23/03/2026
Abdominal is a fascinating place in the body.
My favourite place to massage.
Every belly is a very sensitive place and holds so many stories, stress,anxiety, emotion.
So whenever I work with the abdominal it's always with respect, intention and with slow approach.
The abdomen is seen as the center (Qi,Agni,hara)
and gut as a second brain.
When you experience something intense your belly registers this and shows up as tightening, holding and discomfort.
The body's connective tissue (fascia) adapts to stress which leads to
-chronic tightness/guarding
-reduced movement especially with breath
-feeling of hardness or numbness
In somatic practice the belly, navel and all organs, is a place where we hold
-Unfinished responses (like fear that we couldn't discharge)
-Suppressed expression (emotions not allowed to be felt or shown)
-Early experiences (especially ore-verbal)
-Sense of safety or lack of it
Not storage like a container but patterns imprinted in the nervous system and body tissue
So even if you talk about trauma your body still holds, your nervous system is still rewired to old stories
What you can see on the video is me releasing the tightness by using a foam roll. This can be a powerful exercise which needs to be done slowly, in a safe space and with full presence.
Because when we don't release we experience:
-Chronic activation of the sympathetic nervous system (stress mode)
-Ongoing feeling of tension,alertness or unease
-lower resilience to stress
-Shallow breathing
-Digestive discomfort (bloating, irregularity,tension)
-Increased baseline of anxiety
-Numbness and disconnection from the body
-Difficulty in relaxing even in safe situations
What can you do?
-First of all become aware without judgment
-Get curious and observe your abdominal e.g.is it relaxed? When is it tensing up?
-Do relaxing practices (touch,breath,massage)
-Deeper breathing
-Foam roll release
-Castor oil wraps
-Belly dance
Bare in mind these practices may bring lots of emotions so if you need support come for a session with me and allow yourself to be helped,supported and held and finally feel comfortable in your own body
