Betsy Polatin
with Aline LaPierre and Jennifer Campolo
An internationally recognized breathing/movement and somatic trauma specialist, Betsy Polatin trained in NeuroAffective Touch in 2024. Earlier this month, she sat down with Aline and Jennifer to chat about her new book, EXploracises: Heaven and Earth Meet in Synchronized Embodiment. We began the interview by asking Betsy what initiated her epic lifelong somatic exploration. We reflected on the resonance between Betsy's body of work and Aline’s NeuroAffective Touch and why discovery is never-ending for pioneers and artists in all fields.
___________________
Aline: Betsy, I'm fascinated by your career working somatically with actors and creative people. You were a somatic pioneer from the start. In the sixties and seventies, you were already uncovering something esoteric, magical, and unknown. Please share how you discovered your work and became involved in it.
Betsy: The first real lightbulb moment occurred over 50 years ago! I was a young dancer and decided to take a choreography class. The man I happened to sign up with was Albert Peso. He is the developer of psychomotor therapy, a well-known, popular, and effective somatic therapy. But back then, he hadn't developed it yet… he was developing it on us in the class!
I remember he had us stand in a circle. One person stood in the middle and held out their arms in front of them, as if offering or opening to each person—first to this one, then that one, to every person in the circle.
Some people laughed, some cried, some felt nervous and didn't know what to do, and a few enjoyed it. This was the first time I consciously realized that our bodily movements and emotions are interconnected. I had experienced this before, but I hadn't consciously reflected on it or brought it to light. That was precisely what Peso was doing: identifying these bodily positions and emotions and integrating them. Little did I know that this would become my life's work!
Aline: That is the magic that sets us on our path! Without realizing it, we suddenly find ourselves at an inflection point. And there you were!
Betsy: Yes. As a dancer, I did enjoy being on stage—I loved that part! But I became more interested in how one moves, what it feels like, and how a healthy system moves. What is it like to get injured? How do you recover from injury? All of that became really interesting.
I lived in New York, and for ten years, I worked with dancers, exploring their movement patterns. Then, I began working with everyday people, such as those who struggle to walk because of hip pain. It became really interesting to me. It still is, actually.
Aline: It still continues to fascinate you?
Betsy: It does. It doesn't lose anything; it simply evolves. Dance led me to the Alexander Technique, which was a completely different experience. I found myself thinking, "This is me…but this is not the me I always knew as me!" Wait a minute! How could that happen? The Alexander Technique became very interesting to me.
Jennifer: Can I reflect something back? You said, "This is me, but this is not the me I always knew as me." When we heal and become embodied or wake up to our bodies and receive the support we need to be in them, it changes our sense of who and what we are and opens up many people who have been shut down. I see a connection there to NeuroAffective Touch.
Betsy: Absolutely. That's a place where Aline's work and mine share something in common—that space—I don't know the word for it, but I can feel it.
Aline: If we're creatively involved with ourselves, each new moment prompts the question, "Is this me?" Not in the sense of "I don't know who I am," but as a way of discovering a new aspect of oneself.
Betsy: Yes! This is one of the places where Aline and I are similar. We both have creative backgrounds. Not everyone practicing psychotherapy or body-mind work has a creative background. I made jewelry when I was younger, and dance was also a creative outlet. There was always creativity in our lives, and we share that. Not everyone possesses that… what's the word for it?
Jennifer: A kind of dynamism?
Aline: For me, it's about recognizing the surprise that each moment unfolds. What will the discovery of the next moment reveal? I look for that little piece that's different, new, or emerging, paying close attention not to miss it.
Betsy: Right! That happens on many levels. For me, the introductory level was the physicality of feeling. Later, through my involvement in somatic trauma work, I had a sense of the psychology of it. But my primary language is the ability to feel it. It's never boring.
One time, when I was giving someone an Alexander Technique lesson, he said, "Don't you get tired of doing the same thing over and over?" I was surprised. I said, "I don't. I never do!" I never even thought it was the same thing over and over. For me, it's as Aline said: "What will the next moment reveal?”
Aline: Coming to our work from a creative background rather than an academic one, I see the difference. An academic background focuses on what has been established and asks, "How do we recognize what has been proven to be true?" Whereas I'm always asking, "What is it that has never been seen, that has never happened, that the soul or spirit wants to present?" It's a different lens.
Betsy: Very, very different.
Jennifer: Bottom-up, rather than top-down?
Betsy: It's more than bottom-up—it's in all directions!
Jennifer: Aline, you wrote that we don't know how deep the bottom goes. Some people seek to interact with this depth and mystery, and it takes courage to choose that path.
