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Hello Reader!

I hope you are well, and enjoying the few minutes of extra daylight we're getting (at least those of us in the North-American continent!). This long winter has many of us clamoring for change and freedom! Which got me thinking about how many of us feel stuck, in our bodies, thinking, relationships, or jobs? Where do you feel stuck?

Musings

I'm sure by now you've noticed how certain reactions happen before you’ve even had a chance to even think about them? The shoulders tighten. The breath hitches. The back braces. Anger or sadness invade the space. You aren't planning for any it. It just… happens.

That’s reflex.

It's not a problem. It’s your nervous system doing exactly what it’s designed to do: keep you safe. The trouble is that reflexes are like brain shortcuts, they repeat automatically as soon as the brain perceives an inkling of the initial threat. If bracing worked once, your brain will use it again and again. And then you get stuck.

I worked with someone recently whose back would seize up every time stress increased, even slightly. Not major stress. Just daily life. Emails. Noise. A change of plans. A frown on a loved one's face. The back would lock before the mind caught up. Instead of stretching the back or trying to “release” it, we slowed everything down. We didn’t even start with the back. We moved the ankle. Barely. Shifted a little weight through the heel. Noticed how the ribs moved during a soft exhale. Watched for the exact moment the breath paused.

And there it was...The reflex.

That tiny, almost imperceptible decision the nervous system makes: brace… just in case.

When you can feel that moment, something changes in your brain. Try it this week, with a short practice you can do in a chair.

🎁 NeuroSomatic Practice of the Week

🧠 NeuroMinute...

Did you know that we are all born with primitive reflexes that get progressively integrated (as they become less necessary for our survival), through functional movement? Our brains are made to move, it is how we learn anything.

But brains do not like surprises. The amygdala and related threat-detection circuits can initiate defensive responses in milliseconds (!) If bracing has helped before, even once, the nervous system will use it again. Chronic pain research shows that protective responses can persist long after tissue healing, and when the brain perceives threat, flexibility decreases.

When you introduce small, tolerable variations with attention and movement, the brain begins to update its predictions, and can update its reflexes.

PS: where would you be without your pain?

Warmly,

Joana

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