WHAT IS BODY STRESS RELEASE?
A certain degree of our body’s stress is necessary and healthy for dealing with life’s inevitable challenges, but stress overload can make us miserable through its physical manifestations. Fortunately, the technique of Body Stress Release can bring relief.
Do you struggle to sleep soundly at night, frequently awake with racing thoughts, feel fatigued, clench your jaw, suffer from back pain, anxiety, muscle or joint aches, frequent heartburn, tense shoulders, headaches, or constipation? All of these symptoms may signal the progression of stress overload.
THE BODY AND STRESS
When the body reacts to stress, it immediately responds by releasing adrenaline which puts us into a state of ‘fight or flight,’ ensuring we are alert and ready to deal with the threatening situation. Our blood sugar increases to produce more energy, our heart rate elevates, and our muscles tense up, preparing us for rapid action.
While fight or flight mode is a lifesaving response to danger, the over-stimulating effects of adrenaline will set off a series of biochemical reactions. So when the body fails to adapt effectively to stressful circumstances, ‘stress overload’ can occur, and the muscles involuntarily clench in defensive action.
This tension becomes locked into the body’s physical structures, and the muscles, tendons, and ligaments remain tightly constricted, resulting in what we call ‘body stress.’ Over time this accumulative progression of body stress exerts pressure on the spinal nerves and may result in pain, numbness, muscle weakness, stiffness, distorted posture, and impaired functioning.
TYPES OF BODY STRESS IN OUR LIVES
Not all stress is negative; it provides us with challenges and grows and evolves. It only becomes a negative factor when it reaches an overload level, and a person cannot successfully deal with it. When one fails to adapt to stress, it becomes stored in physical structures.
Stress is also not something that happens only on a mental or emotional level; it may be:
■ Mechanical stress, caused by an accident, bad posture, incorrect lifting, or over-stressing the body during exercise
■ Emotional stress as a result of constant work pressures, exam tension, grief, shock, or financial concerns
■ Chemical Stress is exposure to chemicals and toxins such as food additives, plant sprays, or pesticides
COPING WITH BODY STRESS OVERLOAD
Body Stress Release (BSR) is a life-enhancing technique that addresses the manifestation of stress in the body. The BSR practitioner assesses the body for lines of tension by carrying out a series of light pressures tests in specific directions to locate the sites of body stress. During the assessment, the practitioner releases the stored tension by applying strong stimuli in these areas in the correct order.
The BSR technique is gentle, and usually, a series of consultations are required to deal with the layers of stored tension. Clients remain fully clothed throughout the process, and most describe the appointment as highly relaxing. BSR profoundly affects overall body function by encouraging improved communication along the nerve pathways.
BODY STRESS POINTS MAY BE WIDESPREAD
Some of the most frequent client complaints are back pain, ‘slipped disc,’ tight muscles, and referred pain down the legs such as sciatica. As the nerve connections also extend to the internal organs, clients frequently experience rapid improvement in conditions such as heartburn, constipation, IBS, or bladder infections. Often sites of body stress in the neck, caused by sudden whiplash or tensing of the shoulders or jaw, may disrupt the nerves in the face, arms, elbows, and even the hands. When body stress occurs in the upper back and neck, clients often report improvement with headaches, tinnitus, and sensations in the arms.
BODY STRESS IN BABIES AND CHILDREN
Body stress may result in difficulty suckling, impaired crawling reflexes, reflux, or constipation for babies. Babies who constantly cry for no apparent reason very likely have body stress caused by the birth process. Whereas a toddler frequently finds sites of body stress resulting from bumps and falls, young children may display signs of discomfort with pain in the legs, ‘growing pains,’ and stomach or sleep disturbances. Teenagers and young adults often show signs of body stress from sports injuries, poor posture, heavy books, and exam stress. With the gentle intervention of BSR, the body’s balance may be restored and maintained.
CONCLUSION
Today we live very stressful lives, mainly in the workplace and in the schoolroom, and often we bring our stress back into the home. It is comforting to know that a natural therapy such as BSR is widely available to relieve stress-related pain. The ultimate aim of BSR is to promote the body’s innate self-healing response, thereby assisting ‘wellness.’ For this reason, many people choose to have regular releases to ensure their body continues to perform to its full potential.
