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The Embodied Relational Mind

Table of Contents

✦ Do you perceive emotions and thoughts as embodied phenomena? Or purely mental constructs? Are you aware of how each emotion or thought might carry with it a corresponding physical resonance or texture within the body, speaking to a deeper unity and harmony of experience?

✦ How do you conceive of the relationship between mind, heart, body, and the world? Do you see them as separate entities, or do you lean towards a more holistic view where the mind is both embodied and relational, interwoven with the physical form and its movements through the world?

✦ What is your understanding of how the body, through its postures, gestures, and sensations, influences thoughts and emotions? Do you consider the idea that the body is not merely a vessel for the mind but an active participant in constructing reality and meaning?

Synopsis

In ancient civilizations, holistic and non-dualistic approaches to medicine were deeply rooted in the understanding that mind, body, spirit and the world were interconnected, and health was a state of balance and harmony among these elements. These cultures did not view the body and mind as separate entities but rather as integrated parts of a unified whole, where physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual dimensions were seen as inter-related.

How has those centuries of human wisdom gotten so dramatically lost, leading to the narrow, limited and disjointed view of the human phenomenon that characterises our current health and well-being paradigms? How did we lose sight of our naturally integrated, symbiotic connection with the world within, and the world beyond ourselves?

In the last few decades there’s been a resurgence of a more holistic, integrative view of the embodied relational mind, significantly aided by the development of new technologies like FMRI (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging) and PET (Positron Emission Tomography) scanning that allow neuroscientists to study the correlation between brain activity, manifestations in the body, and the mind much closer. 

The therapeutic process I facilitate for clients is an existential exploration aimed at uncovering the authentic self, where the mind is conceptualized as embodied, interconnected, and dialogical. It is continuously engaged in dynamic interactions with the environment, seeking meaning and coherence through these ongoing exchanges.

“When we look deeply into the heart of a flower, we see clouds, sunshine, minerals, time, the earth, and everything else in the cosmos in it. Without clouds, there is no rain; without rain, the flower cannot grow. So, the flower is made up of non-flower elements. Just as we cannot separate the flower from the rest of life, we cannot separate our mind from our body.”
– Thich Nhat Hanh (Vietnamese Zen Master)

The Lost Wisdom

In ancient China, Traditional Chinese Medicine was fundamentally non-dualistic. The human being was seen as a microcosm of the universe,
subject to the same natural laws that govern the cosmos. Health was understood in terms of balance and harmony between opposing but complementary forces, Yin and Yang, as well as the smooth flow of Qi (vital energy) through the body’s meridians. Such practices like acupuncture, herbal medicine, Tai Chi, and Qigong were aimed at restoring this balance, ensuring the free flow of Qi, and addressing both physical and emotional issues as a unified process. Traditional Chinese Medicine did not separate the mind from the body; instead, emotions were considered critical to diagnosing and treating physical illnesses.
The ancient Indian system of Ayurveda (meaning “science of life”) is another example of holistic, non-dualistic medicine. Ayurveda is based on the belief that health
and wellness depend on a delicate balance between the body, mind, and spirit. It emphasizes the interdependence of physical, mental, and spiritual well-being, understanding diseases as disruptions in the doshas (Vata, Pitta, and Kapha), which are biological energies governing bodily functions. Ayurvedic treatments include diet, herbal remedies, yoga, meditation, and panchakarma (detoxification rituals), which are intended to bring balance to the individual’s constitution and harmonize their interaction with the world.
Ancient Egyptian medicine combined practical medical treatments with spiritual beliefs, seeing the body, mind, and soul as interconnected. Whilst

Egyptian medicine was advanced in its use of surgical techniques, herbs, and pharmacology, it also relied heavily on spiritual rituals, amulets, and prayers to address both physical and metaphysical causes of illness. The Egyptians believed that the heart was the centre of thought, emotion, and personality, and treatments often sought to restore harmony between the body and the spiritual world.

