Reconnect with Your Innate Human Experience through Your Senses
How healthy and well are your senses? Perhaps you have never asked yourself this question before!
Without our senses we actually can’t survive. They help us to navigate our worlds every day, and also bring the pleasures of life to life for us. They are uniquely human. We are sensory beings. Multi sensory actually.
I remember learning about the 5 senses in school; taste, touch, sound, smell and sight. But guess what? You actually have over 30 senses. Your body is a sensory powerhouse, and we are only just beginning to truly understand how we can enjoy them more in our everyday lives for greater presence and pleasure.
In our fast-paced modern world, it's all too easy to become disconnected from our senses. The constant bombardment of toxins, noise, and busyness can dull our sensory experiences, leaving us feeling overwhelmed, tired and disconnected. However, nurturing our sensory wellness is crucial for our overall well-being and spiritual connection with ourselves and nature.
A large part of my natural health journey has been about moving out of living only in my head, and coming back into my body and truly FEELING. I share more about my personal journey from breakdown to living naturally charged here.
From my personal experience I have come to realise that by opening our senses we unlock new biology. We enhance our sense of intuition, connectedness, and our ability to experience the beauty of the universe. Our senses are a gateway to access higher states of consciousness, and the sense of joy that flows from it.
When we tune in, awaken and expand our senses…..
We smell differently, with more pleasure.
We see differently, with more perspective.
We touch differently, with more sensitivity.
We taste differently, with more anticipation.
We hear differently, the sound of the universe.
What is Sensory Wellness?
Sensory wellness refers to the overall health and well-being of our senses, all of them!
When we nurture, optimise and expand our sensory experiences it enhances our physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. It is like moving from watching a movie in black and white with no sound, to watching it in full high definition colour with surround sound and 4D vision experience.
It is about the awareness and intentional engagement of our senses and discovering new senses you didn't even realise you had. This can bring the importance of sensory experiences in our daily lives back into focus.
It is a new level of mindfulness that is not just about the mind. It is engaging the WHOLE body, through our senses.
So often we hear of well-being with a focus on MINDfulness. I truly believe we have forgotten the whole body and how to truly engage with it, through our senses, for greater levels of wellbeing.
This may involve engaging in activities that stimulate and awaken our senses, creating sensory-friendly environments, exploring natural scents and aromas, playing with sensory exercises, and being mindful of the impact of our modern lifestyle on our sensory well-being.
By nurturing our sensory wellness, we can heighten our experience of the moment, reduce stress levels, improve cognitive performance, enhance mood, foster a greater connection with ourselves and the natural world, and cultivate a deeper appreciation for the richness and beauty of LIFE.
The Modern World and Numbing of the Senses
In our modern society, our senses are often bombarded by environmental toxins, artificial fragrances, excessive noise, and constant distractions. This constant overload can lead to sensory fatigue and a loss of connection with our senses. We numb ourselves as a way to cope and survive. We feel less, so we can get on and DO more.
Our senses are designed to connect us to the world (and other worlds), but when they are overwhelmed, we lose touch with our environment and ourselves.
Scientific studies have shown that exposure to environmental toxins, such as air pollution and synthetic fragrances, can have detrimental effects on our sensory systems, particularly our sense of smell. Excessive noise has been linked to stress, cognitive impairments, and reduced overall well-being.
If you would like to know more about how mainstream perfumes can be harmful to your health you can read our blog here.
What is Sensory Fatigue?
Sensory fatigue is when you experience a decrease in sensitivity in a particular sense, or in many of them. A great example is with fragrance. If we use the same fragrance every single day, our olfactory receptors that help us to smell can become fatigued to that particular scent. This will mean that you need more and more of that same scent to be able to register and smell it. Think about that friend who seems to walk in a cloud of their perfume! They have olfactory fatigue. A switch of perfume is a simple way to overcome this.
An interesting question to ask ourselves is have all of our senses become fatigued and less sensitive than our ancestors?
What is Sensory Overload?
You may have experienced sensory overload. Everything in the world and the moment around you feels like too much. There is more sensory information coming into you than you feel you can manage and process. For me this is when there is noise from the kids as their play escalates, and then there is music somewhere, and then the phone rings, and I’m in the kitchen preparing dinner and pots are boiling……it just gets too much! I have to turn the volume down a few levels to bring it back to equilibrium.
For many with sensory challenges this can be an every day occurrence. Walking into the shops, a classroom, a party, a lecture room…..can feel too overwhelming. This can lead to anxiety and ultimately isolation as the world ‘out there’ can become too much.
