n general, the muscular contraction patterns you are easing with the somatic exercises formed in response to particular stresses and particular injuries. Their location is specific.
Sometimes, you can reach them through the basic form of the movement patterns given in the various programs developed in the field of somatics and featured here. At other times, however, you'll get better results if you position yourself to reach directly into the heart and core of the contraction patterns.
The heart and core of a contraction pattern has a particular feel; it's the most intense center of the sensation you are easing. You can reach that center by first assuming the position given in the instructions for an exercise (which gives you some feeling of the problem area), then by moving yourself (the involved body part(s)) "toward and away from" the sensation. By noticing the effect of your movements, you can determine which direction to move.
Once you've arrived at the optimal position to feel the trouble area, you need to make another adjustment, this time in degree of effort. The direction to go is "less."
It's a case of working smarter rather than harder. If you work smarter, you don't need to work harder, and in most cases, you need to work less. If you don't work less, you're likely to create more sensation than you want. You need just enough to feel clearly, with a gentle quality.
For an example, click here to download a sample section from Free Yourself from Back Pain. Follow the instructions for the movement maneuver and notice that, in certain moments during a movement, you feel more sensation that you do at other moments. That difference has to do with your position and with which muscles or muscle fibers are in use.
