by SharonHartnett | Apr 13, 2016 | craniosacral, Massage License in Ohio: 33.007505-H-K, mind body & spirit
Statistics say that 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 20 boys have suffered sexual abuse.
Many victims of abuse stay quiet about their experience. Isolation often leads them to feeling low self-esteem, and frightened about contact. It’s time to change that.
Craniosacral Therapy
Recovering from sexual abuse is an individualized process that is done with hope and help.
If one can imagine after suffering in silence, what is would take to step out and commit to the healing process, resources are available.
Craniosacral Therapy can be very helpful if only for its therapeutic presence. Yet it is also a very gentle hands on therapy that is done with respect and in a neutral state of Being. This allows clients to have an experience of touch that is without judgment, where they can feel into their emotions and let go of residual trauma. This often takes many session to build trust, and to work with the Inner Physician within the client through mindfulness and self-discovery. This is not an advise type of psychotherapy, but rather a bodywork exploration into the senses, and feelings that come up organically within the bodywork context. By working with with the Craniosacral Therapy rhythm, the therapist can monitor and support the Central Nervous system to balance and integrate.
Sharon Hartnett LMT has worked with clients with this modality in conjunction with psychotherapist to support self-discovery. Clients have learned to identify boundaries, to self-regulate and move through their trauma at their own pace and time. Everything is done with respect and organic movement. There is no need to accomplish or go for a goal, but rather to allow the process to unfold in its own way.
If you are feeling stressed and and feel like you would like to try this CST, call Sharon Hartnett CST for a free 15 minute consultation.
Sharon Hartnett 740 966-5153
Johnstown, Ohio
www.massageincolumbusohio.com
by SharonHartnett | Dec 9, 2015 | craniosacral, Craniosacral Therapy, Massage License in Ohio: 33.007505-H-K, mind body & spirit, stillpoint
Many clients who come in for Craniosacral Therapy ask about SomatoEmotional Release (SER).
They have usually heard from their friends or associates how much better they feel after a few sessions. Yet they are not quite certain what SER is. So in order to educate potential clients, I’d like to take the Upledger’s description to share,
“ SomatoeEmotional Release may be defined as a release from the body tissues of energy that has been stored in the tissues for some time subsequent to an incident resulting in the placement of this energy in those tissues. The energy, which is foreign to the tissues in which it resides, almost invariably has within it an emotional component. When the SomatoEmotional Release technique is effectively carried out, the emotion is re-experienced by the patient/client and, most often, a rather vivid memory of the incident during which the energetic placement occurred comes into conscious awareness.”
The most important intention that comes to my mind as a Craniosacral Therapist who works with SER, is to create a sacred environment that focuses on working with unity of the mind, body and spirit. By holding space for the whole person, whatever shows up during a session can move forward, all taken care of by the client’s own “Inner Physician (IP)”. That inner intelligence that lies within regulates the session and helps the client to release energy that is caught up. The Therapist is connected to the IP and follows its guidance without judgment. This helps to complete unfinished cycles so that the client can feel finished with whatever unconscious material shows up.
SomatoEmotional Release
Clients who have experienced trauma, anxiety and other emotional extremes often feel much better balanced after an SER session. Not only from a feeling perspective, but also physically as well. When the client is able to move through fear along with letting go of dysfunctional tissue patterns, they are often able to move more freely into their future.
SomatoEmotional Release can be an excellent addition to psychotherapy. While students are trained in this type of work at the Upledger Institute , the foundation of the training is on working with the Craniosacral system. I like to think that this training helps manual therapist to be prepared for whatever shows up in the session without trying to control it or working towards fixing things. This is a journey of discovery and self-awareness.
If you are interested in finding out more about SER, please call Sharon Hartnett CST, at (740) 966-5153 for a free 15 minute phone consultation.
www.massageincolumbusohio.com
by SharonHartnett | Sep 9, 2015 | Craniosacral Therapy, Energy Healing, Massage License in Ohio: 33.007505-H-K, mind body & spirit, thought for the day
What is like to be raw and vulnerable and to be held in kindness while feeling something real like that?
It is interesting when one begins the journey of self-discovery.
