Body Armor

This is the way most of us walk around. We've been acquiring body armor since we've been babies. Our bodies have learned how to defend us from trauma, pain, and stress. The good news is that we've lived through it all - the bad news now is our body is causing us to pay a price for all of that work.

When we experience stress, our bodies tense up - we're getting ready to fight or take flight. This is great because we are physically capable of running away in order to protect ourselves. The downside is - most of the time, we can't run away from most of the stressors we have to deal with on a daily basis. For example, we can't run away from our boss if we have a deadline to meet. We can't run away from the corner that we're trying to hail a cab on because we're running late for an important meeting. We can't run away from our 5 year old when they're having a crises, well maybe we can, but we'll get in trouble! The list of things we can't run away from goes on and on.

So, what do we do instead of running away? Our bodies hold tons of this tension in and the tension builds up over years and we're stuck with these knots in our neck and back. We get migraines, low-back pain, neck pain, shoulder pain, knee pain, hip pain, or our stomachs feel all out of whack. This build-up of tension ends up becoming this thick coating of body armor How do we release this tension? How can someone walk around these days without armor? Is it even possible?

Yes. I'd like to believe it is possible. I think that if we become aware of our bodies' armor, and we realize that perhaps at one point in our lives it was useful, then come to the understanding that it is no longer useful and actually is causing us to feel pain, we can start to take it off.

Massage therapy is a great way to build awareness and a great massage therapist will be able to help you start removing this armor. This process will absolutely relieve you of pain. I've helped countless people strip their armor and then I see them for quick tune-ups. The great thing about building awareness of your body is that as soon as you encounter a stressful event, you will be able to feel your armor patterns start up. The greater thing about building body awareness through massage therapy is after the stressful encounter, you'll know an amazing massage therapist and you know that with their help you'll be able to release this tension, strip the armor and feel your peace again.