When we discuss mental illness, we often forget the delicate connections that occur in the human container to create harmony, or a lack thereof. Mental disorders result from the lack of balance and congruence between mind and body. Disorder literally means dis-order—an alteration of proper order, i.e. balance.
Individuals are complex and no two people are exactly the same. They can’t be. Experiences, environment, and perceptions converge to form an individual. Even siblings born into the same home have different experiences, and bring with them their own biological make-up, which plays a role too.
Typically, in therapy, we use our clients’ perceptions and interpretations of their own experiences. We often neglect they ways the body is involved in these processes, especially when symptoms are not severe. It is easier to identify maladaptation in the body and mind when an individual is experiencing chronic clinical mental illness because it becomes clear that the body is being affected; however, individuals on the other end of high functioning fall between the cracks of proper diagnosis and treatment.
Perhaps even more detrimental to these high functioning individuals is that they don’t perceive their own symptoms as serious because they accomplish what is required of them and have survived difficult experiences. The disengaged body may experience serious symptoms, and in its way try to sound the alarm so the individual focuses on what’s wrong. The alarm bells are often ignored because of the perception of “functioning” well day-to-day. The more the relationship between body and mind is ignored, the more the body expresses mental dis-order through physiological symptoms.
Individuals on this continuum become entirely detached from their own bodies and thus are increasingly lost in a labyrinth of their own unhealthy thinking cycles. In supporting clients, we discuss that the body has, in fact, interpreted their experiences, thoughts, and trauma. This allows us to see how the body sustained the impact of those experiences. Is it possible that the body is directly affected by the quality of thoughts and perceptions? Absolutely. In therapy, can I utilize my client’s experiences in their bodies to support recovery and wellness? Yes. This approach affects the elasticity of the client’s thinking cycles and supports mental health wellness.
Many people assume that therapy is only about changing thoughts through clinical techniques. This is a simplistic view that misses the importance to effective therapy of involving our bodies in the therapeutic process. By engaging the body, we have a door through which we can enter the subconscious mind, allowing us to shift the way individuals feel and think about themselves.
Past experiences, including trauma, can create blocks and feelings of lack of safety in our own bodies. Also, trauma impacts how our nervous systems create protections and disassociations to survive. This protective process helps humans survive unsurmountable experiences, but it impairs their ability to use other skills to thrive long term.
How to become more attuned with your body to support your mental health:
1. Awareness: One of the most important steps to create change is observing the body closely. Notice pains, aches, repetitive movements, tics, and physical illness. Not with judgment, but with curiosity. The body is a compass that points the way to perceptions and experiences by expressing them in physical ways. Noticing these difficulties in your body can provide you with valuable information about your mood and reactivity levels. In therapy we can lean on this information and uncover patterns that are present in all areas of our lives.
2. Engagement of the body: Engaging in different exercises and practices such as breathwork, movement, yoga, dance, sensory work, full expression of the body, and other physical disciplines helps you explore the elasticity of the body. These practices help you peel away layers and deepen your understanding of yourself, and also challenge you to revise unhealthy thoughts, perceptions, and behaviors.
3. Engagement of the body-mind connection: Adapting the body to any kind of movement helps you challenge your default perceptions, sensations, and memories. Do you have the capacity to adapt to trauma? Even this idea can be explored when you allow the body to recreate feelings of safety and adaptive behavior. Engaging the mind in processing experiences through journaling, meditation, grounding techniques, and mindfulness soothes a stimulated nervous system and a body experiencing pain.
The cells in your body react to what is in your mind. The mind-body connection is fundamental to the future of effective, empowering, and restorative mental health therapy. To learn more about how I work with my clients using their physical symptoms to uncover underlying issues and begin the process of healing, reach out by calling XX to make an appointment.
