Conquering Trauma with Somatic Therapy and Muay Thai

Unleash Your Inner Strength: Conquering Trauma with Somatic Therapy and Muay Thai 🥊

Discover the transformative power of sensorimotor psychotherapy and somatic experiencing in this riveting episode as we delve into the world of trauma recovery. Our expert shares personal experiences helping survivors reclaim their strength, confidence, and sense of self through innovative techniques like Muay Thai.

Key takeaways from this episode include:
- The significance of completing actions disrupted by trauma to restore mental health.
- How martial arts can empower individuals to physically manifest their fight against past fears.
- Strategies for maintaining self-efficacy in a world increasingly dominated by fear-inducing forces.

Join us on a journey towards empowerment and healing; tune in now to learn how you can stand strong against life's adversities.

#SensorimotorPsychotherapy
#SomaticExperiencing
#TraumaRecovery
#MuayThaiTherapy
#FightOrFlightResponse
#SelfDefenseConfidence
#OvercomingFear
#MentalStrength 
#EnduringFreedom 
#TheBodyKeepsTheScore 
#GavinDeBeckerGiftOfFear 
#PersonalEmpowerment 
#RegionCompleteAction

In this morning's podcast, I want to talk about something called sensor motor psychotherapy or somatic experiencing. And some of the experiences that I have had working with survivors of trauma and helping them regain their power and strength and finding confidence inside of themselves. Way back in 18/93, Pierre Jeunet, who's the first great explorer over trauma, wrote about something called the pleasure of completed action. And when I've worked with patients, clients who are survivors of trauma, I help them, I would explain to them before we would get our bodies engaged in restoring health. So I would introduce them to a form of martial arts called Muay Thai.

It's a form of kickboxing where you put gloves on and I I would have mitts and you just teach them how to throw certain punches as if their body was allowed to do what it wanted to do when the trauma hit them and they became stuck and frozen. If we are unable to complete an action, the the brain down in the limbic part of the brain and body, it has a tendency to become paralyzed, stuck, and frozen. We feel weak. And so part of the reimagining of of taking our power back, we can actually use our imagination, go back in time when the trauma was happening, and then and then get your body engaged and slowly and deliberately let your body do what it wanted to do when whatever trauma was happening to protect, to defend oneself, and and and so forth is extremely powerful. And when the clients that I work with can could physically experience what it would have felt like to fight back, to run away, they begin to to have a sense of completing the action of defending themselves.

Then they are able to maintain their integrity and and their sense of self. There's something that's so critical for us as as human beings to feel safe in our body is to be able to protect and defend ourselves. One of the issues that we're dealing with today in our world is the infiltration of fear. It there are forces out there that are trying to instill such a fear in us as human beings that it's paralyzing too many. The political realm right now, what's going on in the world is just and and in the world in and of itself is just stunning.

But I I want to give a clear voice. Keep do not allow fear itself to paralyze you. The the effort behind those who are perpetrating this, they're doing it on purpose, and they do it to paralyze you. So you're afraid to act. So you're afraid to speak your truth.

So you're afraid to complete whatever positive action, whether it's even speaking your truth is essential for you to maintain a sense of self. I one of my favorite quotes or statements from the founding father, Thomas Jefferson, I have sworn on the altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man. We have to be able to think for ourselves. We have to be able to complete, complete an action. And if you're unable to complete a specific a specific action in defending yourself or speaking your truth, there there's a tendency to become stuck and frozen.

I love a story and it and it it models what I experienced working with so many survivors of trauma and introducing them to Muay Thai. I love a story, that doctor Bessel van der Kolk talks about in his his book, The Body Keeps the Score. He says the following. One of my patients, a college student with a history of unrelenting child abuse, took the course. It's a course in self defense.

When I first met her, she was collapsed, depressed, and overly compliant. 3 months later, during her graduation ceremony, she successfully fought off a gigantic male attacker who ended up lying cringing on the floor, shielded from her blows by a thick protective suit. While she faced him, arms raised in a karate stance, calmly and clearly yelling, no. Not long afterwards, she was walking home from the library after midnight when 3 men jumped out from the bushes yelling, give us your money. And started slurring her and calling her names.

She later told me that she took the same karate stance and yelled back, okay, guys. I've been looking forward to this moment. Who wants to take me on first? They ran away. And he says this, If you're hunched over and too afraid to look around, you are easy prey to other people's sadism.

But when you walk around projecting the message, don't mess with me, you're not likely to be bothered. It's very similar to a couple other books that come to mind as I'm reading this. Gavin de Becker's book, The Gift of Fear and The Power of, of Awareness. There's another book called The Power of Awareness. Can't remember the author right now.

But, we have to project confidence as we go out into the world. It's unfortunate, but it's a reality. And this is this is super, super hard for really kind, sensitive people to understand. But but I have to speak this, and I I hope you hear me. We are living in a very chaotic world right now.

