“Why won’t this shoulder and neck pain go away” I thought to myself yet again. As someone who was relatively fit and healthy, had body work and did yoga the frustration at this right shoulder pain was starting to get to me. After trying yet another massage and chiropractic session and still no relief, a thought came from the back of my mind “try the Kinesiologist”.
I had been recommended to a Kinesiologist some time before and had placed the suggestion away for a rainy day, and it appeared that this pain was the rainy day! Without knowing what Kinesiology was at the time (often called Applied Kinesiology in the northern hemisphere to avoid confusion), I booked in and eagerly awaited my appointment figuring that I’d either leave there with less pain or at worse, the same as when I went in.
The Weight Of The World On My Shoulders
The session began and my practitioner, a wonderful woman called Lyn, went about pushing on my arm, which I would later find out was muscle testing, doing strange movements with her fingers, looking up and down a list and touching here and there on my body and asking questions as she went.
“Is there any stress around males in your life?” she asked explaining the right side of the body was related to masculine energy. Um, YES, yes there was male stress in my life I assured her before feeling what I describe as an energetic un-raveling in my right neck and shoulder, like a spring unwinding.
“Do you feel like the weight of the world is on your shoulders regarding this male energy?” she asked next. Ah, YES, yes I did I responded again followed by a sense of the spring unwinding further as I answered.
Lyn continued to muscle test and after a few more questions and sharing information, she put essential oils on reflexology points on my feet, sat down to read me the properties of each oil and a short while later told me we were done.
The Issues Left My Tissues
I left there in a daze. Not quite sure what had just happened there was one thing I knew to be true; the shoulder and neck pain had released. After a night of long, deep sleep, another positive side effect of the session, I woke the next day still bemused by the session yet feeling a sense of clarity in my mind and freedom in my body that I hadn’t experienced for some time.
The issues – otherwise known as the stress I was carrying around two situations involving male energy in my life – had upped and left my tissues.
I was intrigued and hence my love of mind body connection was born.
The Mind Body Connection
With my pain free right shoulder and neck a reminder of what I had experienced, I started to dive into understanding more about this tool called Kinesiology and what had happened in the session and my body.
Kinesiology involves muscle monitoring, using the muscles as a biofeedback system, to access information within the body and mind. This tool allowed my body to speak via Lyn as the Kinesiologist to join the dots between what was happening in my mind with the symptoms I was feeling in my body. The right neck and shoulder pain were my bodies way of letting me know “Hey, I’m stressed” but at the time my mind was going for the logical explanations and solutions to an issue that was much deeper, the stress had taken up home in my tissues.
Many of us ignore, push aside, think our way out of what is happening in our bodies as a survival and coping strategy, yet it is this connection between our mind and our body that is a foundation of holistic health and healing.
As people become more frustrated with medical systems that do not get to the root cause of issues for them, many are opening up to complementary modalities such as Kinesiology, Reiki, Tapping and other energy techniques to guide them on this mind body path.
We all have the ability to become the master our own mind body connection, and it never hurts to have an energy practitioner in your support crew too.
When you’ve finished reading this article, I ask you to close your eyes and with slow rhythmic breaths scan your body from head to toe and bring your awareness to any areas that come to your attention. Keeping up with the breath, place a hand on this area and ask your body:
“What do you want me to know about this {pain/sensation/tension}?”
Let your mind body connection speak to you. You may be surprised what it has to say.
About The Author
Stacey Bout is passionate about holistic well-being and mental health. As a Holistic Kinesiologist, Coach, Facilitator and Mental Health First Aid Instructor her days are spent sharing knowledge and empowering others to create change in their lives and implement wellness practices to support their life goals and wellness intentions.
Being full of wanderlust with a love of people and values of connection and gratitude, Stacey is grateful to be able to work with clients nationally and globally acknowledging, supporting and educating them.
You can connect with her at www.infinitebalance.com.au