Days Without Incident: Thirteen

trigger warning: mentions of assault, incest molestation mentioned

BA van der Kolk published a study in 2014 highlighting the positive effects of yoga on the body and mind of sexual assault victims. He did a randomized controlled trial to measure the participants CAPS, or Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale before and after a trial period of yoga lessons. 

The study took place from 2008 to 2011 and included 64 women. Each woman attended a one-hour class for 10 weeks. Throughout their experience, they also attended assessments with the clinicians to determine the measures of DSM-IV PTSD, affect regulation, and depression (source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25004196/). 

Lucia Sky, bodywork and yoga practitioner with traumatized patients, studies the way that trauma is released from the tension held in your muscles. She says that “mindful touch and movement grounds people and allows them to discover tensions that they may have held for so long that they are no longer even aware of them…when the physical tension is released, the feelings can be released.” 

Kolk says that when you release that tension, it’s not uncommon that a memory will pop up regarding the area you’ve been holding back in. For example, I have always experienced a lot of upper back and shoulder pain. This could be a result of athletic injury or age, but trauma research would suggest that I hold tension in that area because of the way I shelter my chest from others. Even the feeling of a seatbelt brushing against my nipple will trigger a deep bit in my stomach. Sometimes it evokes intense rage. When I stretch this area, I tend to think of the ways I slept with my arms crossed over my chest so that my step sister couldn’t slide her hand up my shirt as I slept (Source: The Body Keeps the Score by BA van der Kolk). If her work interests you, you can find her seminars on her website here: https://www.liciasky.com/index.html.

Research has shown that without the coupling of traditional therapeutic approaches to PTSD with alternative methods like CBT therapy, mindfulness practices like yoga and meditation, or other complementary interventions (i.e. acupuncture, hypnotherapy, progressive relaxation, tai chi, and so much more). The dropout rate of exposure therapy approaches are greater than that of non-trauma-focused approaches. Non-mainstream practices used alongside conventional medicine have promising effects on survivors of abuse or neglect (source: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5939561/). 

Learning how to manage your stress levels through relaxation it’s important when you’re re-learning how to activate your nervous system in an appropriate way. As you become more in tune with your body, you will learn more about the ways that your breath, your water intake, and your body’s ability to maintain homeostasis can help regulate your emotions too. Tomorrow, I’ll discuss the ways in which your emotional and rational brain are triggered in different ways. I find it easier to fully envelop myself in the yoga flow after fully understanding the parts of my brain and body that are being activated.

Progressive relaxation is great. You can do it anywhere, at any time, and for any ache you’re experiencing. The idea is that you’re breathing more oxygen into a certain area of your body by concentrating your energy on that area and slowly releasing that tension across your whole body. I used to use this method to relax my shoulder and upper back pain. It doesn’t bring about the same intense reaction that yoga can sometimes stir up. Intense doesn’t aways mean bad. 

There are days I crave that confrontation with my demons. Other days, a breathing exercise will suffice. It’s all about being in tune with YOUR body. Experiment with new ways to meet your needs. You’re not like anyone else. Not every method is going to work. Branch out. Do the research. You deserve the second chance. See you tomorrow!