Frequently Asked Questions about Body Stress Release

Clients with continuous pain after back and/or neck operations often respond positively to Body Stress Release. A maintenance programme after the initial three BSR sessions assists in attempting to keep the clients pain free. Surgery is sometimes unavoidable but it does mean that your body has struggled with trauma or stress overload that has disrupted and impacted your health. Often surgery may have helped to restore mechanical functioning but the body may not have fully addressed the underlying cause of pain. Body stress is often present after stressful surgeries, and BSR is a gentle and effective way to release this tension and prompt full recovery. Most of the time, clients report an ability to heal and adapt more effectively to changes after surgery with Body Stress Release as an intervention and support.

This is not always the case for every client, but when this happens it does indicate that stress has been present for some time. After the release, the body will begin the healing process, decompression of the nerves may occur, and feeling will gradually return to the area, which was previously numbed. This is often a good sign, as it means the body is responding very well to the releasing process. During this time it is helpful to listen to your body and allow it to rest and repair without further stress, to allow for more rapid self-healing.  High impact exercise is not advised during the initial phase of releases.

This is a good indication of how severe the pressure is on the nerves in your lower back. In other words, the protective action (locked up musculature) is intense in that area, causing a numbing effect on the nerves and surrounding tissue. As the body lets go of the tension and decompression takes place, sensation will return to the area as a result of improved overall communication in the body.

Restoring communication by releasing tension and compression means that feeling restores and returns to areas that are directly affected by that nerve supply. In this particular case, the nerve pathways from the lower back refer down into the legs, knees and feet. Often sensations can be felt in areas of previous injury, as these areas are now able to restore functioning effectively.

Sometimes, as the muscles release, normal posture is restored and areas which were compensating are now forced to relax or return to their normal functioning. If the lower back was previously locked up, this would have affected the range of movement in the hip – and the knee may have rotated to compensate. While the hip and back were “locked” you did not feel the knee because of the compressive force that dampens nerve communication. After the releases, the back and hip are able to restore their normal range of movement and the knee can also return to its former position, only this time the restored nerve functioning means more sensation. This makes you aware of how your knee has been accommodating your hip by changing its position and range of movement. The BSR process is a wonderful opportunity to become more aware of how your body moves and works and may even help you to prevent further stresses and strains. During the recovery process it is vital to remain in contact with your practitioner and let them know of any severe changes that may need further releases.

The nerves from the lower back have a direct effect on the bowel, bladder, colon and lower organs so, by releasing tension in the lower back, the nerve pathways to the bowel and digestive system are stimulated. A good analogy would be to imagine you are standing on a hosepipe.  With compression on the hosepipe there will only be a trickle of water coming out. When you lift your foot, at first there will be a sudden gushing of water before the flow normalizes.   It is the same with the nerves in the body.  Previously, where there was disrupted nerve communication to the bowel there may have been irregular bowel movements due to ineffectiveness in the whole system. Once body stress is released the body regains the innate capability to process and rid the body of any toxins.  Elimination is vital for restored function. If compression is lifted off a nerve, it can occasionally take some time for that nerve to restore to normal self-regulation. Continuing the BSR process will reduce the irritation and assist these effects to normalise.

In the early stages of BSR as the muscles are letting go and re-aligning, the body goes through a series of muscle adaptations.  Nerves charged up to firing point (i.e. above the pain threshold) might drop below the pain threshold as muscular tension is released and at this point the person will feel better.  However, during the healing process the body may splint with surface muscles to protect vulnerable areas in the body, and this splinting action may in turn re-irritate the area temporarily.

After a release the sensation of pain returning may signal that you may not have fully adapted to the changes. Your BSR practitioner can advise you about posture, sleep, exercise and other small changes that may be causing your body to re-stress. If you have followed all their advice to the letter, and have not done anything wrong, then a “return” of pain, may be an indication that body stress was present at a deeper level and the practitioner will now be able to prompt that deeper layer of tension to release.   After a BSR session, the releases initiate the self-healing process which continues for several days.