The ancient Persian system of medicine (also known as Zoroastrian), particularly as articulated in texts like the Avesta, emphasized balance
and harmony between the elements of earth, water, air, and fire and the fluids (humors) of the body. The health of the individual was considered a reflection of the health of the soul, and vice versa. Practices involved herbal remedies, rituals, and ethical conduct, reflecting a belief in the integration of moral and physical well-being.
Mesopotamian medical practice, a piece of which was preserved via the Nineveh Medical Encyclopaedia, was a blend of empirical knowledge
(such as herbal treatments and surgery) and spiritual practices like incantations, prayers, and rituals to appease gods and demons believed to cause illnesses. Health was perceived as a state of harmony between divine forces and human actions, necessitating both physical remedies and spiritual purification.
While early Greek thought, influenced by thinkers like Pythagoras and later Plato, tended to separate the soul from the body,
holistic approaches were prevalent. Hippocrates, who is considered the father of modern medicine and the originator of the Hippocratic Oath, emphasized that health is a state of balance among bodily parts and that the mind, emotions, and environment significantly influence physical health. Health care and psychological support were aimed at supporting the psychosomatic unity and not only the symptoms of diseases. This was reflected in his famous dictum, “healthy mind in a healthy body”, reflecting this unified view. Physicians practising medicine in ancient Greece employed this form of integrative healing and wellbeing, incorporating diet, exercise, and psychological support in their treatments to address the whole person.
To this day, indigenous cultures across the world such as Native American, African, Australian Aboriginal, and Amazonian traditions, often practice

medicine through shamanic and animistic frameworks that view all of life as interconnected. These traditions often involve rituals, herbal medicine, spiritual practices, and community support to restore harmony. The human being is seen as part of the natural world, with health being a state of balance between the self, the community, and the surrounding nature. Illnesses are understood to have spiritual, psychological, and physical dimensions, and the shamanic healing practices address all of these aspects simultaneously through ceremonies, prayers, herbal remedies, and shamanic journeys, some of which take place in skilfully-induced altered states of consciousness.

Unfortunately, much of the ancient integrative wisdom that recognized the deep interconnection between mind, body, and spirit has been largely lost over the centuries. This holistic understanding, which viewed health as a harmonious balance of the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual dimensions, was overshadowed by the rise of dualistic models introduced by thinkers like René Descartes. Cartesian dualism, which separated the mind and body into distinct, non-interacting entities, became the dominant paradigm in Western medicine and psychology.

This split not only shaped scientific inquiry but also led to a fragmented approach to health and therapy, where the body was treated as a mere machine and the mind as an abstract, detached entity. As a result, the richness of ancient practices that addressed the human experience as an inseparable whole was side-lined, diminishing the recognition of how deeply our emotions, thoughts, and physical states are interwoven.

This shift has impacted modern healthcare and therapeutic practices, often reducing them to isolated treatments that overlook the complexity of human existence and the profound interconnectedness that ancient civilizations intuitively understood.

Mind versus Body: Duality and the Loss of Wholeness

In his work Meditations on First Philosophy published in 1641, the famous French philosopher René Descartes concluded [sic] that the mind (which thinks) is distinct from
the body (which does not think), culminating with his renowned maxim “Cogito, ergo sum” (I think, therefore I am). This dualistic framework, often referred to as mind-body dualism, is central to Descartes’ philosophy and has had a profound influence on Western thought and medical sciences. Descartes proposed that reality is composed of two distinct kinds of substances:
  • Res Cogitans (the “thinking substance” or mind): the non-material, non-extended substance responsible for consciousness, thoughts, beliefs, desires, and emotions. According to Descartes, the mind is not subject to the laws of physics and is therefore free and independent of the material world.
  • Res Extensa (the “extended substance” or body): the physical, material substance that occupies space and is subject to the laws of physics. The body is characterized by its extension in space, divisibility, and the ability to be measured and quantified.

Despite postulating that the mind and body are fundamentally different substances, Descartes argued that they can interact with each other. He theorised that mental states (like desires and intentions) could cause physical actions (like moving an arm), and physical states (like a pinprick) could cause mental states (like feeling pain). Still, they were considered completely separate elements, only interacting with each other in a mechanistic way.

