How can
limbic system therapy help resolve trauma?
Instead of focusing on
understanding and reasoning, limbic system therapy targets the automatic
reactions, dispositions, and interpretations shaped by trauma. By rewiring
these automatic perceptions through deep experiential encounters, the brain can
be transformed.
Can yoga
heal trauma?
Across the studies
included in this review, the main effects that a yoga practice had on
participants with psychological trauma were increased self-compassion, feeling
more centred, improved coping skills, a better mind–body relationship, and
enhanced relationships with others.
Yoga can be effective
for treating developmental disorders and treating the limbic system can be
effective for trauma and reduce pain.
Where is
trauma stored in the body in yoga?
You may have heard that
“hip openers” in yoga unlock our emotions. And after recognizing that the psoas
stores trauma in this way, it's not hard to see why. Gentle hip opening yoga
poses are a soothing and effective way to release tension from the psoas
muscles.
Where is
trauma stored in the body in yoga?
You may have heard that
“hip openers” in yoga unlock our emotions. And after recognizing that the psoas
stores trauma in this way, it's not hard to see why. Gentle hip opening yoga
poses are a soothing and effective way to release tension from the psoas
muscles.
The Psoas Muscle: How
it Holds onto Trauma and How to Let it Go, with Yoga
*Note to reader: In
reading and hearing about trauma there is the potential to be triggered. Please
take care of yourself. Not this article nor a yoga practice are replacements
for a one-on-one relationship with a licensed mental health professional.
Please visit www.psychologytoday.com to find a licensed professional in your
area.*
The Psoas Muscle, also
referred to as The Muscle of the Soul, holds onto traumatic experiences on a
cellular level. Releasing it with the right yoga poses can help the body
process through and release trauma responses that have been locked within for
years.
Psoas, so
huh?
I’ve seen many a
scrunched up face and look of confusion when I’ve mentioned the psoas at
trainings and talks. Let’s all get on the same page and start with what the
heck the psoas (pronounced, so-as), is.
First off, we have two
of them. The psoas are muscles that originate at the 12th thoracic vertebrae
(mid-back) and the 5th lumbar vertebrae (low back) on either side, run through
either side of the pelvis, and insert at either side of the lesser trochanter
of the femur (inner thigh bone at the hip).
No other muscles in our body connect our torso to our legs- the psoas
have a big responsibility! Their responsibility includes:
*Flexing the hip joint-
think about the action of bending one knee toward the chest; think about the
action that occurs at the front of the hip when riding a bike, or walking up
stairs
*Flexing the torso-
think, bending forward to pick something up off the ground
*Stabilizing our spine-
think, sitting with good posture or standing upright
The psoas muscles are
also our deepest core muscles! We truly need our psoas for day-to-day
functioning. A tense, restricted, tight, or neglected psoas can’t do its job
and other muscles like the back and shoulders work overtime to compensate. This
leads to low back pain, shoulder and upper back pain, pelvic pain, and
overactive quadriceps muscles. The psoas also have a role in our breathing, as
they attach to the diaphragm via connective tissue.
….coming up I’ll talk
about how we can release a stressed and constricted psoas, but first, let’s
look at it’s relationship to trauma.
How the psoas relates
to sexual trauma:
This is where it gets
interesting. As the psoas is responsible for keeping us upright, a necessity of
our very nature and way of life, the psoas become the protector of our center
of gravity at the very core of our being. The psoas are linked to our reptilian
brain- the oldest part of our brain that consists of the brain stem and the
spinal cord. The reptilian brain relates
to our primitive selves.
The psoas muscles
embody our survival instincts and primal urges and
could well be called
the fight or flight muscles of the human anatomy.
During traumatic
experiences, as the nervous system (which includes the brain) receives the
threatening information that the body is being attacked, the body goes into
high-alert and the psoas muscles tighten and contract as a means of defense and
protection. During sexual trauma in particular, the psoas is highly
compromised, forced to comply with the physical and emotional strain willed
against it.
While tense shoulders
or sore feet may benefit from a hot bath soak or rest, the psoas is more
complex.
Each new triggering
event (these can be events that are merely stressful and not fully
traumatizing) creates additional tension as the psoas remembers what it learned
during the original traumatic event: when my body is attacked, I must harden my
shell to protect it.
Psoas pain is not
generally localized to the hip area. We typically experience the pain that
results from a contracted psoas indirectly, meaning it isn’t your psoas that
hurts, but rather adjacent areas such as the shoulders, upper back, or lower
back. Women with sexual trauma and a contracted psoas may experience pain
during intercourse as a result of the psoas’ conditioned, high-alert state.
Kind regards
Samuel
samuel.ku35@gmail.com
0046735501680
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