There are predators out there. They are everywhere. And I don't mean to say that, intend to say that to create fear in you, But but you have to wake up. There is there is, what's called doctor or I mean, Gavin de Becker in his book, The Gift of Fear, clearly talks about there are the predators out there. They're doing what's called an interview at all the time.

They are scanning the environment. They are looking for people who seem weak. They are looking for people who project fear too much kindness because they're easy to manipulate. And I'm I'm thinking, of a scripture that comes to mind. It's a really interesting scripture if you think about it.

Wherefore, I would that ye should be wise as serpents yet harmless as doves. Isn't that interesting? It's unfortunate that that we live in a world you're either predator or you're prey. And part of the mindset of the mentally strong is this, above all, refuse to be a victim. I am a victim of nothing.

I refuse to be a victim of anything. I will think for myself. I will defend myself. I will do whatever in my power to speak my truth in a respectful, kind manner, but I'm not gonna give up my freedom to anybody. Don't tread on me to go forward with confidence and to be courageous.

I love the story. Anyway, anyway, there's many, many stories where we are encouraged just to be strong and of good courage. Be grounded inside yourself. And so what do I wanna say to any who feel a little fearful or afraid, in the privacy of your own room, just slowly and deliberately picture whatever is keeping you paralyzed. Move your body.

Pretend that you're fighting off for your own strength and you complete action. Now I remember doing Muay Thai with 1 individual. And this it's really super hard for many females to do this. Many would say to me, look. I've never never taught to be violent.

I don't like this violent thing of of hitting and fighting back. It really bothers me. Some learn to love it as they're finding their strength, but in the beginning stages, it can be really difficult. I remember doing Muay Thai with 1 survivor and, you know, taught her to throw certain punches, told her how to throw a left jab, a right, a cross, uppercut, and then kick. And she kinda went off a little bit.

But as I explained it to them when I introduced this concept of somatic experience, I said, don't lose control of yourself as if you're destroying your abuser. I want you to be completely in control of your self, monitoring what you're doing, defending yourself, but don't turn it into anger and rage because I don't I don't think that's helpful. I want you to find power inside of yourself. So she, this one individual, she went off. She lost control of herself a little bit and then we, you know, we take a rest after 5 minutes of of of the exercise and she goes, I don't I don't like the way that made me feel.

I feel I lost control of myself. She says, I wanna go through the series of punches again and kicks, but I wanna go super, super slow. I don't wanna hit hard, but I just wanna let my body do what it needed to do to protect and defend itself. And then and then she went through the actions and activities, but it was like super, super slow. So when her mitt or glove hit my mitt, there was no sound.

It was just but she was moving her body almost in a meditative state. When she got through with that exercise, she looked at me with power in her eyes radiating from her. She says, I've never felt more powerful in my life. Meaning that it wasn't about violence. It wasn't about aggression.

It was about, I am taking my power back inside of my body. I've completed the action. I don't want to hurt anyone, but you are not gonna hurt me ever again. It's extremely powerful. And so, again, just want you to think about back to one of the one of the founding fathers of exploring trauma, Pierre Genet.

Again, back in 18/93, he wrote about the pleasure of completed action. So think about that. Whatever and I would encourage you to get your body engaged in the healing process, Again, in the privacy of your own room, you know, where no one's looking, you can very gently throw punches and just feel your body going, you get away from me. Protect me and or protect. I'm protecting myself and you're taking what's taking your power back, finding self efficacy.

I remember there was an 80 year old woman that I worked with who I introduced Muay Thai to. Yeah. So she could barely throw punches and stuff, but she did it. She went through all the experiences. And then as, we were you know, she was leaving going home for the day.

She came she came to me, and she just gave me a hug. And she whispered in my in my ear. She says, thank you. Again, 80 years old. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to fight back.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to fight back, to take my power back. And with tears in her eyes, she just turned around and and walked away. Self efficacy, standing firmly inside of our bodies, our self, is so critical for our self esteem. And at the end of the day, self efficacy and self esteem is about honoring yourself and feeling good in your own skin. We cannot ever feel good about ourselves when when other people are controlling us and dominating over us and creating fear in us.

It creates something inside of us that we just we we naturally rebel against. We do not like being controlled as human beings. That is why these insidious ideas of of controlled government, of communism, and anything like that that that we as free people around the world rebel against. And you see those who are caught up in the government, those type of governments, they have this, what I call, the 1,000 mile stare. They're completely living in fear.

They live in fear that if they don't do exactly what they're mandated to do, their life is in danger or their loved one's life is in danger. I I could imagine nothing worse than that. So again, just leaving you with that with that thought. Thomas Jefferson, when he says, I have sworn on the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.