This perspective fundamentally influenced early psychology, which treated mental processes (thoughts, emotions, consciousness) as distinct from the brain’s physical functions and, more dramatically, the body as a whole. As a result, for much of the 19th and well into the 20th centuries, psychology had developed as a “science of the mind,” somewhat separate from physiology and medicine, which studied “the body.”

This perspective shaped the development of the Western mainstream medicine in the 19th, 20th and to a large extent into the 21st centuries, where the body has been primarily treated as a complex biological machine that can be analysed, diagnosed, and repaired without direct reference to the mind or emotions. Whilst this view helped lay the foundation for modern anatomical, physiological, and medical sciences, leading to advancements in surgery, pharmacology, and diagnostics, it completely disregarded factoring the mind into the overall view of the human being. 

This approach encouraged specialisation in medical practice, where the focus on bodily systems, organs, and diseases led to the development of various medical specialties like cardiology, neurology, or psychiatry. However, this specialisation had the unfortunate side-effect of reducing complex human experiences, such as pain, illness, or health, to purely physical causes, neglecting psychological, emotional, cultural, or social factors.

The Embodied and Relational Mind: Rediscovering Ancient Wisdom

Cartesian dualism has persisted from the 17th century into the 20th and 21st centuries due to its perceived philosophical clarity, alignment with religious doctrines (which played a crucial role in those times and well into the 19th century), and compatibility with early scientific and medical models that favoured a mechanistic understanding of the body. It provided a convenient framework for both empirical science and theology, supported by church, early scientific establishments, and education systems that perpetuated this dichotomy. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t contested right from the beginning, albeit largely unsuccessful.
As early as 1677, Baruch Spinoza challenged Descartes’ doctrine in his revolutionary views of substance monism, beautifully articulated in his magnum opus,

Ethics. Spinoza argued that there is only one substance in the universe, which he identified as Nature (Deus sive Natura). Contrary to Descartes’ dualism, Spinoza proposed mind-body parallelism and the concept of “one and the same thing, understood in two different ways”. He argued that the mind and the body are two attributes of the same unity, one seen from the perspective of thought and the other from the perspective of manifestation. In other words, every mental state (conscious and/or non-conscious) has a corresponding physical state, and vice-versa. This idea had a profound impact on later philosophies of mind and influenced the development of modern integrative psychology and neuroscience, and can be seen as a precursor to contemporary theories of embodied cognition.

Elisabeth of the Palatinate, a 17th-century philosopher and princess of Bavaria, was another Descartes contemporaries that challenged his views.
Elisabeth raised a crucial objection: how could an immaterial mind, which lacks physical properties, cause changes in a physical body, and vice versa? Her pointed questioning revealed a fundamental issue in Descartes’ philosophy – the difficulty in explaining the interaction between two radically different substances. Elisabeth’s intellectual engagement forced Descartes to grapple with the limitations of his theory, ultimately contributing to a deeper philosophical discourse on the nature of human experience and the interplay of mind and body.
Elisabeth continued her philosophical engagement with the topic of dualism in later correspondence with Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz.

Their dialogues extended her critique of Descartes’ mind-body dualism, as Leibniz, too, sought to address the complexities of the mind-body relationship, though from a different angle. Leibniz developed his own solution to the mind-body problem through his concept of pre-established harmony. He rejected the idea of direct interaction between mind and body, instead proposing that mind and body operate in parallel, like two clocks synchronized by God from the outset, each following its own predetermined course without actual causal influence between them.

New perspectives like George Engel’s bio-psycho-social model published in 1977, take an even more holistic approach by considering the complex
interplay of biological, psychological, and social factors, acknowledging that health and illness are not merely the result of biological processes but are also shaped by psychological states and social environments. Although still in its infancy, the integrative approach involves combining medication with psychotherapy, lifestyle changes, social support, stress management, and other holistic approaches to address all aspects of a patient’s well-being.

Inter-relation of Body, Brain, Mind and the World

In the latter part of the 20th century, fields like psychosomatic medicine, integrative medicine, and holistic healthcare have emerged, promoting a more integrated view that considers both psychological (mental) and physiological (somatic) factors in health and disease.

