Bodily Relearning Press
Bodily Relearning the book
A textbook for all healthcare providers who are helping people suffering from persistent pain.
Bodily Relearning is a book for all healthcare providers and movement specialists who are actively helping those suffering from persistent pain.
The rehabilitation approach presented is based on the principle that our bodies are ever-adaptable and shows that there is hope, even in the face of significant persistent pain. Explore how to help those with a sensitized neuroimmune system by seeking deep insight into one’s bodily protection responses, including pain; strategizing how to safely re-engage in meaningful activities; designing appropriate movement exploration plans and reflection skills; building resiliency; and enhancing mindfulness skills.
Bodily: The term bodily refers to anything related to or concerning the body. In this book the term body, or bodily, refers to both the physical body including our nonconscious processes but also the parts of us that make up our mind and our conscious processes. Bodily here refers to all of that which make us the person we are, not just in the physical domain, but in the emotional, behavioral, spiritual, psychological, and other domains as well.
Learning: Like the adaptability of our body tissues, our biological and physiological processes are adaptable too. Our processes of ongoing threat assessment and self-monitoring for safety are adaptable. As healthcare providers we seek to facilitate adaptations that improve people’s function and engagement in life… to help their bodies learn to allow for more freedom of movement and activity.
Re: Why Re? Because it’s the hardest part! To change what the body has already “learned” is HARD, particularly when we are talking about learned bodily protection responses. We aim to “reteach”, “relearn”, “reset”, “retrain” the body’s response to activity. In other words, this book outlines a “re”-habilitation approach aiming to shift from a dysfunctional state to a better state of being, applied to the process of how our bodies look after us.
Reviews
“Ben Boyd has constructed an important and timely book, drawing from a rich mix of education, research, and clinical professional life. He clearly has a strong desire to help humankind. I have been waiting for a text like Bodily Relearning for a long time and it’s been a thrill to read and reflect on how the science of neurodynamics has evolved and, in particular, its clinical integration.” David Butler
“Ben's book is amazing - such a wealth of information and the artwork and high-quality photographs will be helpful for reference for years to come. Incredible how well he synthesised all the information into highly accessible and easy to understand/digest concepts for patients that can be used right away!” Course participant, CA, 2023