When a new client signs up for a session, I always ask what they are seeking from massage. Recently, someone replied, “connection with self,” and I smiled because it so perfectly describes one of the most important benefits I get from the bodywork I receive. I get massage or craniosacral for many reasons, and I definitely value it for helping me heal injuries and stay out of pain. But I also notice that after a session, I am more grounded, more patient, calmer, happier, and, dare I say, wiser. That is, I make better decisions and feel clearer about who I am and what I want — and don’t want.
One reason for this effect is that the bodywork quiets and downregulates the nervous system, shifting it from a state of action and reaction to restoration and repose. The benefits of true relaxation should not be underestimated! We are probably all aware of the many negative impacts stress has on our health and wellbeing. Studies have even found that living in a noisy environment can decrease cardiovascular health and increase risk of heart attack or stroke because the body responds to a loud or startling sound by revving up its sympathetic “wake up and pay attention” response. When we spend too much time in a sympathetic state and don’t get enough parasympathetic time, our body doesn’t get to heal and process. We build up tension and inflammation.
Being in sympathetic mode even changes how we think and what we notice.
Have you ever been startled by something small and then felt extra jumpy for the rest of the day?
Your nervous system is trying to protect you by keeping you alert to potential threats. And it’s on the lookout for threats because it’s on alert. This can create a kind of self-perpetuating cycle: maybe you become overwhelmed by things that ordinarily wouldn’t bother you or get into an argument about something you don’t really care about.
Essentially the same thing happens at the cellular level. When the nervous system receives the same signal over and over again, it remodels itself to be able to process those signals more efficiently. If you practice the piano every day, you’ll be able to play more quickly and fluidly and pick out details in the sound that you hadn’t heard before. If your shoulder sends your brain a pain alert several times a day, the nerves along that pathway will become sensitized so that they can detect ever more subtle sensations, mark them as painful, and speed them through the system. Just like every piece of fluff can start to look like a spider, every sensory experience can start to feel like pain.
What you need is a reset.
Bodywork brings the nervous system into a state of deep relaxation. You may have even forgotten that it’s possible to be so relaxed. From that brain space, the world around you and your internal experience will seem different yet again. You may notice that you are less excitable; it’s easier to work out what’s important and what isn’t worth getting upset about. You may also notice what activates your pain or stress response and be able to intervene earlier. When your brain isn’t flooded and running defense, it can process your current experience in detail and create a much more accurate map of what is happening. You may discover that your shoulder doesn’t hurt all the time, but only with specific movements. One client recently was able to notice that it was the particular way she steps into her car that was aggravating her hip and then start to move differently.
Ultimately, attending to our body’s restoration helps us connect to self, stay grounded in our own truth, and literally make better sense of the world around us.
