Is your body your enemy?

I just did the most amazing meditation that teaches you to return to your body as a long lost friend. It really blew me away! I loved it! (It’s useful for anxiety and PTSD.)

Has anyone else been estranged from their body—or experienced healing from this?

 

Hi @Diana-M you'd asked me what I meant by that, right?

I think it was from Peter Levine, who's the father of these somatic practices, including somatic tracking, as a way of reclaiming your body from trauma. I read your post and @Rusty Red 's reply and kept thinking what is that in TMS healing that makes us know it's a mindbody thing but at the same time be fearful we're not healing all the same. We know there's the reduction of cognitive thinking when the amygdala strikes. But it was Levine's pendulation that made me understand better these changes not only in symptoms but also in the way we react to them. I'll leave this link where he explains it:

 

Thanks, @Diana-M !
I haven't had a chance to do this meditation just yet, but did have a realization a bit ago when I rewatched a video of an animation of the cells in the body, and thought, "Wow, they're all just trying to do their best!" They're just working - constantly working - to try to keep this whole thing in balance. All they ever want is homeostasis, some sort of equilibrium. And, when I can remember that "we're actually all on the same team!" - this body and mind - it definitely helps! ....Letting go and fully trusting that maybe, just maybe, this miraculous intricate system doesn't need / want my micromanaging.

 

@feduccini
Wow! I watched your Peter Levine video. Super interesting. How does a person apply this pendulation personally? Do you need a therapist, or can you do it yourself? Or, does it occur naturally? I noticed he talks about the Self (the part of you that observes). I was able to learn a lot about that in Internal Family Systems therapy, so I’m familiar with that.

The other thought I had is the significance of meditation.

 

Les Aria has some pendulation exercises on YouTube. I found them helpful.
At the start of my journey I thought I was super in touch with my body, but I was only in touch with symptoms.
The 5 exercise is one I was taught: 5 things you can see with your eyes slowly scanning a room, 4 things you can hear -2 close up, 2 distant - listen to them for 20-30 seconds each. 3 things you can touch right near you. Close your eyes and explore each thing with your fingers. 2 things you can smell. 1 thing you can taste. The key is no naming or labeling the things in your mind. Just use your senses.
Almost every guided meditation I’ve done asks you to drop into your body by eg. Taking three breaths and sensing your body expand and contract or to sense cool air enter you nose, warm leave.
Body scans are another good way to do this. My favorite is the Slow Savory body scans on Insight Timer.
I also listen to singing bowls - specifically guided ones that focus your attention on the sound, sensing the sounds travel left/right and resonate in your body. I’ve linked my favorite, you can find it by clicking my avatar.
Other ways: during your yoga, see if you can feel sensations on your skin when you do a move, sense temperature changes etc.
In the shower go slow and feel the textures, smell the scents, feel the water path on your body etc.

 

I like Helmuts channel but cannot for the life of me listen to any of the videos Sam posts, shes far too complicated on the subject and i find myself zoning out.

 

I thought that was just me!!!!!

 

I do Yoga Nidre daily before I go to sleep. I use Amy Tenney's Yoga Nidre for Sleep on Spotify. She has a calm and warm voice that I adore. I find that it helps transition my mind from awareness to sleepiness. It's no cure for anxieties or fears but a tool I use that helps support healing.

 

You can do yourself. You already know Sam Miller's concept of allowance, right? That's half of pendulation. The other half is finding a painless spot in your body. Levine calls these areas islands of safety (for me it's my face, and I usually start yawning when I do it). So you dance back and forth between the pain area and the island of safety. You observe the pain and how it moves, observe how it changes as you breath, observe the emotions it brings. Then you go for the island of safety, breath in and out, relax, stay there for a while. Keep doing this for a while.

The idea behind it is that you train the expectation of things getting better when they're hard, because it's the nature of it. And you start appreciating better the symptoms as the moment when your nervous system is cleaning the house.

Yep, the self is the one who observes. The ego is the one who tells you need to have a certain reaction to that observation. At least that's the simplistic way I see it so I don't lose myself in overthing.

I think the self and ego struggle (and other defense mechanisms) is at the heart of chronic symptoms. I don't think it is the traumas, but our mind reactions to them. IFS is all about resolving internal conflicts, and maybe that's the reason it's helped tons of people.

 

I have a hard time with Sam Miller's videos as well, but I don't think they're complicated. I think she hasn't got better yet at speaking to a camera, having to deal with the cam and the script at the same time.