Betsy: Definitely. It's the step before the floor appears! But there is an inner knowing.
Developing EXploracises
Aline: Betsy, you believed Humanual was your final work. You mentioned you didn't realize you still had another book in you. So, please share how the new book you are launching this month came to be.
Betsy: Wow, what a journey this one's been! In Humanual, the exercises or explorations are referred to as either EX-plorations or EX-ercises. In the new book, they're combined into one EX.
Jennifer: I see! That's how that word came about—exploracises—melding exploration and exercise together! Just like in Humanual, where "human" and "manual" come together.
Betsy: Exercises and explorations were already there, in a way…
Aline: It was implicit!
Betsy: It was implicit—it emerged. Let me take a step back…I was working with a lot of performers, practicing breathwork, and utilizing the Alexander technique. Some clients would get better, but others did not. For example, one individual with back pain might feel better after five or ten lessons, whereas others did not. So I asked, "What is it?”
Then I read Waking the Tiger in the late '90s and thought, "Trauma!" Initially, I was reluctant to engage with trauma because I focused on well-being, health, and moving in accord with our design. However, I now appreciate including trauma, as it helps uncover deeper insights into what's happening. Could someone's persistent back pain be linked to an incident when they were four years old and fell down the stairs?
My observation was that there was more. That's how the exploracises came about. Breathwork is great; trauma work is great. It's all wonderful—but there's more: this unity, this oneness. I talk about it in Humanual as an epic journey to your expanded self. It has always existed, but over time, the unity of the "Me" and the "We," of heaven and earth, the macrocosm and microcosm, of self and other, and the connections to fascial unity—it was like, "This is amazing!”
Jennifer: Are you referring to fascia in the human body?
Betsy: Yes! You have to talk about that!
Aline: And how do you talk about it? It's not linear, and language is linear.
Betsy: In that sense, writing this book was hard. Finding words that convey these concepts. The subtitle is Heaven and Earth Meet in Synchronized Embodiment.
Jennifer: That's powerful. I need to get a copy of this book!
Betsy: Perfect! I started working with Rory Duff in England, who has mapped out the ley lines—the earth's energy lines. I visited some of the nodes where the lines converge, and they were incredibly powerful. If you are at all tuned in, you feel, "Whoa, what's going on here?”
Jennifer: This is in England?
Betsy: No, the ley lines are found all over the world. This was another very physical experience. At the same time, I became more interested in astrology and astronomy. There is movement there, and we are affected by it. Again, it's very physical.
Jennifer: In astrology, it is said, "As above, so below." I like what you're saying—it's not merely a static heaven above and a static earth below; rather, all these greater energies flow through our bodies and fields.
Betsy: Synchronized embodiment! I used that phrase once in Humanual and thought, "That's a really good phrase. I should give that a little more presence." I continued to pay attention to what is happening, moving, and working within. I learned a lot from taking the NeuroAffective Touch training. One of the things I loved was the zinc spark [a scientifically observable burst of light from zinc ions released the moment a human egg is fertilized].
In a section of Exploracises, I talk about light—as in light and dark, and as in heavy and light. I wonder how much of that zinc spark we retain. I found that really interesting. How does it connect to heavy and light?
Jennifer: In Humanual, you talk about the natural upward movement of our energy. This concept relates to Qigong, which recognizes that qi tends to rise. Some systems understand the rising movement. When we experience dissociation, do we feel too light and in need of grounding? Do we feel that we can feel light within gravity?
Betsy: What you said reminds me of something Ida Rolf said: "Gravity is the therapist." I go into this in Exploracises. People tend to see gravity as a heavy force, but they overlook that there's also anti-gravity—our support, our uprightness. When someone slouches and claims, "Gravity does this," I say, "No, gravity doesn't do that—otherwise, everyone would be slouching!”
I was watching my four-year-old grandson the other day. He was sitting so very upright. He wasn't trying to be upright—he just is. If gravity pushes everyone down, then why isn't he being pushed down? It's not gravity; it's our own difficulties in life that pull us down.
Jennifer: I want to bring something from your chapter in Somatic-Oriented Therapies, which you called The Humanual Polyvagal Smile. I did the practice as I read it. I was stunned because the words you chose resonated with my sensations in ways I hadn't even recognized myself.
You wrote, "Let the smile resonate in your eyes, and feel the circular muscles around your eyes expand." I thought, "Oh my God—I can feel that!" I hadn't consciously put that sensation into words before. It released some energy and expanded my awareness. Is that part of your approach—expressing unconscious sensations in words?
Betsy: That's something else Aline and I share: naming something as a sensation and making it conscious.
