Niseema Dyan Diemer LMT, SEP, BCPP
One of the symptoms of trauma is the inability to hold a good feeling, a feeling of OKness, or a feeling of safety. It's almost like you get filled up with a good feeling and then it's suddenly gone. If this happens over and over you may feel, "Why even try to feel good again."
I have been studying a modality called Bodynamic®that helps clients develop the capacity to hold or contain feelings, good ones or difficult ones, in the body. There are many different exercises that can be done but these two exercises are key to feeling a sense of containment. When you develop the capacity to contain your experience it has a potential of feeling more satisfying and being more accessible. Both exercises below work by having you contract the major muscle groups of the upper and lower body. The key to doing these exercises effectively is by SLOWLY releasing the tension.
Upper Body Containment*: Press your palms together in front of your chest, using about 20% of your strength. Next bring your shoulder blades together in the back. You are doing both actions at the same time. Hold for 2 -3 natural breaths. Then release the tension to a SLOW count of 6, 5, 4... and then sit for a moment to notice how you feel now.
Lower Body Containment*: Sit comfortably with feet flat on the ground, knees 3-4 inches apart. Cross your arms in front of you and place your hands on the outside of your thighs, above your knees. Next press out with your knees and pull inwards with your hands with about 20 % of your strength. Your should feel a comfortable tension and balance of pressure in the arms and the thighs. Take 2-4 natural breaths here and then slowly release the tension to a SLOW count of 10, 9, 8....
Try these exercises in a neutral setting to see how they feel, one may feel better than the other. Choose to do that one exercise a couple of times a day. Notice what happens each time you do it. Both exercises are useful when you are feeling overwhelming feelings or anxiety.
Feel free to contact me at info@tffpp.org to let me know how it goes or if you have any questions.
For additional help with accessing and containing "feeling good" again contact:
Niseema Dyan Diemer LMT, SEP, BCPP,www.niseema.com