I remember even as a little girl wondering about why didn’t I feel connected any longer to other people. Being an identical twin, it seemed only natural that we would all feel and see and think similar things. Not—:) But I do remember at one point getting interested in ESP. Yet nobody seemed to talk about such things in the mainstream at the time. So I became like many others, loosing touch with my deeper sense of connection.
Then when I hit my early 30’s, I began to wonder again those basic questions that I think touch many people: Who AM I? Why am I here? What is my purpose? Again, I did not find many others who spoke about such things. Was it because I was a Pisces, a sensitive and creative woman?
But then I picked up a book, called Hands of Light, written by Dr. Barbara Brennan and felt a whoosh of ah ha. There are other people in the world who are aware of energy and connection in its more subtle forms. I really wanted to go to school right then and there, but I had young children, so I waited. At some point, it did all come together, and the stars aligned so that I might go. That school for me was a place for me so sacred and profound. I faced my deepest fears, touched into places I never imagined in my mind and heart. At the same time, I found it very difficult. I wanted my teachers to fit into my “picture of God” pure, peaceful, compassionate and wise. And they did carry some of these aspects, but they were humans just like me. With their own flaws and unconscious conditioning. So I struggled, I fought, and I cried. At this wonderful school of healing, there was still so much conflict and pain for me. Things left unhealed in them, and things left unhealed in me. But I wouldn’t have changed a thing as they were my guides to the next level of awakening. They laid the foundation for me to be in better relationship. They gave me the space and time to feel raw and dark, love and hate, and peace at such a level I had never known before. I was attached, but I had to leave. I departed with some incredible new friends spread across the globe and such mentors to help me on my way. One who held me close and saved me from myself more than once. Eventually I would teach and I still supervise students. I love the work that I learned there.
Next I moved into my Hakomi training. It was gentle approach from a psychotherapy perspective in mindfulness. The work itself, like the Brennan Science was amazing. Yet even within this quiet and easy container, I felt rage and anger. And wouldn’t you know it, a person from my Brennan Graduate class showed up who I didn’t feel comfortable with, who kept triggering me into my darkness. I loved the work, but I was always challenged. And in all this time, I found some of the instructors to be kind and understanding, and others judging me for feeling so unedited. Was there any place that I could be “real”?
Bert Hellinger’s work caught my eye. I studied there for a while. Learned about family order and lineage healing. Profound and touching our lives on a soul level.
Afterwards, I went into the school SPI for Trauma Training. I expected the founder of the school to be teaching as was advertised. That is why I signed up. But she took ill. A new teacher arrived and I felt so disappointed. Oh- my raw stuff again. But I learned new tools, I processed my “stuff” and away I went with another “tic” under my belt.
If that wasn’t enough, I decided to delve into the Upledger Institute’s work and found myself finally happy with a basic curriculum that focused on the physiological. It took me some type to develop my work, but I loved trusting the “Inner Physician” within my clients and just enjoyed riding the waves. Well, then as I advanced, I started getting more involved in the SER (SomatoEmotional Release) part of the curriculum. Well, you guessed it… in the group my deep feelings seeped right out again. Only this time, the holding was more dear. Not quite enough though. While I looked for someone on the outside to help me, I continued to have a small piece that kept on suffering.
Next stop on the journey, I decided to visit the Byron Katie School for 9 days. Now this was a shift. No bullshit and no Ego teaching here. Each person was taught how to ask 4 basic questions to then turn around in order to find our own answers. Any feelings I felt were mine. Nobody else to blame as all there was were the questions and my mind. What a relief. Taking responsibility for how I felt and created. With each of these teaching, I stepped out of my box and expanded and grew.
Last stop was on a farm in Northern Ohio. I studied with Jackie Stevenson with her horses to learn about equine self-discovery. This was my final destination to truly find inner peace. She held a position of such quiet unconditional love. She took no glory from the healing and growth there. She put the onus on each of us to have our own experience. There was no judgement from any of the participants that I could see. All egos left at the door. So good to be free to cry to say whatever was on my mind, and to stop hiding all that I judged within me. The horses were magical and everything was perfect there for the first time in my life.