Antonio Damasio’s ground-breaking work on emotions and attachment highlights that emotions and consciousness are deeply rooted in the body. He
describes the somatic marker hypothesis, where bodily states are integral to decision-making processes, demonstrating that cognition is not just a function of the brain but an interplay between the brain, body, and nervous system. Subsequently, Daniel Siegel builds on this by emphasizing the embodied integration of various neural networks, proposing that the mind arises from patterns of energy and information flow within the brain and body and in relationship with the world.
Jaak Panksepp, known for his profound work on affective neuroscience, brings forward strong supporting evidence that emotions are foundational
processes that connect the mind and body. Emotions such as fear, joy, and rage are not merely cognitive interpretations but are grounded in the body’s neurochemical processes. With the publication of Affective Neuroscience, Panksepp had expanded his list of primary emotions to seven well-documented primary-process emotional command systems: SEEKING/Expectancy, RAGE/Anger, FEAR/Anxiety, LUST, CARE/Nurturing, PANIC/Sadness, and PLAY/Social Joy (primary emotional brain systems are shown in CAPS to distinguish them from the use of chosen emotion labels in common language).
Further research by Anil Seth in the fields of consciousness and perception introduce the concept of predictive processing, where the brain constructs a model

of reality based on prior experiences and bodily feedback. Our perceptions are thus not direct representations of reality but are influenced by the body’s internal states and the brain’s predictive mechanisms. This understanding is much in line with the idea that the mind is an embodied phenomenon, dynamically constructing our sense of reality through ongoing interaction with our physical and social environment.

Lisa Feldman Barrett’s theory of constructed emotions offers a complementary perspective to the works of Jaak Panksepp and Anil Seth by expanding our
understanding of how more sophisticated emotions arise from brain-body interactions. Panksepp’s work on affective neuroscience identifies primal emotional circuits in the brain that underpin core affective experiences, emphasizing the evolutionary basis and biological substrates of emotions. Barrett builds on this by proposing that these core affective states are not emotions themselves but raw physiological ingredients that the brain categorizes and constructs into specific emotions based on context, culture, and personal experience. Anil Seth’s research on predictive processing and the “controlled hallucination” model of perception aligns with Barrett’s idea that the brain constantly makes predictions to construct not only our sensory experiences but also our emotional realities. By integrating these perspectives, Barrett’s work bridges the gap between the innate, neurobiological foundations of emotions that Panksepp describes and Seth’s theories on how the brain’s predictive models shape our subjective experience of reality, offering a holistic view of emotions as emergent phenomena that are both biologically grounded and contextually constructed.
Allostasis is a crucial concept that complements the picture of the embodied mind by expanding on how the body and brain maintain stability through change,
particularly in response to stress and environmental demands. Coined by Peter Sterling and Joseph Eyer, and later expanded upon by Bruce McEwen, allostasis is defined as the process by which the body achieves stability through physiological or behavioural change. It contrasts with homeostasis, which focuses on maintaining internal stability through a relatively fixed set of conditions. When seen in the light of allostasis, the embodied mind is a dynamic process, constantly negotiating balance through anticipatory adjustments, resilience-building, and maintaining coherence in the face of life’s complexities.
Daniel Siegel’s concept of mindsight and his work on attachment models highlight how our embodied experiences are shaped by relational
dynamics. The mind is not only embodied but also relational, deeply affected by interactions with others. Gabor Maté also explores how relational patterns, particularly in early childhood, impact both psychological and physiological development, suggesting that our embodied minds are products of both internal processes and external relationships.
Furthermore, in his landmark work on trauma “The Body Keeps the Score”, Bessel van der Kolk illustrates how emotional experiences, particularly traumatic
ones, have an imprint in the body, leading to both physiological and psychological symptoms. This highlights the importance of recognizing bodily sensations as carriers of emotional and affective information. In this context, embodiment, that is, our awareness and connection to the physical sensations of the body, becomes crucial for understanding how unresolved trauma manifests and how interoception, as explained in Polyvagal Theory (see below), plays a vital role in healing and self-regulation.
Peter Levine’s Somatic Experiencing approach suggests that trauma is not just a psychological event but also a physiological one, where

unresolved fight, flight, or freeze responses get “stuck” in the body. Their work and significant supporting evidence points out that traumatic memories can lead to physical sensations, flashbacks, and dissociation, all of which are stored in the body’s memory systems rather than solely in the conscious mind, as comprehensively rounded up by Natasha Noel Liebig in her paper on “Trauma, Embodiment, and Compromised Agency”.

