The Hidden Secrets Of Bodily Contraction

If there is an addiction in your life, there is a bodily contraction.

And that goes for anxiety, depression, spiritual seeking and any number of other common human conditions and behaviors.  These things, when you boil it all down, come from bodily contraction.

Bodily contraction is more than just the sense that “I am this body,” it’s a physically-felt contraction or set of contractions in different parts of the body.  Although we don’t use the term “chakras” in the Living Inquiries, thousands of years of talk of Chakras in spiritual literature is not just a bunch of hot air.  There are seemingly solid contractions in different parts of the body and these contribute to all sorts of conscious or unconscious stories related to the belief in a separate self.  This includes issues of safety and security, sexuality, creativity, pleasure, control, power, love, relationships, expression, and a host of other things.  As we are growing up, we find ways to protect ourselves from feeling certain emotions or experiencing certain threats in our environment.  As the mind experiences this self-protection, the body follows suit.  This stuff is remembered and solidified in the body itself, forming contractions.  We find ways to distract ourselves from being fully conscious of these contractions including through addictions, self-improvement, spiritual seeking, work, being overly analytical or “staying in our heads,” and all sorts of other ways.  Becoming aware of these contractions and no longer distracting ourselves is a first step to freeing this stuck energy.

Your body remembers pain, even if you don’t.

Unraveling these contractions is actually quite easy with the Living Inquiries.  Easy doesn’t mean painless.  We can’t promise you that you won’t feel swells of emotion or that a contraction will undo itself in one session, but the Inquiries cut right to the chase.  They put aside all fancy spiritual talk and do the kind of inner looking, or spiritual surgery if you will, that actually moves energy and releases stories.

We use the Unfindable Inquiry to look through all the words, pictures, emotions and sensations that keep a particular contraction in place.  For example, if there are issues around power or control or feeling powerless or weak, quite often it’s the stomach area that feels contracted.  Sifting through each particular set of words and each mental picture that is unconsciously hidden in that part of the body releases that energy.  With something like creativity or expression, where one feels stifled or unable to express or create freely, quite often that is contracted energy in the throat or pelvic area.  Attachment, possessiveness, and neediness in relationships can be attributed to a contraction in the chest or heart area. That’s just the short list.  Just about everything can be reduced down to one or more particular bodily contractions that are largely responsible for a particular kind of suffering.

Where a contraction is and what story is attached to it is an individual thing.  In the sessions we start by having you sit with that energy until the identity comes to mind.  Once it comes to mind, we look for that person, that particular identity that seems embedded in the contraction.  In not finding it, the pictures and words fall away so that they energy of that area can release and flow more freely throughout the body.  In addition to the Unfindable Inquiry, the facilitators use both the Anxiety and Compulsion Inquiries to clear away all the thoughts that are, unintentionally, keeping the contraction in place.  For example, addictive-compulsive thoughts about a particular substance or activity keep the contraction in place (and keep us distracted).  Anxiety-ridden belief systems do the same.  Weaving all three of these inquiries together (Unfindable, Compulsion and Anxiety) leaves you nowhere to go, with no distractions, resting with what is so that energy can finally shift on its own (without personal will involved).  This weaving challenges all the belief systems that keep contraction in place.  In fact, you can even look for “contraction” and “chakra” and not find it.  That alone can release energy, especially if you are mentally fixated on these spiritual “things.”  The inquiries don’t need fixation to work.  They undo fixations.

I have firsthand experience using the inquiries to release contractions in my pelvic and throat area related to the belief “I can’t express my feelings.”  I had found ways to distract myself from these contractions (mainly through addictions).  But, through the years, my body remembered this story and solidified itself in these areas.  Releasing this energy in these parts of my body was incredibly freeing.  Vital energy began to move throughout my body more fluidly, leaving the body feeling completely open in every area.  Things and people felt more transparent.   It was then easier to express myself and be who I am naturally in each moment, especially in relationships.  Even walking felt lighter and more easeful as that pelvic energy relaxed.

Be careful of the teachings that merely say that your real identity is the formlessness or awareness in which contraction is happening. Fair enough, but the body doesn’t always get that.  In that stuck energy, there is identification happening, old stories that keep the contraction feeling solid.  You’ll see and feel the identification in times of suffering, conflict, anxiety, addiction, illness, chronic pain, relationship breakup, neediness, feeling stifled in your creativity, needing to be right and situations involving power or control issues.  You’ll feel that tense pressure or hit in a certain part of the body.  And that’s telling you that you aren’t just awareness.  On some level, you believe that contraction is you.