Now I have a farm. I work with my horses and other animals. I have also worked with www.integrativeintentions.com in their dolphin program. I have taken everything that I have learned from all these great places and applied them to my life. I now can say, that I let life and every moment teach me. I have let go of wanting other people to give me what I longed for because I know that it is already here. I have felt raw and I have felt deep. But now those feelings feel so much softer and easier. Not saying that I no longer have my distortions or masks. But my tool box is full. My heart is full. And my brain understands things with much more clarity. I can live real as me now.
With all of this said and done, it is freeing being more real and authentic. There are prices to pay for coming out of your shell. People might rebel or leave you, but you will find yourself. I believe that is why we are here. To remember that God is right here inside and that we are the creative aspects of love embodied. It doesn’t mean ignoring your rawness, but it does mean allowing things to be as they are and to progress and they need in their own time. So be with the moment. Explore your relationships and grace will help you to uncover your greatness and essence. The journey is a wave. Ride it. Be it. And know that while this earthy world is temporary, that love is not. Something deeper is calling us all home. That something is real.
Sharon Hartnett LMT
Columbus, Ohio
740 966-5153
www.massageincolumbusohio.com
by SharonHartnett | Jun 20, 2013 | Energy Healing, Massage, Massage License in Ohio: 33.007505-H-K
Massage can help release anxiety and tension.
Release the fear…release the tension.
Fear Free
Often our fears are based on our thinking. It is usually when a thought enters our mind that the flow of fear can either blossom into full body felt fruition and pass or escalate into a full blown anxiety. My understanding of anxiety from my own experience has been that before I knew how to work with it, it felt like a frozen aspect of Self that was suddenly activated. My physiology, on a cellular level, would be triggered and a movement so quick took over the moment. Control mechanisms then began to roll, and the patterns of anxiety never played out in a safe way until I finally took charge of my thinking and feeling into my senses.
Is fear ever helpful? Actually, fear can be a very healthy thing. It helps us to stay alive . I know that if I think of jumping off a high cliff that my fear of hurt or death stops me. In this way, our fear actually is our ally. It helps us to survive and stay alert with the “fight or flight” response when encountering a threat. However, when we are faced with either internal stress or an outside occurrence that stops us from doing the things that make us happy, help can be found in releasing anxiety and tension. One of the ways to do this to work with the mind body & spirit connection.
Often when a Massage Therapist works with a client for a long period of time, a trusting bond is established. At Lighten Up Therapies, I know that I provide whatever comfort I can offer to make sure that my client feels safe and trusts me and the environment in which we are working. If I know that a client has encountered certain traumas in their past, I take care to understand their boundaries and what signals to look for if they start to experience symptoms outside their box of safety. A client may go into shallow breathing, increased heartbeat, pupils can dilate if an old cellular memory is reactivated. Knowing how to look for these cues is helpful.
Depending on the level of fear, it is important for the massage therapist to be prepared to support our clients. While we are not psychotherapists, professionals do have the option to understand trauma release and to create a sacred and safe place for organic movement to occur and play out. Some of the ways that can be helpful is to help our clients:
1. Feel deeply into the sensory body. Often fear comes from the primal part of the brain. During a massage, the massage therapist can help encourage the client to sense what is happening in the body within a safe range. Once a client start to move outside of that level of soft feeling, it is important to bring them out of the situation.
2. Allow the feeling to emerge and feel into the fear. Gentle coaching can help the client to allow the physiological process to come through into completion.
2. Challenge perception of reality. Often trauma will not be resolved through talk therapy only. However, integrated with the above, challenging belief systems and opening to other possibilities can be helpful.
When we live in fear, our world get so much more limited. We can feel tense and restrict our lives by choosing fear over love and pleasure. By exploring the mind body & spirit connection, our lives can open up into a new reality. We can find freedom in our thinking, feelings and in our spirit.
Healing is a process where we open up to joy. Massage therapy with a therapist trained in Hakomi, Sensorimotor psychology or/and spiritual healing can help you to expand your horizons.
Live Free. Live Joyfully!
Warmly,
Sharon Hartnett LMT
(614) 372-6598
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