Body Language

Sigmund Freud famously once said, “Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.” By saying that he was asserting that not everything we see, think, or say, in concert to another, is a projection on something else. To coin a common saying today; “it is what it is.”
There is however a science on body language. It is a science that has been studied for years and generally it is quite accurate. Generally. Certainly there is some nuance here. And given the context to a situation we can generally discover what someone is saying by their body language. It may even be something they do not know they are saying. The rolling of the eyes, arms/legs crossed, eyebrows raised, leaning toward someone when you talk, hands placed on the hips with elbows out to the sides, walking beside someone, walking in front of someone, touching the throat when talking. These are all signals that we may give off when in the company of another.

The body talks? Yes it does!:) And it has a lot to say. In fact the words of the human body can speak more authentically and truthfully than, well, the human mouth. It can communicate pleasure, doubt, cynicism, distrust, anger, superiority, uncertainty, fear, derision, compassion.

Therapists go to school on a client when it comes to words said, vs body language. Sometimes they are in conflict. Without words the language of the body is all that is left to be observed. The observation can say a great deal more to the therapist that the mouth does.
But and again one must be careful not to normalize everything a person does with their body. Sometimes, “it is what it is.” But in context, the body can say something profound, even give something seemingly hidden away.
What does your body say? Need a therapist?

I am, “The Therapist At Large.” www.bryanhagerman.ca 902 471 7919. I do Skype.