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Trauma shapes our emotional and physical well-being. Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, in his book entitled The Body Keeps the Score, states “trauma produces actual physiological changes, including a recalibration of the brain’s alarm system, an increase in stress hormone activity, and alterations in the systems that filters relevant information from irrelevant.” However, it isn’t only life-altering traumatic experiences that can cause issues. Most of us have experienced memories that can ignite visceral reactions. Memories are transcribed in our subconscious and can be reactivated with exposure to certain words, a smell, a person, music, etc.
Role of the Subconscious
Have you ever heard a song on the radio only to be transported back to the concert where you saw that band live? You may remember the laughter of your friends around you, the brisk air touching your skin, lights hitting your eyes, the bass of the music pulsing through the speakers. Sensations can elicit wonderful memories, but they can also incite less desirable stress-inducing responses. Approximately 95% of our mind’s activity is ruled by the subconscious. Neuroscientist, David Eagleman says it this way in his book Incognito “most of what we do and feel is not under our conscious control... your consciousness is like a tiny stowaway on a transatlantic steamship, taking credit for the journey without acknowledging the massive engineering underfoot.”
When memories are brought to the forefront (regardless if they elicit positive or negative responses), there is a cascade of emotions, hormones, neurotransmitters, and processes in the body that are stimulated. Said a different way, stimuli (positive or negative) trigger physiological responses in the body such as increases in heart rate, perspiration, and rapid breathing. When we are triggered by something negative, it can activate feelings of dread and anxiety, elevate cortisol levels, and tighten our enteric nervous system.
How MBSR™ Can Help
The intention of Mind Body Spirit Release™ is to identify the subconscious imprints that are contributing to harmful patterns that we inadvertently perpetuate. Additionally, Mind Body Spirit Release™ helps to reduce emotional and physical stress on the body. Detrimental imprints do not have to be encoded by what’s commonly recognized as trauma (abusive upbringings, car accidents, war, dangerous marriages). Seemingly smaller life events impact our subconscious minds as well, but we often can’t put our finger on what incites unwanted emotions and physiological responses. Instead of being directed by these subconscious reactions, Mind Body Spirit Release™ helps us to recognize what is impacting our emotions and behavior, and “deactivate” the reactions (it helps to bring language and specificity to our experiences). MBSR™ encourages self-awareness and improves our ability to self-regulate in times of stress.
How MBSR™ Works
How do we identify the combination of emotions, limiting beliefs, hormones, neurotransmitters (and more) that are repeatedly mobilized and causing stress in the body? This is done through a form of muscle response testing called ideomotor testing. Ideomotor testing means a muscular response to an idea (ideo=idea, motor=muscle). Muscle testing is a form of binary biofeedback - the measure of our body’s response to a stimulus. You’ll often hear muscle testing described as a way of talking to the body. Since our muscles are controlled by our nerves- we can present the body with a stimulus and understand whether it strengthens or weakens the nervous system. When we introduce physical items such as food and supplements, we see how they impact the nervous system. We can also identify emotional blocks and limiting beliefs through muscle testing. This is where ideomotor testing comes into play- we muscle test someone not by using a physical item (such as a supplement), but through charts with thousands of prompts.
Just as the body retains cellular memories and can recall them when provoked, it can also unlearn this response. Once the practitioner has identified the collection of emotions, limiting beliefs, and elements that are impairing the body, she will mitigate these stressors through cold laser therapy (called a "clearing"). A cold laser light is used over acupressure points to calm the nervous system response and release the negative imprints stored in the subconscious. The laser helps to restore the natural healing capability of the body by delivering light energy into the cells. The photons are absorbed by the cells and stimulate the mitochondria (creating a biochemical response) which accelerates the healing process.
MBSR™ and Spirituality
A common question we get about MBSR™ is around the spiritual and religious components: “do I need to be a spiritual person to benefit from Mind Body Spirit Release™?” Or, “is my religion in conflict with this service?” No, you do not need to be a spiritual or a religious person to benefit from Mind Body Spirit Release™. Conversely, MBSR™ is not inciting spirits in any way nor seeking to replace religious beliefs. It’s crucial to note that the MBSR™ practitioner is in no way acting as a spiritual advisor or medium. There’s nothing magical about MBSR™, it’s simply utilizing muscle testing to identify what is impacting our nervous system.
Learn more about MBSR™ and Christianity here.
MBSR™ as a Tool for Vibrant Health
Just as food and exercise can positively impact our health, MBSR™ is another tool we use to fortify our wellbeing. Taking a holistic approach means including all aspects of our health rather than isolating one component (including emotional and spiritual, rather than simply physical). By identifying and mitigating detrimental thoughts and/or habits, Mind Body Spirit Release™ enables the recipient to work through limiting subconscious beliefs and memories in order to make more purposeful decisions present-day. MBSR™ is a catalyst for change.
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