Stephen Porges also contributes significantly to the understanding of the embodied mind through his Polyvagal Theory, which introduces the concept of neuroception,

the unconscious sensing of safety and threat. This process is deeply embodied, influencing how we experience emotions, form relationships, and regulate our autonomic nervous system. The Polyvagal Theory explains how the autonomic nervous system regulates emotional and social behaviour through three hierarchical pathways: the ventral vagal (social engagement and calm), sympathetic (fight or flight), and dorsal vagal (shutdown or freeze). 

The theory emphasizes the role of the vagus nerve (which runs independently through a separate pathway than the spine) in shaping how we respond to stress and social cues. Interoception, the ability to sense internal bodily states, constantly feeds back information from the body to the brain, such as changes in heart rate, breathing, or gut feelings, which the body uses in the neuroceptive process. 

Our nervous system continuously assesses safety or danger, influencing our ability to connect with others, regulate emotions, and respond to threats, with evolutionary adaptations ensuring survival through flexible physiological responses. It is a fully embodied process that is equally influenced by its relationship with the world.

You and the Embodied Relational Mind

Applying existential psychology on the reality of the embodied mind offers a holistic model for coaching and psychotherapy that deeply honours the full spectrum of human experience. Existential psychology focuses on fundamental questions of existence such as meaning, freedom, authenticity, belonging, and relational dynamics, guiding you to confront and embrace the holistic reality of your being. 

When applied in conjunction with the embodied mind framework, this approach becomes even more profound by recognising that our existential concerns are not just abstract thoughts but are also felt deeply in our bodies, influencing our sensations, behaviours, and physiological states.

By addressing existential, embodied and relational dimensions, this integrated model allows you to explore your core values, face existential anxieties, and align your actions with a deeper sense of purpose, while simultaneously tuning into the somatic signals and emotional patterns that shape your lived experience. This synthesis provides a comprehensive path to healing and growth, where self-awareness, emotional regulation, embodied insight, and authentic living come together to foster lasting transformation.

Application in Therapy

From neurobiology to affective neuroscience and trauma theory, the embodied relational mind is seen as a dynamic process of sensing, responding, and adapting to both internal and external realities. It is a mind that exists not in isolation but in constant dialogue with the body, other beings, and the world around us, seeking balance, meaning, and coherence through this interplay.

As highlighted above, this holistic perspective is backed by a growing amount of supporting evidence from contemporary neuroscience, trauma therapy, and existential psychology, emphasizing that well-being arises from a finely tuned, adaptive, and embodied engagement with both internal and external worlds.

In the existential psychotherapy that I practice, the integration of the embodied and relational mind speaks to the essence of human existence as both a bodily and intersubjective phenomenon. My phenomenological approach views the self not as a detached entity but as a being-in-the-world, where one’s physical sensations, emotions, and relational experiences are deeply intertwined with the quest for meaning and authenticity.

The embodied mind is always engaged with the world through the lived experience of the body, a medium through which we encounter both ourselves and others. In this view, our relationships, whether with people, nature, or even our own internal states, are inseparable from our bodily existence, and through these encounters we navigate the tension between freedom and limitation, self and other.

The therapeutic process I facilitate for my clients, therefore, is an existential journey toward uncovering the authentic self, where the mind is understood as embodied, interconnected, and dialogical, constantly seeking meaning and coherence through its dynamic engagement with the world around it. This philosophical lens highlights the profound responsibility we bear in shaping our existence, grounded in a holistic attunement to both the internal and relational realms of being.

“When you let go of who you are, you become who you might be. When you let go of what you have, you receive what you need.”
– Rumi (13th-century Persian poet and Sufi mystic)
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Existential Psy
Mihai

Existential Coach and Psychotherapist

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