My Grandmother's Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Mending of Our Bodies and Hearts

by Resmaa Menakem

BREATHE, GROUND, AND RESOURCE, REVISITED This is a new way to use an activity you practiced in Chapters 2 and 10. Take a few deep breaths. Let your body relax as much as it wants to. Think of a person, an animal, or a place that makes you feel safe and secure. Now imagine that this person or animal is beside you right now or that you are in that safe place. Breathing naturally, let yourself experience that safety and security for about a minute. Feel into your body. Where does it seem constricted, uncomfortable, or unwell in any way? Note each of these locations. Pick one of these locations and focus on it. For a few seconds, let yourself fully experience the constriction or discomfort. Then, once again, visualize the person, animal, or place that helps you feel safe and secure. Imagine you are in that place or that the person or animal is beside you. Experience the safety and security for a minute or two. Do this for each part of your body that feels uncomfortable or constricted.