In this 4-part blog we will explore the idea that overwhelm may be the root cause of ALL disease. Now that’s a pretty extreme statement, so I need to define some terms and explain exactly what I mean.
Overview
Simply put, trauma or overwhelm is a moment in time or a period of time when an individual or biological system(s) cannot process/handle/integrate what is occurring so it holds on to and defers processing that for a later time. The system has been placed into extreme distress and the message to one’s self is “Oh my God I’m going to die!” Most definitions of trauma frame it as either a physical or a psycho-emotional phenomena, which it is. However I would like to expand that definition to include overwhelm to all the areas of our BodyMind System (BMS).
I’ve identified five distinct forms: structural, physiological, psychological, emotional, and electromagnetic overwhelm. Our BMS functions optimally within specific parameters, let’s call these our ‘factory presets’. When pushed beyond our ability to adapt in one or more area the system goes into overwhelm and things begin to break down.
Each of us is born with our own unique factory presets, for example one person’s specific BMS may be physically stronger than average but may be emotionally more susceptible to becoming overwhelmed. On top of this our life experiences modify those presets, in some areas to our benefit and in others to our detriment. So we each have different strengths and vulnerabilities. Polarity founder, Dr. Randolph Stone referred to this as our ‘Vital Reserves’, our system’s resilience, the energy we have to draw upon when pushed to or beyond our limits.
Let’s look at these one at a time.
Structural Trauma
There are basically two kinds of structural overwhelm — Too Much Space Not Enough Time and Too Much Time Not Enough Space.
The first, Too Much Space Not Enough Time, is the most common. An example would be a car accident or fall. The velocity/speed and force occurs too fast for the body to absorb and dissipate that energy so the structure holds onto a distorted compensation pattern. Had the impact come more slowly and/or with less force the tissue field might have been able to rebound and return to a balanced/neutral state. In overwhelm, certain muscles retain a constant contraction while others become flaccid; or organs like the stomach might not be able to contract and expand freely throughout the entire structure so it changes its intrinsic movement pattern which affects its ability to function properly.
Too Much Time Not Enough Space is typified by birth trauma. An infant’s body is designed to pass through the birth canal—albeit with some effort. Some BMSs have factory presets that enable them to endure this process for a longer duration, however no body can rebound easily from being compressed in the birth canal for 8+ hours without retaining distortion patterns that can persist throughout life. This can also happen from working hunched over a computer where we’ve imposed a compression to the front of our chest for long hours over many weeks, month, even years. Any extended contraction, where body structures are impeded from expanding to their natural shape, can cause this type of distortion which has consequences in how well our organs in that area function.
Here’s one example. I had a client a while back who wore orthopedic leg braces in early childhood. Although they corrected his gate, they also caused a lifelong pelvic contraction. Additionally, as a young boy he perceived this period as a kind of torture/punishment which was accompanied by a great deal of shame, this coupled the structural with psycho-emotional traumas.
I see various levels of Structural Trauma in EVERY SINGLE client I work with. Movement, stretching, exercise are vitally important to prevent these distortions from becoming longterm patterns. However it is often subtle restrictions in organ motility (intrinsic movement) as well as the linked Psycho-Emotional Traumas that are harder for the BMS to release and resolve. (see Part 3 & 4)
It’s important to note that there is a point at which even the most resilient BMS cannot rebound; where the force or velocity is simply more than any body could endure without structural collapse, like a fall from a great height. That is beyond what I am outlining here, but can create its own overwhelming conditions.
Continue reading. Go to Overwhelm: The Root Cause of All Disease – Part 2
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