Tighten up your Mind,
while you loosen up your Body
"Mind-Body therapy" is a phrase
which refers to methods which treat health problems by utilizing the powers of the mind.
This works in tandem with the powers of the unconscious inner healer,
recognized by science as the auto-immune system. Two
of the historical sources of the current therapies are psychoanalysts' Wilhelm Reich and
Franz Alexander.
Reich observed that emotions were stored, not in the
mind, but in the body as muscular tension. Carrying this tension
chronically leads to chronic emotional problems and sets the stage for
physical symptoms and disease.
Similarly, Franz Alexander observed that persons
with different chronic illnesses had corresponding personality styles.
He concluded that addressing the personal style, or constitutional type, of the individual led to
emotional empowerment as well as healing of disease. Others filled in
this body of knowledge leading up to current interest in the internal
biological mechanisms that create the climate for health or illness. A
large part of this work is focused on stress, stress related illnesses
and how to empower the patient to find a way back to health both
emotionally and in their physical body. It should be noted that these
developments have been taking place in the health care field in the
West without any systematic consultation with Asian health arts. The health arts of Asia
including Yoga from India and Qi Gong from China have had fully
developed "mind-body" therapies with written histories dating back two
to four thousand years.
Mind-Body therapies range from traditional "talk therapy" to more
specific "body oriented" therapies. Specific treatment methods include
1, learning about the causative factors of symptoms to be able to reduce
their impact, 2, imagery work to empower the unconscious healing mind
and 3, stress
reduction exercises such as breath work and mindfulness training.
Frequently more than one type of therapy method will be used, especially
with chronic and painful conditions. The specific methods are either
borrowed or altered Asian health arts modified to the taste of American
culture.
Problems for
which this kind of therapy is useful include anxiety, depression and post
traumatic stress disorder. A range of physical symptoms including
high blood pressure, habitual food issues including digestive
complaints, chronic pain and pre surgery preparation are also healed
with mind- body therapies.
Therapy can be
done individually or in small groups.
Refer to
CLASSES for more information on groups.