Mindful Arrival

Invitation to notice where you are.

Remember this exercise we will tell you why it matters later!

Orient to the room, to the chair, to breath, to safety.

Why won’t my therapist give me a hug ?

All people need touch.

It is as important as food for our health.

Then why is it so common that a therapist will refuse to give a hug?

Touch is a vital to human development.

Why don’t therapists include touch in therapy?

The Fear of Touch Psychotherapy was founded by Freud in the

Victorian era.

Freud incorporated the beliefs of the times about touch into his treatment.

People at the time believed that touch was not healthy for children and often sinful for adults.

Touch Saves Babies?

In the 1920’s people noticed that in the orphanages many babies were dying.

Researchers set out to find out why.

They assumed it would be lack of food and water that caused the infants to die.

Touch Saves Babies?

They were shocked to find that infants who received plenty of food and water were dying.

They were starved. But they were not starved for food.

They were starved for touch!

Touch Saves Hearts

Some gorrillas after a long day in the jungle have a loved one who grooms them and picks the bugs from their fir.

Some gorillias are not supported by a loved one through touch.

The gorilias who are groomed each day have healthy hearts.

The gorilas that are not have: harden arteries, look like they have high colesteral and are at risk of heart attacks!

Be Part of the Revolution

For years science ignored touch all together!

But currently research has provided ample data that touch is healing both psychologically and physiologically.

Yet there are those who choose to ignore the reality.

Be a part of the revolution. Be a part of the paradigm shift!

Who we are is created through touch…

You can tell a lot from a hand shake!

Touch is profound communicator of emotion.

Recent studies have found that people can identify multiple emotions through physical touch such as…

Anger, Fear, Disgust, Love, Gratitude, and Sympathy.

People can decode emotional information communicated by touch by simply watching touch on a film.

Let’s Give It a Try?In the next few images see if you can figure out what

emotion iscommunicated through touch in the image.

WHAT EMOTIONS DO YOU SEE IN THIS IMAGE

How Touch Can Help Us Feel Better When We Feel Bad…

Touch can be used in several ways to help us feel better…

It can help us reduce anxiety, stress and even anger!

It can help us learn to make friends with difficult emotions.

How Touch Can Help Us Feel Better When We Feel Bad…

Touch can help us learn to notice how we feel

our emotions in our body.

Touch can help us get out of fight or flight and

back into a feeling of safety.

Over time safe touch can support the growth

of brain areas that help us manage difficult

emotions!

Waking Up the Body: SKILL #2

It is best to use this in the morning or when tiered!

Stand with your feet shoulder width apart.

Starting with your feet lightly slap or tap each body part up to your head. Being gentle with your neck, head and face.

Waking Up the Body: SKILL #2

Now massage your scalp, and rub your ears between your two fingers.

To finish brush lightly down your body from your head to your toes with your palms.

Why touch works a map!

The ZONE. Feeling good capable and strong.

Not enough energy and boredom.

Overwhelm

Panic or anger. Sadness and Disconnection

Safe Touch Helps You Move From Overwhelm Back to The

Zone

The Map: From stress to rest.

Overview: Any type of touch that you find soothing, relaxing and supportive helps you move from stress to rest.

One positive emotion helps a person move from stress to rest quicker!

Human touch sooths the stress response! Studies of massage show that touch reduces stress.

Touch That Can Sooth

Placing  one’s hand on one’s heart

Tapping on one’s collar bone or shoulders. 

Standing  in a warm shower or taking a bath.

Massaging one’s feet, self massage, or get a massage!

Progressive muscle relaxation.

FOR MORE IDEAS TRY: dbtselfhelp.com “Soothing in the 5 senses.”

Getting the most from a hug SKILL #3

Hugs can be great ways to sooth emotions. However, you can make them even better!

When you hug the person hug left side to left side. This will help you connect the hug more directly to the emotional centers in the brain.

Getting the most from a hug SKILL #3

When you hug the person notice your own body and the sensations inside.

