Lessons in Somatic Co-Leadership with Young Feminists
Written by Dani Prisacariu
Disembodiment isn’t just a personal struggle—it’s a political one. When we’re disconnected from our bodies, we’re more easily swept up in urgency, burnout, and isolation. We default to survival instead of imagination, reaction instead of vision.
In movements that demand our full humanity, being out of touch with ourselves comes at a high cost. What if healing wasn’t a side project we squeeze in alone, but the foundation for how we lead, collaborate, and transform together?
In late 2024, I facilitated a Co-Leadership Coaching Circle through the Closer Than You Think, that brought together young feminist activists from across continents. This wasn’t a course or a lecture. It was a practice space—for experimentation, connection, and learning in and through the body. Read more about the overall co-leadership coaching initiative here.
We began with one simple truth: the body is not a side note in leadership. It’s where leadership begins. It’s where clarity lives, where our longings first stir, where our patterns play out, and where change becomes possible—not just conceptually, but in real time, through sensation, breath, and choice. This was not about learning new techniques to stack on top of burnout. It was about reorienting from the inside out. Feeling ourselves again, in community. Practicing leadership that is rooted, relational, and honest.
Over two months, we met for eight sessions. During the sessions, we practiced centering and other somatic practices. We explored how our leadership has been shaped—by family, systems, trauma, and movement culture. We named longings and commitments. We learned to listen through the body. Outside the sessions, participants continued practicing, noticing, and reflecting. But the magic happened in relationship: witnessing one another’s truths and breakthroughs.
One participant captured it perfectly:
“It felt like rowing in a team. We weren’t trying to go faster alone. We were learning to move together. That changed everything.”
Welcoming the longing
One thing became clear early on: it’s hard to name what we long for. Many of us are fluent in resistance— we can speak easily about what we’re against. But longing? Vision? That’s a different language.
And yet, under the surface, longings were alive in the sessions:
“To build projects without collapsing from burnout.”
“To feel less alone in leadership.”
“To reclaim self-worth, not just survive.”
“To show up with honesty and boundaries, not performance.”
What helped those longings emerge? Not strategy. Not analysis. But being welcomed. Being received with kindness. Having others say, “Yes, we see that. We want that for you, too.”
That’s what builds the muscle. That’s how we reclaim imagination.
Repetition. Repetition. Repetition.
Some practices stayed with people long after the sessions ended:
“Centering gave me something I could return to—even when everything else felt like too much.”
“I finally understood that I don’t have to take it all on alone. I can ask for help.”
“The commitment practice made me realize what I actually care about—not just what I think I should be doing.”
“I started noticing my boundaries in my body before I could name them with words.”
It wasn’t about doing everything. It was about doing something consistently. Repetition—especially of centering—helped turn insight into capacity.
Even through the screen, something stuck. Even across time zones, people began to feel less alone.
From isolation to interdependence
At the start, most people named a deep sense of isolation. Not just in their movements—but in themselves. By the end, what grew was a felt sense of interdependence. Not just as a concept, but as a practice and possibility.
“Healing through the body helps me reconnect to my own wisdom.”
“Doing this together reminded me I don’t have to carry everything alone.”
“This was the first space where I felt like I could bring all of me, not just the competent version.”
“Our co-leadership collaboration almost ended. These sessions gave us a third way forward.”
This is what happens when we shift from trying to fix ourselves to trying to feel and meet ourselves where we are—in community.
You can take a first step
If this touches and opens something in you, let it move you towards action, towards making small shifts that might have a profound impact on the future.You don’t need a perfect plan or a massive shift to begin integrating somatic work. Start by embedding small practices into what already exists. Here are some concrete steps:
Begin with a few minutes of centering at the start of every team meeting. You’ll be surprised how much it changes the tone.
Build check-ins around how people feel in their bodies, not just updates on tasks. It creates space for honesty and connection.
Name and revisit commitments. Invite each person to define what they're moving toward, and build collective commitments.
Make asking for support a norm, not an exception. Create regular prompts or structures for checking in about capacity.
Normalize rest and slowness as strategic, not indulgent. Celebrate boundaries and pauses as part of sustainable leadership.
When these practices are embedded consistently, they strengthen trust, clarity, and the capacity to stay connected under pressure. This is not soft. This is infrastructure.
“This doesn’t have to be huge. But it has to be real.”
“We need to nourish the fabric of our movements—not just stretch it thinner.”
This is essential. When we move from a more centered place, we relate differently. We strategize differently. We stay longer.
As one of my teachers, Richard Strozzi, said, “Take it easy, but take it!”
If you'd like a gentle place to begin, I’ve recorded a short guided centering practice you can access here and use for yourself and your team.
Towards embodied leadership
Facilitating this group reminded me why I do this work. People are carrying so much. Many are close to giving up. What they need isn’t more pressure. It’s more space. More witnessing. More tools that reconnect them to aliveness.
And while online worked, I keep imagining: what if this happened locally? What if groups practiced together regularly? What if embodiment became a shared movement language?
We’re not meant to do this alone. And we don’t have to. If you’re part of a team, a network, an organization—or simply someone longing for a more rooted way to lead—this work is for you.
Start with one breath. One practice. One honest conversation.
Let the body lead.
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Dani is a somatic coach and facilitator supporting individuals and organizations committed to social transformation. They guide people and collectives through embodied processes that align values, vision, and action. You can get in touch with them at hello@daniprisacariu.com.
*This experimental program is continuing in different ways, and seeking to focus more co-leaders in the Majority World. As a small program, we can only support a few pairs at a time but try to organize activities open to a larger community from time to time.
Read the previous article in this series that shares more about the coaching program and reflections about the unique experiences of coaching co-leaders.
If you want to stay updated on these activities, it’s best to follow us on instagram @think.closer
Please feel free to reach out to us on email: info@closerthanyouthink.co