Why Touch?

The importance of use of the body and touch in therapy cannot be understated. We are holistic beings that operate on several separate but interactive levels at one time, the physical body, the emotional process, thinking patterns and our behaviors. When we make change in any one of these levels we must also address the physiology of whatever issue we are dealing and it's impact on the other levels at the same time. For example, if we understand a situation that impacted us and led to certain behaviors and also worked through the emotions related to the experience, we would still have to change the thinking patterns and belief systems associated with the issue.

For example, a young girl harmed by her father as a young child left her wary of men and caused her problems with her boss at work as an adult. Once she sees she is expecting something bad to happen based on her early experience, grieves the loss, feels the fears and realizes they aren't associated with what is happening in the present, her body, unconsciously, may still tense up around men. Working with the physical system to release the protective holding patterns she has around men can help her stay free of problems in the future. Muscle memory is very strong and compelling and motivates the system in ways that are not conscious. We must bring change to this aspect of our being as well as the others.

If someone has been chronically depressed for years and has the classic depressed body-structure with their chest collapsed and their head sloping downward, this posture must be changed along with the other levels or it will continually bring the person back into the depressed view of the world. In my experience utilizing touch and movement facilitates change and ensures more thorough healing for the client and this is being understood more and more by our field. Therapists with special training are uniquely suited to provide this for clients because of our deep understanding of the developmental, emotional and behavioral issues that need to be met for the change to occur. People may have emotions related to their issues during a massage or a yoga class, but we are the ones with comprehensive psychological training that can bring congruence to all 4 levels at the same time. A massage therapist simply doesn't have the training to complete our work and it needs to be done in tandem with the emotional, psychological and behavioral pieces.

Any one of the levels that is omitted in the therapy has the potential to bring back the whole reaction patterns in the entire system. Body-Psychotherapy promotes congruence in a persons complete bio-psycho-social behavioral system. Touch is a vital tool in achieving this outcome and there is a great amount of good training in the field toward this end today.