Our bodies are constantly working to protect us. Pain can be part of that protection, but it is not the whole story. This ongoing assessment of safety and threat happens in real time, largely outside our conscious awareness, and continually adapts through experience.
Our bodies do the best they can to get this right. But sometimes these protective responses can become out of balance, interfering with our ability to move freely and meaningfully engage in valued life activities.
When pain persists longer than expected, we may need to intentionally help the body relearn a different way of protecting us - one that maintains the important role of protection while allowing greater freedom to engage in life and thrive.
Welcome to Bodily Relearning!
This is where a Bodily Relearning approach comes in.
Bodily Relearning explores how we can help reteach the body to reset, relearn, and rehabilitate its protective responses.
The approach explores the vital roles of movement and sense-making in pain rehabilitation. It involves developing a deeper understanding of what is happening and what we can do about it, while using movement exploration, mindfulness, and reflection to create new experiences from which the body can adapt. It also considers when modifying activities or physical stressors may help support this relearning process.
Importantly, Bodily Relearning looks for answers both in the structures of the body and in the systems that look after and protect those structures.