Slowness as a Somatic Rebellion

“The times are urgent; let us slow down.” – Bayo Akomolafe

There’s a moment—just before the breath shortens, the shoulders lift, or the screen gets clicked again—when something inside us knows: this isn’t how I want to live.

As we settle into the deep quiet of winter here in the Southern Hemisphere, nature is offering a very different invitation. One of slowing. Of stillness. Of rest.

But the world? It speeds up.

Our inboxes demand instant replies. News cycles churn anxiety. Capitalism tells us we’re behind unless we hustle harder.

Urgency is everywhere.And without awareness, it lives in us too.

Our nervous systems begin to fire in response: racing thoughts, shallow breath, constant tension. We mirror the world’s chaos without even meaning to.

But what if the most radical act in these urgent times is to go against the current?

What if we didn’t keep up?

What if we slowed down?

Not to disengage or give up but to become more deeply rooted in how we move, speak, create, and lead.

This is the practice of nervous system regulation.

It’s what SomaPsych's 100HR Nervous System Yin Yoga Teacher Training is really about.

Because slowing down is a form of resilience. A reclamation of sovereignty. A nervous system-level reorientation to the world.

Slow isn’t passive. It’s powerful.

When we meet urgency with grounded presence, something shifts.We stop reacting and begin responding. We move from survival to self-trust.

This can look like:

• Pausing before making a decision, to feel what’s actually true

• Noticing the moment urgency hijacks your breath—and choosing to stay present

• Asking: “Is this action aligned—or just reactive?”

• Listening for the conversation that needs care, not just speed

• Honouring the body’s rhythm, even when the world pushes faster

  
  

These are not minor adjustments.They are acts of deep nervous system attunement. Of leadership. Of embodied presence.

This month in SomaPsych, we’re exploring Slow & Steady

Not as a theme but as a somatic ecosystem. As a way of relating to urgency without being ruled by it.As a pathway to more sustainable, embodied, and ethical ways of teaching, living, and being with one another.

So we leave you with these invitations:

• What is your life asking of you right now?

• Can you notice the exact moment urgency takes root in your body?

• What shifts when you meet it with a slower breath, a steadier step, a pause instead of a push?

  
  

The nervous system doesn’t lie.

It tells us when we’re out of sync. It also tells us how to come home.

Let’s choose presence. Let’s make slowness our strength. Let’s practice, together.