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Bodymapping Article continued from last page. Interesting models for how touch therapists may explore trauma have recently been developed by William Redpath and Peter Levine. Redpath relies largely on guided imagery and metaphorical language to make the client's pain more comprehensible and accessible. As the client focuses his awareness in a region of stress, he is encouraged to visualize a set of sensory impressions of its “color”, “texture”, “shape”, among others. Often, the patient is asked to compare areas of discomfort with less stressed areas in terms of these parameters and encouraged to visualize the damaged area becoming more like the contrasting area. Through this intuitive visualization process, the client is often able to relieve and better understand the nature and quality of his pain. Sometimes, using this indirect metaphorical approach, the patient is able to associate specific memories of events with the pain and in turn achieve further resolution. Levine, on the other hand, uses subtle physiological cues and guided reliving of traumatic events to help clients achieve comparable release of trauma. His behavior-based approach has proven very effective in treating a variety of severe post-traumatic stress disorders.
Using these “client-based” approaches
has several advantages over many formalized
bodymapping systems. First, it avoids the
pitfalls of formulating a unilateral one-to-one
correspondence between a specific pain locale
and an emotional state, or an emotional state
(effect) with a theoretical physiological
“cause”. Second, it seems to work
better at making pain, that has a psychological
component, more “comprehensible”
for some clients and thus more amenable to
treatment. This is done without any pretense
as to the cause and effect relationship between
past emotional trauma, current psychological
and physiological states, and perceived pain.
In this context, this approach simply becomes
a tool for the relief of pain, and in my opinion,
a more effective and appropriate one in that
it allows the client to construct and resolve
his physical and emotional pain from within
rather than relying on any externally imposed
representational schema.
Dr.
Ray Bishop is a certified advanced Rolfer
and Rolf Movement Practitioner who practices in Atlanta. To contact, call 770.591.8115. |
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