A body scan is a mindfulness exercise in which we are instructed to become aware of different body parts in a set order. It is a standard exercise in PTSD treatment because it helps many people to feel more grounded in the present and it increases stability and the ability to self-regulate. People with cPTSD and chronic dissociation usually struggle with it a lot. For us, it can feel overwhelming, it might trigger memories, including body memories, and dissociation might increase. It is not rare to feel panic, the need to run away or to scream. That doesn’t make a body scan a bad tool. We just need to approach it differently. Most regular body scans are too long and too detailed for people like us. They focus on difficult areas of the body for too long, which can make it impossible to stick with it. I will share some variations that could make things easier. Depending on your ability it will still be challenging.
Body scan for beginners
In this version of a body scan we will spend more time with body parts that are relatively safe and brush over huge areas of the body that can be tricky. Scanning our body like this regularly can help us build up some tolerance for very basic grounding through key body parts. This shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes and you can do it a lot faster if you like.
Sit upright in your chair and put your feet firmly on the floor. Place your hands on your armrest or your legs.
Then you can move your attention to the soles of your feet. Notice where they are in contact with the floor. How the soles of your shoes connect your feet to a solid ground underneath you……If you can, pay attention to your big toes….And then move your awareness along your toes…. one after the other, to the outside of your feet, until you reach your little toes…..Notice the heels of your feet, where they are, maybe how they are surrounded by your shoes, and how they are connected with the floor….. Scan the soles of your feet, heels to toes, and then back to the heels again….
Then you might allow your attention to move up your legs. Check where your knees are…, and where you can feel the chair underneath you, the surface you sit on…, and the back of the chair…. Let your attention move up your spine, all the way to your shoulders….
Notice your elbows…, down to your hands… Move your attention to the palms of your hands…, and the back of your hands…. Your thumbs…., and to the tips of your fingers….. Sense your whole hands…. and then allow your attention to move up your arms and into your face.
Notice your mouth (what can you taste?)…, your nose (what can you smell?)…, both eyes (what can you see?)…., your ears (what can you hear?)…., your forehead…. and the crown of your head, the highest point of your body…
Return your attention to the room you are sitting in.
Speed Body Scanning (advanced)
This is a thorough body scan that targets most areas of the body, but it is unusually fast-paced. That way we don’t get time to think about a body part too much. The instructions keep moving on and there is no time to get lost in memory or to get stuck somewhere. All we do is check if the body part exists. The moment our awareness confirms that it does, we move on. It is ok when some body parts are still missing. It gets better over time. I used this kind of body scan to master awareness for more triggering body parts. Awareness lasts for only a second or two and noticing other areas of the body immediately afterwards helps to get me grounded again. Once there are no tricky parts left this can be used within a set of relaxation exercises.
You can do this exercise while sitting or you can lay down for it. Take a moment to collect your thoughts and become mindful. I will name different body parts in quick succession while you try to notice them. If you can’t sense the body parts, that is not a problem, just keep moving with the instructions.
Go ahead and mindfully notice
Your chin
left side of the jaw
right side of the jaw
tip of the tongue
roof of the mouth
upper and lower lip
the air in your left nostril
the air in your right nostril
tip of the nose
bridge of the nose
left eye
right eye
both eyebrows
left temple
right temple
center of the forehead
your hairline
left side of your brain
right side of your brain
left ear
right ear
back of the neck
center of the throat
pit of the throat
sternum.
From here we are moving to the right side of the body.
Right side of the chest
Right collarbone
Right shoulder joint
the center of your biceps
elbow
crook of the arm
lower arm
right wrist
palm of the hand
back of the hand
thumb
index finger
middle finger
ring finger
little finger
all the tips of your fingers
back to the palm
wrist
your whole right arm
right shoulder blade,
right side of the ribcage
Waistline on the right side
right hip bone
pubic bone (if you are very advanced and ready, you can add your genitals here, not included in the audio)
back to the hip joint
center of your right thigh
knee
center of your right calf
ankle
right heel
top of the foot
sole of the foot
big toe
second toe
third toe
forth toe
little toe
the whole foot
the whole right leg
the whole right side of the body
collecting your awareness at the sternum again
repeat the same sequence with the other side of the body (included in audio)
[….]
Notice the whole left side of the body
and the whole right side of the body
Left and right side at the same time
remove the separating line and sense your whole body
stay with this awareness for a little while
before you return your attention to the room.
I’ve been doing a version of this body scan a lot lately and my last challenge is the ‘center of the throat’ which seems kind of harmless compared to other areas. You might experience unexpected challenges too, so please be careful. Stop for more grounding if needed and try a less detailed version first.
Scanning spaces (weird)
This is a weird body scan because we are not guided to notice our body and instead focus on the space in between body parts. For some people that makes it more bearable and the unusual instructions distract from triggering sensations. We need to work our brain a little harder and pay close attention. People who struggle with their body sometimes find it easier to use this version. It is also a great way to shake up a routine when you feel like you lost your edge.
For this exercise you can sit any way you like. I will name different body parts and if you like, you can try to notice the distance between them. You can imagine it as a straight line or as a 3 dimensional space, just as you like.
The distance between your chin and the tip of your nose
between your left nostril and your right nostril
the distance between the outer corner of your left eye and your left ear
and the inner corner of your right eye and your right earlobe
between your forehead and the back of your head
the top of your head and the underside of your jaw
the distance between both ears and both shoulders
between the left shoulder joint and the right shoulder joint
the distance between your right elbow and the tip of your right index finger
between the tip of your right thumb and the tip of your right little finger
the distance between your right little finger and your left little finger
the tip of your left middle finger and your left thumb
the center of your left palm and your left collar bone
the distance between the back of the chair and the center of your spine
between your spine and your navel
The distance between both of your knees
between your right knee and your right big toe
the right little toe and the right heel
the distance between the top of the foot and the sole of the foot
the sole of your right foot and the center of your left calf
the inside of your left ankle and the tip of the left small toe
the distance between the arches of both your left and right foot and the floor
Allow your attention to return to the room you are sitting in.
My first experience with body scans was within a DBT program where they stretched it until it was 30-45 minutes long. That is utterly inappropriate for cPTSD patients. You should get introduced to a beginner’s version that is between 3-5 minutes first. Then you can work your way up. It is possible to increase capacity for body awareness with regular body scans. I combined it with weight lifting for a better awareness of my muscles and worked my way from having no body awareness (‘floating eyes’- feeling) to complete body awareness (that only gets a bit shaky in stressful situations) within a couple of years. Please make sure to pick a version that is appropriate for your current situation. You can always write your own variation to make it fit your personal needs.