 

No, it's the same for me! I watched a couple of videos of hers that I thought were quite good, but from then on they became, imo, far too unnecessarily convoluted. I found myself going "eh, uh, what?!" I had to laugh when in one of her videos she'd been talking for about half an hour or so and then she suddenly said something along the lines of 'well, I've been prattling on for ages and you'll wondering what on earth I've been going on about'! (Yes, indeed, Sam, I was wondering just that!) I do really like Helmut though.

I haven't listened to Sam's yoga nidra yet, so I'll reserve judgement. Although it's not got good ratings on amazon, my personal yoga nidra favourite that I use regularly is '61 Points of Light: A Yoga Nidra Meditation for Reducing Anxiety and Increasing Concentration' narrated by Loretta Siani https://www.amazon.com/61-Points-of...890&sprefix=61+points+of+light,aps,151&sr=8-1

 

I hear you on that! This video I attached is just a meditation she guides with a soft soothing voice. Nothing complicated.

 

Wow, thanks everyone! I had no idea you were all busy doing these things! I haven’t been tuned into it at all, but now you’ve given me some good places to start.

 

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I agree, it's not the traumas or the stresses. That is a red herring. Many people have severe trauma/stress and they are okay. We have REACTED the way we do to the trauma's or stress's because of our highly sensitised nervous systems overprotecting us. That's the conclusion I have come to. I know this to be true for myself. I don't believe any sociopath or psychopath has ever experienced TMS because their nervous systems are iron clad. These folks are emotionally dead. My assumption is that most TMSers are HSP's i.e. highly sensitive people.

Diana: send messages of safety to your everyday to your nervous system: smile, say re-assuring words, breath calmly, relax your body, hug yourself, visualise a great future, talk to your brain as a best friend, laugh, engage in life, watch funny shows, outcome independence. My biggest thing that has helped sooth me is just knowing my body is not the enemy and my symptoms are manifested by the brain. That is a belief change that has taken me months to accept as truth.

 

She posts videos about "You need to allow" followed by a few days later saying "Allowing isn't isnt enough", no structure whatsover

 

Ah! Interesting! I like Helmut a lot. He’s funny, too. But his posts are all over the place. He just rambles. No structure, too.

 

Really? What did she say was also needed?

 

TMS is the estrangement of a mind from the body. We live in our heads until our body has had enough of estrangement and starts sending us signals of pain. Healing is nothing but the reunification of body and mind.

 

This is so confusing. I always thought of the body as non intellectual. I wonder how the body knows what and when is enough. How does it decide to send signals of pain? All the processing is done by the brain as far as I understand basic biology. Oh dear, this is taking me places I haven’t even began to process.

 

Mike, Here’s this:
The Body Keeps the Score, by Bessel van der Kolk, explores how trauma impacts the brain and body, leading to various mental and physical health issues. It emphasizes that trauma isn't just a psychological experience but a physical one, affecting the nervous system and leaving lasting imprints. The book advocates for treatments that address both the mind and body, highlighting the importance of neuroplasticity and the power of relationships in healing.
Here's a more detailed breakdown:
Key Concepts:

• Trauma's Impact:
  The book explains how trauma can rewire the brain and body, affecting emotional regulation, self-control, and the ability to form healthy relationships.
• The Body's Role:
  It emphasizes that the body "keeps the score," meaning that traumatic experiences are stored in the nervous system, leading to physical symptoms and reactions even when the conscious mind has moved on.
• Healing Approaches:
  Van der Kolk discusses various therapeutic approaches, including neurofeedback, yoga, mindfulness, and therapies that focus on body awareness and movement, to help individuals reconnect with their bodies and regain a sense of safety and control.
• Importance of Relationships:
  The book underscores the crucial role of supportive relationships in the healing process, highlighting how healthy attachments can help trauma survivors feel safe and rebuild trust.
• Neuroplasticity:
  Van der Kolk emphasizes the brain's ability to change and reorganize itself (neuroplasticity) through targeted interventions, offering hope for recovery and rewiring the brain's response to trauma.

In essence, The Body Keeps the Score provides a comprehensive understanding of trauma's impact and offers a roadmap for healing that integrates neuroscience, body-based therapies, and the power of human connection.

There’s also: An Unspoken Voice, How the Body Releases Trauma and Restores Goodness, by Peter Levine. Both of these guys are leaders in the mind-body/trauma field.