its owner was not aware: when the horse’s blows approached the correct result, von Osten made a gesture, a micro movement or a body posture almost imperceptible to the human eye to stop the knocking. The horse, picking up on his owner’s paraverbal language, took in the information and stopped his movement at the correct result.

Tell the myth, a posteriori, Given von Osten’s close bond with the animal, upon hearing and verifying the discovery, he became ill with depression and months later died suddenly. Beyond the anecdote, It is interesting to discriminate the horse’s attention to certain fine motor skills of its owner.which is also difficult to determine by human sight.

The place of our body in space

As the Gestaltists say, We are a body and we occupy a place in space. However, there are not many opportunities that facilitate body awareness.

We people look at ourselves in the mirror, but we don’t see ourselves. The common thing is that we evaluate ourselves on an aesthetic level ─that we pay attention to the hairstyle and the clothing we wear─, that we protest or are happy about our silhouette, but with this we do not realize the place we occupy in space.

In order to raise awareness, it can be helpful to take into account the resistance that the context offers when it comes to opposing forces to our movements. For example, when trying to cross a strong wind, when entering and wanting to move in a swimming pool. Or when trying to get on the subway during peak work start and finish times, or when we improvise a place to sit in a crowded place, or when we clear an area for ourselves and our things.

Other ways to have body awareness and connect with the body is through pain, high fevers, perspiration or touch when we receive a massage.

Now, How we see ourselves and how they see us are not always coincident descriptions.. For this reason, many people who have altered their body ─for various reasons─ preserve in their mental scheme consequences that have marked them with fire and have delimited life paths. Thus, people who have had obesity disorders, even though they have lost weight, continue to “see” themselves as fat and prominent.

Our body has presence and not because of its volume

Our body not only has volume but also presence, and not an inert presence but an articulated one. This volume and articulated presence influence both the relationship with objects and, fundamentally, with people. When we need to occupy a space, if it is not prepared for our body, it is necessary to make room for us.

Every time our body interacts with other bodies, it influences them and is influenced. This influence responds to the volume of the bodies and this articulated presence.

If I have a tiny body, I may feel intimidated by the size of a voluminous, muscular, six-foot-tall body. If a person is extremely thin and very small, they may look smaller next to a tall and tall person. very prominent measures.

These discriminations are based only on volume, that is, on the place a body occupies in space.

We have an articulated presence and this is complex

The complexity increases when we talk about articulated presence. If we add gestures and posture to these bodies (as in the two previous examples). Then, feelings of intimidation can be put into perspective.

Large volumes, far from causing feelings of worthlessness in the other, through gestures and body attitude can be balanced and even appear smaller than the tiny interlocutor. Otherwise, Al Capone, Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, Francisco Franco, would not have achieved the dominance they achieved. Not even Mahatma Gandhi, Amadeus Mozart, Toulouse Lautrec, Napoleon, among others, would have each stood out in their fields of action.

Body volume, gestures and postures (what we call articulated presence) delimit the movements. These are defined by the context, although the complexity is even greater: the context has rules that encode the extent to which people can act. Furthermore, objects mark the boundaries of movement.

So, Depending on the context and the objects we know if we should move up to a certain distance with a certain speed in pursuit of reaching an object or if we must move, avoiding the objects that surround us with grace and balance.

In fact, when a child reaches adolescence and hits his growth spurt, he becomes clumsy in driving his body, he bumps into objects, they fall, he uses his strength disproportionately, etc. His body scheme has been altered and, consequently, his distance and balance record. He was accustomed to a body volume and now the dimension with which he must deal is another.

Have body awareness, that is, Knowing that we are a body and a mind and that we occupy a place in social space implies becoming aware of the place we occupy in society. Not only because of the space we have but because we take responsibility for who we are, who we are with and what we do with our actions and gestures.

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