If you haven’t looked into using these inquiries on contractions, do yourself a favor.  People spend a lot of time trying to change behaviors, change the way they think, seek some future realization and a host of other paths and endeavors that do nothing but keep the contractions there or make only small strides in releasing them.  Be careful not to confuse my invitation to look at bodily contraction as a form of seeking into the future.  Seeking is a movement of escape.  It’s another way we distract ourselves from what is happening in our bodies.  The inquiries are about looking directly into the present experience of body and seeing that the contraction is not who we are so that it can release.

Instead of doing things that only solidify the contraction (e.g., seeking), be more radical.  Look with us.

"Working with Dan has been nothing short of transformational. His open heart, honesty about his personal experience and permission to be real and not hide have helped me unlock those qualities in myself. And that has been a total game changer. I've been truly blessed, not only to have him as my KI Facilitator, but also as my mentor. Without a doubt, working with him has helped me to show up authentically, helped sharpen my tools and made me a better facilitator than I would've been on my own. I can't recommend him enough."
Darby Totten
Certified KI Facilitator

Dan McLintock is a Certified Facilitator, Trainer and the Co-Developer of the Kiloby Inquiries method/approach the New Model of Recovery along w Scott Kiloby. 

A Jacksonville, Florida native, Dan graduated Flagler College in 2004 with B.A. in Theatre Arts and English Literature and has played music professionally in bands for over 20 years. But his true passion lies in sharing the context, possibility and practicality of healing, awakening and release. 

Dan has worked one-on-one with clients in and out of the Kiloby Center since 2017 and has an unconditionally loving and earnest approach to healing trauma, dissolving the drivers of addiction/suffering and unhooking long-held toxic beliefs about ourselves, others and the world at large. 

He’s also worked intensively, side-by-side with Scott Kiloby for the past three years to develop the transformative tools of the Kiloby Inquiries as well as the principles and approach of the “New Model of Recovery” rooted in unconditional love and non-judgment. Much of this approach was borne out of Scott and Dan’s work with each other on their own personal traumas as well as their work with clients at the Kiloby Center. 

Scott and Dan have simplified, demystified and condensed some of the principles and practices of eastern/non-dual spirituality into an easily accessible set of tools most anyone can understand, learn and utilize to free themselves from their own suffering. 

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What is a Clarity Call?

A clarity call is a free 30-minute introductory call with a Certified KI Facilitator. During a clarity call, you can ask any questions you have about KI and see whether a particular facilitator is a good fit for you.

To book a clarity call, select your preferred facilitator (hover over their picture and click the “Meet” button). Then, enter your email and click “Book Your Call.” From there, you’ll be able to select your preferred date and time and schedule your clarity call (please double-check your time zone before booking).

Valerie Vinger is a thriving survivor of life’s painful challenges and growth opportunities. She has worked with 12-step programs and is currently a 13-year stage-III cancer survivor. Her cancer recovery journey started with the traditional “cut, poison, burn” approach but eventually led her down a natural path to healing her body, her pain and suffering, and her buried emotions.

Valerie first stumbled upon Scott Kiloby at a workshop of his in Boulder, Colorado in 2012, which she says is one of the most transformative experiences she’s ever had. She is filled with gratitude for the person she has become through her journey with cancer recovery and with the Inquiries, which she describes as “coming home to myself.” She loves working with people who are ready for relief from their pain and suffering.

Julianne Eanniello is a Certified Trainer and Facilitator of both the Kiloby Inquiries and the Unfindability Inquiries (formerly called the Living Inquiries). She is also a Certified TRE Practitioner, and the developer of the somatic movement process called Natural Flow Movement. She works with clients all over the world on virtually any topic, including spiritual seeking, stress, anxiety, depression, pain and health related issues, traumatic experiences, repression, relationship issues, and general unhappiness with ourselves and our lives. She does this through online sessions, deepening courses, workshops and facilitator certification training.

About Julianne:

For most of my life I’ve wondered who I am and why I am here. As I was growing up, no one else seemed to be talking about these things, or even thinking about them, so I buried it deep inside and tried my best to fit in the way I was “supposed” to, all the while feeling like there was something desperately wrong with me and that I needed to fix it.

In my early thirties, the death of a young relative left me feeling hopeless and helpless, wondering what is the point of life if we’re all just going to die anyway? This launched me on a search. I didn’t even know what I was looking for, I just knew that there was a longing – a desperate longing for something that actually made sense about life. I learned several alternative spiritual and healing techniques. I meditated. I read books and watched videos. I eventually learned of non-duality teachings, and I read more books, watched more videos, and even sat with several ‘awakened’ teachers. Yet I was still searching, something still felt missing. I was looking for the key that would unlock the mystery of me and of life.

In my early forties, I developed a chronic health condition that left me unable to work for several years, and most days barely able to get out of bed due to extreme fatigue, brain fog and pain. I lost my banking job, and eventually lost my home. I saw a multitude of doctors to try to find out what was wrong with me, and used every tool in my metaphysical and alternative medicine toolkit to try to heal myself. My seeking became even more intense, and I was looking for a way to escape my pain.

