Body Language of Feet Wrapped Around Legs Of Chair
Cue: Feet Wrapped Around Legs Of Chair
Synonym(s): Ankles Wrapped Around Legs Of Chair, Legs Clamped Around Chair, Wrapping The Legs Around The Feet Of A Chair.
Description: The ankles are wrapped around the feet of a chair as if shackled in place.
In One Sentence: Wrapping the feet around the legs of a chair signals the desire to be locked in place and feel safe and secure.
How To Use it: Wrap the legs around the chair when you want to create the sense of security for which you currently lack. Anchoring to your surroundings can help ground you and by extension your mind. That being said, the cue indicates lack of confidence, so should generally be avoided.
Context: General.
Verbal Translation: “I’m stressed and uncomfortable and I’m bracing myself for a bad outcome from which I can not escape. I’m wrapping my feet, clenching my hands against the arms rests, and trying to secure myself from being tossed.”
Variant: We habitually see this self arresting, gripping when people ride in the passenger side of a car with a bad or aggressive driver. People will hold their seat belt, the upper hand grip on the ceiling of the car or the grips in the door. We also see this in amusement park roller coaster rides where people hold their restraints.
Cue In Action: During a high intensity inquisition, he wrapped his feet around the legs of the chair.
Meaning and/or Motivation: It says, “I’m not going anywhere, not doing anything and not cooperating.” This posture is a freeze response and is normal during high stress, discomfort and concern, especially when exiting is not possible. Locking into a chair gives us a protective feeling as we try to prevent ourselves from being figuratively tossed around.
We see this when people are fastened into roller coasters where people will hug the restraints for extra safety.
When the hands grip the armrest coupled with ankles locked around the legs of the chair, not only does it give us comfort, but it provides a tactile release. It gives our hands something to do, thus preventing them from gesticulating. This is yet another way we nonverbally express our desire to keep quiet, as gesticulating could give up information we wish not to divulge.
Cue Cluster: Usually the head is pulled back or turned away, chin up, body leaning deep into the seat, eyes are forward, face is blank, lips pursed, the lip or inside of the cheek may be bitten, teeth clenched, knuckles turning white from gripping the arm rest and blanching of the skin.
Body Language Category: Anger, Clenching and gripping, Dislike (nonverbal), Escape movements, Frustrated body language, Hostile body language, Masked emotions, Pacifying, Stubborn or stubbornness.
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