Beyond the Basics: Exploring our Extensive Sensory System
While we commonly associate the five senses—sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch—with our sensory experiences, it's important to note that we possess many more senses. In fact, scientists have identified over 30 different senses, including proprioception (awareness of body position), equilibrioception (sense of balance), and thermoception (sense of temperature), among others.
By expanding our understanding and awareness of these additional senses, we can unlock new dimensions of sensory wellness and gain a deeper appreciation for the intricate ways our bodies interact with the world.
Sensory Wellness Done Naturally
How often do you tune in to your senses and really dive deep into what they bring to your everyday life?
You may tune in and realise that the sense is numb, like touching a part of your skin and not feeling any sensation. And if not numb, it may be on a very low volume with a very small bandwidth, when actually we have a very wide range available to us through our senses if we awaken them, expand them and swim in them. We can do this, naturally.
I like to call it…..Unnumbing our senses, naturally!
So, how do we do it?
Simple Practices For Your Sensory Wellness
Sensory Exploration Walk: Take a walk outdoors and pay attention to the sights, sounds, smells, textures, and even tastes you encounter during your walk. Notice the colours and shapes of nature, the chirping of birds, the scent of flowers, the feeling of the ground beneath your feet, and the taste of the fresh air.
Savouring Food: The next time you are eating, slow down and appreciate the colours, flavours, textures, and aromas of your food. Mindful eating like this not only enhances your sensory experience but also promotes better digestion and a healthier relationship with food.
Sensory Journaling: Keep a sensory journal to record your sensory experiences. Set aside a few minutes each day to reflect on the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and textures you encountered. Describe them in detail and note how they made you feel. This practice encourages you to be more present and attentive to your surroundings, deepening your sensory awareness. Over time, you may notice your sensory abilities expanding and you can actually hear more, smell more and even see more.
Sense Energy: A simple way to start elevating your sense of energy is to take your two hands and take them in front of you. Have the two palms of your hands face each other about 10 centimetres apart. Focus on what you can feel between those two hands, what you can feel on the palm of each hand. Don’t worry if there is not much there for you straight away. Just notice. Then rub your hands together really fast for about 30 seconds. You will feel the heat and sensation lift as you continue. Then after 30 seconds move the hands apart, again about 10 centimetres apart. Now notice what you feel in your hands and between your palms. What has changed and shifted? Can you sense the energy? Do this every morning for a week and notice the difference in what you can sense and feel and how that expands.
Of course using the sense of SMELL mindfully is another great practice. Tuning in to what you smell and allowing the layers to reveal themselves. This can be done with essential oils, candles, incense and of course perfume. But you want to be sure it is 100% natural so it is healthy for your system as you draw it in.
You can also do a Sensory Scan meditation that we have included here.
Sensory Scan Meditation
In the quiet of the morning find a comfortable place to sit. Close your eyes and tune in to each sense slowly.
As you sit, what can you smell? Is it the neighbour's breakfast, the candle you lit, your own perfume, the pile of dirty clothes near you? Acknowledge the smell and really take it in. Yes, even the not so nice smells! It is about expanding the experience. Are there layers to it? What else can you smell?
What can you feel with your touch? Is it your bottom on the chair? Is it the clothes on your skin? Is it your hands touching your thighs? What temperature is it? Where is the tingle right now? How does your tongue feel on the roof of your mouth?
What can you taste? Even though you are not eating anything, what taste is in your mouth? Perhaps a little lemony or acidic, or more bland and alkaline? What would you like to taste?
What can you hear? Is it the rumbling of people waking in your house? Is it the sound of cars on the street outside? Is it your breath as it comes in and out?
What can you see? Even with your eyes closed, what does the back of your eye lids look like? If you move your eyes from side to side with your eyes closed, what can you see? Is it colour or black and white?
Then as you open your eyes, keep engaging your sense of sight and take in what you can see as if it is the very first time you are seeing it. Take in the colour, contours, and notice how it makes you feel.
Then thank your incredible body and all of your basic senses for bringing the moment to life for you. Thank it for bringing you completely into the present moment and swimming inside your body. And take your sensory awareness into your day.
The more you do this, the more you will sense every day.
Sensoriam is all about awakening your senses, naturally.
By opening the senses we unlock new biology. We enhance our sense of intuition, connectedness, and our ability to experience the beauty of the universe. Our senses are a gateway to access higher states of consciousness, and the sense of joy that flows from it.
Sensoriam is an awakening of the senses. A return to a sense of self.
Sense all that is beautiful.
Sense all of that is pure.
Sensor I Am.
