Bodymindfulness for Skillful Communication Bodymindfulness for Skillful Communication

Abstract: Although bodymindfulness is only a small part of what I teach in my graduate communication courses, one third of my recent students noted in their final course evaluations that it was what they would remember most about the class. This pedagogical study examines the concept and practice of bodymind ful ness and analyzes the effects students reported experiencing when they used it. Bodymindfulness is an approach to becoming aware of and adjusting our inner state. The term bodymind emphasizes the systemic, integral nature of lived experience, and mindfulness is a Buddhist concept and practice of cultivating awareness. Bodymindfulness is the process of attending to all aspects of the bodymind ― body, emotion/feeling, mind, and spirit ― in order to grasp the holistic personal meaning of an internal event and to use the resultant understanding to communicate skillfully. Because bodymindfulness can help us to access and to understand the prerational structures of our meaning perspectives and how we express them, it promotes self-reflexivity in the moment and ongoing integrative transformative learning. The analysis is based on the reflections of 21 recent students in answer to the question, “While using bodymindfulness and paying attention to your breathing during or outside class, have you observed anything new about your inner state and how it affects your communication? ” Data was collected from feedforward sheets that are required after each class, student presentations, and final reflective papers. Students ’ observations focused on 1) attending to their inner states and 2) using the resulting awareness to attune themselves and to do the inner processing necessary to 3) align their actions with their intentions to communicate in more appropriate, effective, and satisfying ways. Student reflections on their ex