Page 463 - Total War on PTSD

My body was feeling better and the deep relaxation fostered by the sessions facilitated the release of deeply seated muscle holding patterns that clearly had subconscious emotional counterparts. The insights I gained were game-changing. The work took me into foreign territory. Terrain that was inside of me, not outside, and which connected me to what was and what wasn’t comfortable. The Trager Approach’s capacity to provide a safe context for my body-mind to assess, re-organize and let go of dysfunctional muscle holding patterns that manifested as functional limitation and pain was extra-ordinary, comfortable, pleasurable. It facilitated a ‘remembering’ of my body’s inherent coherence and, once it felt safe, my body naturally migrated toward more balance and harmony. I had let go of learned dysfunctional muscle patterns developed and valid at an earlier time which were now simply limiting.
The relaxation and release of stress promoted by the mindfulness of Trager Mentastics led to a controlling of my body's 'fight or flight' response. This produced a decrease in cortisol and adrenalin release, normalizing my blood pressure and leading to a lowering of my cholesterol levels. In addition, the decreased stress curbed my emotional eating and encouraged me to make better nutritional choices. As I was pain-free, I became more active which also contributed to a reduction in my body weight.
So, affected by the experiences that I continued to have, I began to wonder what education one needed to be able to impart such a feeling state to others. I then registered for the professional Trager Approach training and became a certified Trager Practitioner in 1991. Also, Trager had led me to Ashtanga Yoga and Vipassana meditation. Today, these three form the tripod of daily practices upon which my day’s rest.
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