Let’s jump in…
The healing journey is paved with tools that can assist us to fight with clarity and focus. Every journey is filled with challenges and stresses that can and will attempt to undermine our wellbeing and dysregulate our nervous system. One of the most difficult aspects of my own healing journey was learning to get still and practice mindfulness when feeling overwhelmed or triggered.
Oftentimes, healing is confused with the tools that support healing. In other words, no amount of getting still or mindfulness is going to heal us, change what happened, erase the memories or change unhealthy/untrue beliefs. In fact, learning how to get still and practice mindfulness is like putting the fractured leg in a cast to keep it stable while the bone heals. Post-traumatic growth has to be supported with tools that help us to quiet our mind, emotionally stabilize and regulate our nervous system.
Mindfulness isn’t simply about being aware or being present, it’s about being in tune and in touch with the body, and our ability to create stability for our healing through active involvement in the mind-body connection. Dr. Patricia Hart states, “the mind-body connection means that our thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and attitudes can positively or negatively affect our biological functioning. In other words, our minds can affect how healthy our bodies are!”
Triggers, flashbacks and traumatic memories can and will have a negative effect on our body, as well as our mental and emotional stability…which is to say that our warfare is felt in and throughout our body. Dysregulation — long-term, can have harmful side effects. The body’s defense system is constantly being activated by post-traumatic stress, therefore it is critical to our physical wellbeing that we learn how to regulate our mind to help the body’s defense system to stand down and to deactivate.
“The brain and peripheral nervous system, the endocrine and immune systems, and indeed, all the organs of our body and all the emotional responses we have, share a common chemical language and are constantly communicating with one another.”
– Dr. James Gordon (founder of the Center for Mind-Body Medicine)
When you think about the “mind” in the mind-body connection, we’re not talking about the brain. We’re talking about mental images, thoughts, beliefs, emotions and attitudes. The body gets it’s instructions, messages, commands from our mind or state of mind. There’s a constant communication going on between the mind and body, both consciously and subconsciously. Think for a minute about how you feel in your body when you’re triggered or stressed. Our muscles can tense up, our breathing can become labored, our heart rate can become elevated, our stomach can start to hurt, we can become jittery, our head can start to hurt, we can begin to sweat, and even become faint or fatigued. Our mind is sounding the alarm in our body and when it does, our body is designed to respond accordingly.
A Thrive Training and Consulting article states, “For someone who is struggling with anxiety or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and even depression, the stress response is chronically triggered and key biological systems become altered and dysregulated.
There are three interrelated components of the human stress response: catecholamines, HPA axis, and immune system response.
- Catecholamines – These include epinephrine, norepinephrine, and dopamine, which are released by the sympathetic nervous system in response to threat.
- The hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis – This system responds with a cascade of stress biochemicals. The hypothalamus releases corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH), which triggers the pituitary to release adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), finally causing the adrenal glands to activate the flow of cortisol, raising the blood glucose level to respond to threat.
- The immune system –Elevated levels of stress hormones depress immune function. Under normal conditions, the immune system releases proinflammatory cytokines, which increase inflammation to help the body heal wounds and fight infection. Severe and chronic stress causes inflammation levels to be abnormally high, resulting in vulnerability to physical problems and disease.
According to the American Psychological Association, this can cause a long-term drain on all systems of the body.“
Picture courtesy of Thrive Training and Consulting
In our healing journey, we will be challenged to prioritize our mental and physical health. Understanding the mind-body connection is key to consciously and holistically healing. The body cannot regulate without the mind being regulated. Post-traumatic stress, the aftermath of a traumatic experience, is the wilderness of our healing journey. I was one of those who thought that the healing was just a matter of time but I realized, after suffering for years, that healing is one part time and one part regulation — learning to regulate mind and body.
I was, like many trauma survivors, unaware that the war within was never going to end without my participation in the work, the hard work — mind, body and spirit. By participation I mean, support. I could not support my body until I made the connection between mind and body. For me, I had to start somewhere, somewhere simple. There is much to learn about the impact post-traumatic stress can have on the body, and I’ve listed some great books to read below, but the one truth that I want you to take away from this session is this: your healing is not simplistic, it’s holistic. Healing is spiritual, mental and physical. The Bible puts it this way: “May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:23).
Getting still and practicing mindfulness is a tool that many people can benefit from. I did. Andrea Rice, an award-winning journalist who covers mental health news says:
“According to modern understandings of post-traumatic stress, memories and emotions from trauma are often stored in the body. Consequently, some people with a history of trauma tend to feel disconnected from their bodies — known as dissociation — as a defense mechanism.
Traditional mindfulness practices often ask individuals to connect with sensations in their bodies. For trauma survivors, this form of connection doesn’t always feel safe.
A trauma-informed approach to mindfulness works by modifying traditional meditation practices with grounding, anchoring, and self-regulation techniques to maintain balance in the nervous system, which can help traumatized people manage their symptoms and feel safer in their bodies.
Trauma-informed mindfulness can also involve:
- Performing a physical activity with present moment awareness rather than sitting still in meditation
- Observing objects, colors, or the space around you
- Listening attentively to music as a mindful practice
Below are 7 tools you can use to improve your mind-body connection:
- Dance Movement
- Music Therapy
- Psychotherapy
- Journaling
- Breathwork
- Walking
- Physical Exercise
Find whatever works for you. And remember, what you do for your body will give your mind the support and stability to heal.
Today’s Exercise
- Consider reading one of the recommended books below to expand your understand of the mind, body connection:
Bless you,
Patrick
