I'm not sure at what age you become aware of your body. I don’t mean that your hand simply exists, but rather the skill of not having to dine in front of a mirror because you know exactly where your mouth is when you’re eating. Or the ability to put your finger directly into your belly button with your eyes closed. Somehow, blindly, many of us are acutely aware of where our body parts are.
I became conscious of this when I broke a nail the other day. I had come to rely on its size and suddenly, when it was half as long, my itch wasn’t getting scratched – my finger wasn’t close enough to my elbow!
Our brains are wonderful things that not only can it judge the existence of our permanent parts like our eyes, knees, etc. but it also remembers and takes into account our dynamic parts like fingernails.
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There is a term for what you are talking about:
Proprioception: one's own perception of his or her body.
This is sense of balance, coordination, just about everything you can think of rolled into one.
Can you lie down, stretch your arms to the side, close your eyes, then touch your nose? You'd be suprised how many people can't do this.
Proprioception is something that everyone has to some degree, but those that do coordinated physical activities, such as ballet, martial arts, etc., typically have a much greater sense of awareness of body than most people.
You can learn more by meditating and focusing on letting your "awareness" be located in your left hand, your right foot, your lungs, etc. It's amazing what you can actually do with your body when you focus your mind on it.
I have very good awareness of my body. I could touch my nose right off the bat!! :)
What I find the most amusing is after cutting my hair how my hands want to brush hair that isn't there :)
I totally agree both with the finger nail issue and with Jen's comment about brushing hair that isn't there! I have difficulty with both situations often.
And, I posted a comment on your last post, but it never showed up.....weird.
I'm with Jen. I notice it most when getting a hair cut, if even just an inch.
I tried the laying down thing, closing my eyes, and touching my nose - I did just fine. Way to go me (I'm so proud of myself - mainly b/c I'm sooo NOT coordinated).
What's with Jessica's Blog? Why is she not blogging anymore?
I heard Graeter's flava of the month is Banana Chip. I'd like anyone near a Graeters to check it out and give me a full update. :) It sounds yummy! Added bonus: you don't keep the calories if your eating it as "research" to report back to me.....Right?!
Ok, my awareness is 50% accurate. I could touch my nose with the right hand, but not with the left one. What is dangerous about this excercise is lying back down at 8:45 in the morning. It just felt soooooooooooooo good... ;)
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