This session may be for you if you have a history of or are recovering from trauma that is either recent or in the past. You may be aware of terms such as PTSD & CPSTD or simply know that you have an experience that is still affecting you.

As trauma lives in the body, bodywork can help create a space for your system to digest, process and heal. These sessions work with the mind-body connection, support growth and help to heal trauma and release it from the body which can help find ease in the mind, the nervous system and the body.

Many of my clients are actively working with psychologists and professionals and are encouraged to integrate trauma focused bodywork into their healing process to help the nervous system and body to reset and rebalance itself.

Drawing on expertise from leading edge teachings such as; Dr Stephen Porges, Polyvagal theory, The Body Keeps The Score, Dr Gabor Mate, Dr Peter Levine, Gerry Pyves, Primal Touch, Eric Gentry, CPSTD training (the list goes on) as well as some somatic work or breathwork if appropriate.

how is this different to normal massage?

These sessions are tailored for you and your needs on each day and I will be working with you to create a therapeutic space that feels both safe and restorative. By responding to your verbal and non verbal queues I will be working with your body and system in that moment to ensure a gentle and restorative experience is achieved respecting any guarding or holding patterns within the muscles. Teamwork is also key here and I will encourage you to communicate and let me know if any massage movements or techniques feel overstimulating or unhelpful.

It’s built on the principles of; trauma awareness and understanding, safety and trust, collaborative choice and connection. Each move and technique used during this session is to create and build harmony within the body, reset the nervous system, create feelings of safety and security, strengthen the connection or reconnection to the physical body which can in turn help with overwhelm, anxiety hyper-arousal and hypervigilance etc

One of the powers of massage therapy is the power of touch. Whenever we are touched, receptor cells on your body are stimulated into action. The style and technique used of touch in this massage sends signals and transmit along your nervous system, to your brain and other parts of the body to feel calm, safe, balanced  and relaxed again.

To function properly our nerves should be free from restriction and compression. Tension within the body can create additional pressure on the nerves and system

By stimulating your parasympathetic nervous system through massage we can help restore the right balance and strengthen the parasympathetic nervous system so that it’s in a healthy state. With the parasympathetic nervous system functioning better, we find it easier to feel relaxed and calm, which in turn helps reduce stress and anxiety levels.

To work effectively your nervous system needs to work in harmony, be operating in it’s ‘safe’ rest and healing mode most of the time and be in balance.

It can also:

• support increased communication through touch and pressure which activates the receptors on the skin and underlying tissue for healthy activity.
• relaxes the muscles
• help reduce hyperaroasal and hypervigilance
• help create feelings of groundedness and safety
• help with dissociation by creating stronger mind-body connections
• can help release any blocks of the nerves by reducing compression in the nerve if caused by muscle tension
• helps to re-establish healthy responses and reflexes to stimulus through its effect on the neuromuscular paths.
• created the production of endorphins (feel good hormones and natural pain killers) as it affects on the neurotransmitters of the brain
• calms the nervous system and encourages it to enter into the ‘rest and healing’ state 

It’s important to note that if you are recovering from PTSD or CPTSD these sessions are to be used in collaboration with another form of therapy being undertaken with a healthcare professional, psychologist or psychotherapist.

book an appointment