In 2009, I met Scott Kiloby. Since I started working with him and doing the Living Inquiries, the seeking for enlightenment has stopped, and the question of ‘who am I’ is no longer relevant. My victim stories around my health started falling away. Once I started looking at my experience through inquiry, everything changed. I stopped chasing something ‘out there.’ I no longer seek some future state of happiness or peace. This is not to say that I don’t have problems, or ever experience pain. Quite the contrary. I still use the inquiries regularly, and now there is much less avoidance or resistance to what I’m experiencing. I experience more and more freedom in the present moment, exactly as it appears.

Having trained with Scott, I was one of the first to be certified as a Senior Living Inquiries Facilitator and Trainer in early 2012. In 2014, I moved to CA and became a business partner with Scott at The Kiloby Center for Recovery, where we worked with people suffering from addiction, anxiety, depression and more for the next 8 years.

I can’t imagine my life without these inquiries. They saved me from myself. If you are still suffering, searching, longing… I encourage you to give this a try.

As a young child I saw a picture of Jesus gazing lovingly at some children around his feet. I immediately longed for the unconditional love I saw in his gaze. At the same time, I was being read fairy tales, like Cinderella, and came to believe that romantic love would satisfy that longing for love.

So, I married my handsome prince at age 19. But then, by age 29, I found myself alone, as a single mother, with four young children. I was devastated and convinced that something was terribly wrong with me, to have ended up in such a predicament. 

I had learned to love and please others, but not how to love and respect myself. I was a “good girl,” and repressed my urges to have my own needs acknowledged and met. A wise teacher later told me, “We need to love everyone, including ourselves.” This was an amazing revelation for me!

Learning to meditate helped immensely to bring moments of peace, while I was sitting still, though I was still being triggered regularly in my relationships. Finally, the Kiloby Inquiries taught me how to turn my attention inside in daily life – towards the trapped thoughts and emotions I’d been running from – so that I could face and release them. It was like some tender, lost children began coming home, to take their rightful place in my inner world. 

I am honored and excited to be able to facilitate these wonderful inquiries for others.

Sumitra lives in Eugene, Oregon, US.  She has four grown children and six grandchildren. For many years she lived and worked in a yoga retreat community in California, and has taught yoga, meditation and Compassionate Communication in addition to facilitating the tools of the Kiloby Inquiries (since 2013).

Working with compulsions – especially regarding food – is a special interest for Sumitra. 

She also loves working with couples and others with relationship challenges in a simple deep listening practice that allows each person to be truly heard and acknowledged.

Kiloby Inquiries all dimension certified trainer & facilitator ✅.  

 

I am a non bypassing non-dual teacher with 13 years of direct experience. Waking up and abiding in our true nature was not enough. Some unconscious repressed fear was debilitating my expression for years. Stepping into the power of my voice fully was only possible with KI. In 2020 signing up to KI training with Scott and Dan changed the trajectory and the quality of my life and work. I released loads of repressed shame and anger from my system and now am able to let live manifest and express effortlessly. And I know you can live and be the fullest free expression of YOU!

 

I am so passionate about this method of deprograming & embodiment that I am here to inspire others to experience it for themselves. These tools and my perseverance in experimenting with them brought effortlessness, ease in the unknown, financial abundance, freedom of expression, burst of creativity and such a fulfilling work environment, where everyone is honoring integrity, authenticity and inner deepening. I’ve learned so much from all my fellow trainees and clients, it’s been such a privilege to hold space and witness their growth and transformation. I’ve been training in KI with Scott and on my own since 2021 and now so excited to train all dimensions training for full immersion in this work. 

 

I have experience working with: parents and children, childhood trauma, repression of voice/power/expression, non-dual bypassing, spiritual seeking, emotional repression, addiction, chronic pain, abuse, sexual abuse, sexual repression, depression, PTSD, birth trauma mother and baby, grief and loss, couples counseling, lack and scarcity mindset. 

 

I can help you move beyond suffering and fear into the world more fully with your gifts, authenticity and uniqueness recognizing your unbroken, true nature. 

 
Alec Rodrigues has been certified to facilitate inquiry since 2015 and brings a keen sense of intuition to his work. He believes that in connection, the deepest healing takes place, that the mirror of relationship is the best crucible for transformation. Through rest and inquiry, Alec has found the empowerment to meet others authentically and stop running so damn fast from the seeming “ordinariness” of life.

He currently lives in Washington state with his girlfriend and works as a training assistant for the KI Personal Mentorship Program, where he empowers enrollees by teaching them the KI tools.