"Our reactions to injury and stress are learned responses that often lead to chronic muscular tension and pain. This tension causes imbalances in our posture and movement patterns that restrict flexibility and limit the range of motion in our joints. It goes unnoticed most of the time, until our body reminds us of its presence with muscular discomfort and pain."

When we receive an injury, our reflex is to tense (contract) the muscles of our body to guard against the pain. Stressful events in our life cause a similar response: we tense our body for fight or flight. Poor posture and repetitive movement can create stresses in our muscles and joints that can lead to tissue inflammation, muscular fatigue, and, eventually, joint degeneration. We unconsciously hold tension in our body for long periods and our brain learns to hold the tension indefinitely. This chronic over-stimulation of our muscular and nervous system is similar to a switch that is stuck in the "on" position. Our reflexes become habitual and unconscious, ultimately producing inefficient movement patterns and distorted postures that further aggravate muscular tension, restrict movement, and cause pain.

Old injuries also have a way of creating chronic muscular tension throughout our body. In coping with an injury, we learn to "move around" the pain by making adjustments or compensations in our movements. We unconsciously integrate these compensations into our nervous system, and they can remain with us long after the injury has healed. "Moving around" the problem further contributes to our poor posture, restricted movement, and muscular tension. As we condition our brain to hold tension in our body, we learn to ignore the associated discomfort and pain. The burn of muscular fatigue and the stiffness in our joints become a normal part of life, and we forget how to "let go" and relax the tension. Anti-inflammatory and pain medications mask the pain, but are largely ineffective in providing permanent relief. Stress-related symptoms such as headaches, back pain, or sciatica may suddenly occur, seemingly inexplicably. Permanent and lasting relief cannot occur until the underlying condition that perpetuates the problem is corrected.

Somatics is a way of relieving stress and chronic muscular tension that creates muscular fatigue and pain in our body. It helps us learn new, more efficient ways of moving and eliminates stress that we experience in our daily lives. Somatic Bodywork is the manual application of the Somatics approach, and is a hands-on method of working with the body that produces consistent, effective, and lasting results.

With Somatic Bodywork, the key to relieving chronic muscular tension and stress begins by looking for postural imbalances and compensated patterns of movement, and understanding how those imbalances create referred pain and tension. Traditional bodywork techniques such as deep tissue, facilitated stretching, and movement exercises are often used to help relieve restrictions and tensions that act as barriers to recovery. Lasting resolution comes through learning how we create those imbalances, and learning techniques and methods that can help eliminate those conditions.