Aline: Yes, we both do that!
Betsy: It comes from many years of work—our headlamp shines forward in that direction!
Jennifer: It's that curiosity combined with the capacity to keep refining and refining, to reach that level of nuance.
Betsy: Refinement does take time!
Jennifer: It's a gift, too, because it opens doors, allowing others with curiosity, courage, and creativity to feel better equipped. I'm in my forties now and on a huge journey of discovery. It's humbling to explore our body! I wasn't an athlete or dancer, and I'm realizing how much I didn't know was here.
Betsy: In this work, discovery never ends. There's always more. Sometimes, after a session—whether I've received or given it—I think, "Oh wow, that's it." Then in the next moment, there's something new. There is no "That's it!" It keeps going.
Jennifer: What advice would you offer to younger somatic practitioners?
Aline: Or even to those who believe they know it all?
Betsy: Well, let's start this way: No one knows it all. It's not possible. I learned by doing. I've done a lot of teaching, given many sessions, and worked with many people in many different realms. I've learned from my mistakes. I've learned from other people—and I've also learned from books and trainings, including from Peter Levine, Gabor Maté, and Aline.
I don't mind learning. I'm currently a bit resistant to trainings because I've done so many, but if I think it will be good for me, if it will add to what I already do and support, I'll still do it. The more we know about the possibilities, the better we can be there for what a person needs.
Jennifer: That's so touching to hear. It's not that we go to therapy to sit with an expert who can "fix” us—it's about exploring with someone who has the skills to help reflect and hold certain parts of the process with us. That kind of relationship is so much more empowering and human. In today's cultural climate, many people are afraid of making mistakes. Hearing you say you learned from your mistakes is a good reminder that mistakes are actually learning opportunities.
Aline: Betsy, in your process, which has so many levels, what is your current edge? Since growth never stops, where do you feel you are in your own growth right now?
Betsy: I've finished the book and handed it over to the publisher, so I have a moment to pause. At the same time, my house wasn't far from where the Palisades fire ended. I’m greatly affected by that, as are many others here in Los Angeles. Then there's everything happening in our political climate.
I feel my work is important and helpful, and I'm not sure where it's going next. There are many new pieces and I do feel the same openness, or possibility. If the route changes, then okay, we will go that way now—pay attention to the bigger picture.
Aline: Particularly now that we are officially entering the Age of Aquarius. For me, with a significant portion of my life's arc completed, it's interesting to be at this juncture—at the conclusion of the Age of Pisces, and precisely at the transition point to a new age.
Betsy: I've always lived an alternative lifestyle and knew that change was coming. I listened to Bob Dylan growing up—A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall and The Times They Are A-Changin'. I always knew change would come—I just never thought it would happen in my lifetime. I thought it would come long after I was gone.
But here it is—the change is happening. Every system—astrology, the 24,000-year processional cycle of the equinoxes, the Indian style of the Yuga cycles—points to this moment as the time of change. So I believe it will affect all of us. I'm not sure how.
Jennifer: Your work has been helping us navigate change as best we can individually, through movement, breath, and embodiment. You are a change specialist, Betsy, and we all stand to benefit from your contributions.
Betsy: I believe we have this internal organization of well-being. That's still there, and it is my work, along with Aline's, to help people access it.
Jennifer: This is a great note to end on. I'm so thankful for this conversation. It's been an honor to sit with both of you and absorb your wisdom.
Betsy: Your input was lovely, Jennifer. I appreciate those kinds of observations. Of course, I always appreciate Aline and her brilliance and loveliness.
___________________
ABOUT BETSY POLATIN
An internationally recognized breathing/movement and somatic trauma specialist, Betsy Polatin, MFA, SEP, AmSAT, was a professor at Boston University's College of Fine Arts for 25 years. She is the author of the best-seller, HUMANUAL, an Epic Journey to your Expanded Self, and EXPLORACISES, Heaven and Earth Meet in Synchronized Embodiment. Her background includes 45 years of movement education and performance, as well as training in the Alexander Technique, music, yoga, meditation, spiritual practices, trauma resolution (including NeuroAffective Touch), and the broader healing arts.
Betsy leads international trainings, where she presents her unique and revolutionary fusion of ideas: scientific knowledge combined with ancient spiritual wisdom, universal forces, and intuitive human creativity. She has presented her work at trauma and yoga conferences in the US and abroad and co-teaches with Peter A. Levine, PhD. and Dr. Gabor Maté. A well-known educator, she has published numerous articles in the Huffington Post. She maintains an in-person practice in Malibu Canyon and an international private practice online. https://www.betsypolatin.com/
