Beyond Talk Therapy: Missing Links to Optimal Healing, Health and Wellness
Beyond Talk Therapy and Mindset Work: Why your wellness model might be failing you:
Do you ever feel like you’re doing all the right things- pouring your time, energy and resources into therapy, mindset work, personal growth books and podcasts, and yet somehow you still find yourself repeating the same patterns?! If you feel like you are stuck, plateauing in your healing journey or that you might just be a lost cause, I am here to tell you that most likely there is nothing wrong with you, you just might be needing to incorporate what I call the missing links to healing. This article lays out some of the why’s that patterns can be so stubborn and resistant and some of the hows to create more lasting change. Keep reading to awaken the forgotten path to healing.
First: Who I am I and why listen to me?
I always think that’s an important entry point. I have been a therapist for almost 20 years. I know, that might seem impossible and it always amazes me when I say that out loud but I started when I was very young. It was a calling to say the least! I’ve always had a deep and profound interest in people, a desire to understand them, their stories, their struggles and the depths of what shapes one's life. Through a lifetime of frequent travel, often solo travel, I have learned to view life through many different lenses, often through curiosity, compassion and authenticity.
As a result of my own family experiences with mental health challenges and my own personal experiences with trauma, complex ptsd and trauma healing, I developed an even greater affinity towards understanding humans and the mind body connection. This path led me to advanced studies in mental health and holistic approaches to healing, including the biology of trauma and attachment, the physiology of stress, the polyvagal theory and the science of safety and danger. I continued my body mind studies with certifications in mindfulness, yoga, subtle energetic anatomy and vibrational healing through flower essences.
As for my clinical experience I have done counseling in settings from psychiatric hospitals, non profits, foster care, schools, in homes and in private practice settings between NY and CA and I have had the privilege of working with people across the age span navigating mental health challenges and imbalances. Throughout this time, I have come to develop a very unique lens in healing the mind-body connection, one that includes some of what I call ‘the missing links’ to creating healing from the inside out.
Why we Struggle to create lasting change:
I am not sure your experience, but as a therapist for almost 20 years, I have heard a lot of stories of therapies past. Most people share experiences of symptom management not resolution- hence repeating patterns and stuckness. Let’s start with what I feel should be discussed in psych 101, something I find most of my colleagues are unfamiliar with even after decades of study and practice - the etymology of ‘psyche’- the root of psychology and psychiatry. Most people understand ‘psyche’ to mean the study of the mind, hence why there is so much focus on observing, challenging and restructuring thoughts and the mind to change behaviors, beliefs and patterns. Herein lies an important correction and how this may explain the forgotten roots of healing. What most people get wrong is that the etymology of psyche actually translates to breath, life and soul ! See the problem? Most ‘psyche’ practices and modalities are forgetting or ignoring the most important aspects of healing. So what does this mean? Psyche work has to do with more than just the mind. We must incorporate breath, body and soul! Enter: bottom up approaches.
What are bottom up approaches?
Have you ever been told to just ‘change your thinking?’ If it were only that easy, the world would be a better place. Have you ever tried to catch your thoughts realtime, in the moment? Even to simply try and observe thoughts can be a challenge, let alone try and change them. Thoughts tend to move very quickly, especially in a 5 G world, and just to normalize this, most of our thoughts move very quickly, often without conscious awareness. Have you ever noticed most of your thoughts are often full of worry and worst case scenarios- also normal. Here is the science behind this, in the biology and physiology- human thought patterns tend to err towards the negative or worst-case scenarios. This tendency is known as the negativity bias and actually serves function. Historically it is rooted in survival: anticipating potential threats gives us a better chance of protecting ourselves should there be danger. This is why a simple thought about dinner can quickly spiral into worry or catastrophic thinking. Again, this is a normal human tendency! It is literally in our biology. It is because of this survival functionality that thoughts need to move very quickly, literally at lightning speed. Making it even more difficult to track is that thoughts are invisible. We cannot see them nor hold them. Insert a missing link:
What is helpful to understand here is that the body and mind are always in communication, and the body will always match the state of the mind. When the mind is racing, fearful, or tense, the body mirrors that state- quick moving, tense and rapid thinking and speech.
The good news is that this connection is bidirectional ! Just as the mind influences the body, the body can also be used to influence the mind. This is the foundation of bottom up approaches. By becoming aware of physical sensations in the body- such as speed, volume, tension or even posture-we can use the body as an entry point to regulate the nervous system and shift our mental state.
This is why bottom-up methods are so powerful, because body cues and movements are tangible and observable: you can feel, see, and hear them. Simply using awareness, meaningful change becomes possible.
The How?
Bottom up approaches are simply bringing awareness to the body, for example, how is it moving, what is it doing, and where is it in the world, literally. In yoga we call the body soma- the root of somatics. You can try this as you read. Bring your attention to where your shoulders are. Are they up in your ears or can you relax them some. Notice your hands. Are they clenched in fists or can you soften their grip? What about your stomach? Can you relax your stomach? Now just start to notice what happens when you tune in to your body. Almost inevitably when we bring our attention to these spaces, we can relax them! Most of our default movements are in contraction, constriction and tension.
Let’s do one more. Without trying to change anything, I want you to just start to observe your breath. Notice how it is moving: Does it feel short, shallow, constricted or full and expansive? No right or wrong here, just observation. And did you notice that just by bringing your attention to your breath, it naturally began to change? Maybe slower, more full. Did you notice anything change in your mind state? This is how bottom up approaches work. Many people find it easier and more tangible to manipulate their breath than their thoughts. Now let’s go back to the etymology of psyche: Breath. Life. And soul.
Breath, posture, movement, and nervous system awareness give us tangible ways to access and calm the mind. Instead of fighting against runaway thoughts, we can anchor into the body and create a pathway for the mind to follow. This is the foundation of bottom-up approaches—and why they are often the missing link in healing and lasting change.
Simply by observing without judgement of the movements and sensations of this present moment. This is mindfulness. We first need to gain awareness of what state the body is in, then we can begin to shift it.
Are you ready to learn more? Dive into one of my community classes in The Space, connect with me at info@growinthespace.co or find me on IG @anahata_wellness. I would love to share these missing links, practices and education and help you move into more in bodied healing.
