If you have been traumatised by sexual abuse, an abusive relationship, an assault or rape. If you had difficulties during pregnancy or giving birth. If you have lost someone to  the COVID 19 virus or are recovering yourself: Sometimes the trauma just won't let you go. No matter what you do, you keep feeling the same pain and fear, seeing the same images, feeling the same physical sensations as on the day it happened.

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Trauma is carried in the body, in pain, stiffness, tension, weakness, discomfort,  a racing heart, breathlessness, movement trapped in the muscles: the legacies of the Fight Flight or Freeze mechanism (the body's way of responding to danger). In trauma, the brain's memory processing mechanism can be overwhelmed by the volume of sensation linked to the traumatic incident concerned. Memory of the event gets stuck in the brain's alarm system, the Amygdala, rather than being stored away in the library, the hippocampus. The Amygdala has no sense of time or place, so if it is reminded of the original trauma, it thinks its happening again, so sends out the same stress hormones to trigger the Fight, Flight or Freeze mechanism: its like you relive the moment, feeling the same emotional and physical sensations, again and again.

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To help you, I use EMDR (see below), to process the memory so it can be stored in the Library of the mind and remembered, but not relived and exercise and movement to help relieve the physical legacies of trauma - pain, tension, restlessness, agitation.

Trauma can also affect the way we eat and how we feel about our bodies, especially if it is related to sexual abuse. We can eat sometimes to protect or comfort ourselves, to feel safe. Following a standard diet or fitness programme can cause anxiety if the deeper reasons for weight gain and eating are not understood. My approach will help you get fit and relieve underlying emotional issues.

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Anxiety, depression and trauma can exacerbate lower back pain: you can lose confidence and avoid movement, but this only makes the pain worse: a programme which addresses your emotional issues and helps you build your strength and flexibility is a powerful way to relieve pain and recover.

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Exercise boosts your mood, relieves anxiety and can return you to  a state  of balance after a traumatic memory has been triggered. 

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