Bring your attention to the positive sensations of the contact with the other person. Notice that they do care for you. Notice the sensations that happen when you feel cared for.

Let the feeling of being cared for spread through out your whole body as far as it can go!

How Touch ChangesThe Brain…

Orbital Frontal Cortex – The CEO of Emotions in the brain. Safe touch calls this area online and supports this area to effectively sooth difficult emotions.

Amygdala – The fight flight center of the brain. Touch supports the Amygdala to sooth and calm down after a stressful event.

How Touch ChangesThe Brain…

Antirior Cyngulet Cortex – Is the brains of our emotions. This area helps us understand the emotions of others and to reduce or sooth our emotional reactions to events. Touch increases the functioning of this area.

The Insular Cortex – Brings up the information about our emotions from our body to our mind. It also plays a role in feelings of craving for food or drugs. Both positive and negative touch increases the functioning of this brain region.

Behind the Scenes The Brain Story

In the first exercise we asked you to remember it and we would explain why it was important!

Well here is why.

This is the story of the brains behind the exercise!

Behind the Scenes The Brain Story

When we asked you to look around the room we were letting your Amygdala know that it was safe and could rest.

We did this by asking your Orbital Frontal Cortex to notice. This help that part of your brain tell the Amygdala it is time to relax.

Behind the Scenes The Brain Story

When we asked you to notice the way your body contacted the ground or chair we were asking you to call up information from the body into the Insula.

Because we were looking for calming signals from the body your Anterior Cyngulate Cortex could join force with Orbital Frontal Cortex to tell your Amygdala it is time to rest!

Power of Touch to Heal

Just as touch plays a profound role in the development of the child it can be healing.

Touch can play a profound in helping us make friends with difficult emotions and move from stress to rest.

Touch for babies:

Leads to increased weight. Leads to increased brain development Leads to increased length of the infant Leads to increased ability to calm down when upset!

Power of Touch to Heal

In parents and adults touch has be found to:

Increase the quality of a marriage.

Increase perception of that a marriage partner supports you.

Reduce the effects of post-partum depression.

Massage has been shown to reduce symptoms of depression, anxiety, and PTSD (a.k.a. Trauma).

Touch Changes the Brain and the Self

Touch has been found to reduce the production of the stress hormone “CORTISOL.”

Touch has been found to increase the pleasure neurotransmitter, “Dopamine.”

Touch has been found to increase Oxitocyn a chemical responsible for love, emotional bonding and stress reduction.

Touch Changes the Brain and the Self

Healing touch has been found to increase the sleep for those who have difficulties with sleep.

Touch has been found to reduce aggression and anger.

Touch has been found to reduce anxiety.

Talking to Your Therapist About Touch

Not all therapists have been trained in how to use touch.

You can ask your therapist when you interview them if they have training on touch treatment and their thoughts about touch in therapy.

Some therapists will not know the power of touch and tell you that touch is not something they do.

Talking to Your Therapist

About Touch Talk to your therapist about what their beliefs

are about touch, how they use it in therapy and when they feel it is not a good idea.

Establish safety with your clinician: Be willing to say no to an intervention therapist suggests, tell the therapist that you have had enough, and ask them for what you need.

Always listen to your body signals.

Boundaries of Touch in Therapy

Boundaries are always changing.

When we feel safe we let people close.

When we do not we keep them further away.

Our feeling of when some one is safe changes all the time.

Boundaries of Touch in Therapy

Learn to notice when your boundaries have changed. Respect your boundaries even if they are different from five minutes ago!

Your clinician should support you to learn to evaluate when contact feels supportive, safe and good as well as when it does not.

As always listen to how they talk because the relationship is more important then any technique for healing.

We Have Enjoyed Sharing this with You

Well, that about covers it for the MyShrink – I hope you enjoyed it and found some relief and relaxation!

We always love to hear people’s thoughts about how this has helped you in your life.

Please feel free to send us questions, feed back and thoughts!

GOOD LUCK ON YOUR JURNEY

QUESTIONS

?