"Here is an exercise that can help you find more connection with those you are working with in the field while also acknowledging the boundaries that exist between you. You can try this exercise with someone you are working with, but you may first want to try it with a friend, loved one, coworker, or even your dog. It is actually something you can consciously ask the other person to do with you, or you can do it without them knowing you are doing it, with differing impacts based on your approach."
- Sitting face to face, take a deep breath and settle into your body. Tune your awareness into the space around your heart, and then tune into their heart. Connect to any sense of a field of energy linking your two hearts. Consider that this field of heart energy is an incarnation of the connection that you have to each other. If you don’t notice anything, don’t worry about it; just try it out, and stay open and curious. Stay with it for several minutes.
- Next, become aware of the space between you, notice the distinction between where your body ends and where the other person’s body ends. Notice how you are different. This space exemplifies the boundaries that exist between you, as well as the individuality each of you possesses. Without adding any cognitive stories, stay with a feeling of separation for a few minutes. You can practice keeping these two polarities in balance, and you can use this skill as a tool to maintain equilibrium within the helping relationships you find yourself in.
"For example, if you are feeling disconnected from a person (perhaps you are engaged in an internal dialogue that is judging him or her or you have checked out in some other way), you can use the heart practice to reconnect. Or, on the other hand, if you are feeling overwhelmed with empathy or are losing yourself in any way, you can bring your awareness back to the space between you, as a way to create more balance for yourself."
