Do It for Yourself Now! - Cope with Psychosomatic Disturbances

Written by Ilan Shalif, Ph.D.

1) Steps to be taken against psychosomatic disturbances

There are many disturbances in the smooth functioning of the body, that are called "Psychosomatic". These disturbances - like Asthma, Hemorrhoids, Eczema, Migraine, etc. and their "eruptions" or "attacks" - were found to be the result of the combined contribution of psychological factors ("stressors") as well as being physiologically based.

The physiological base can be acquired or innate, and may need a chemical or mechanical trigger to set it off. The relative contribution of the psychological factor, as well as that of the physiological factor, varies from person to person and from one attack to another.

As the psychosomatic attacks generally do not contribute to the well-being of that particular person, it is obvious that their psychological components are trash-programs of one kind or another, (mostly inefficient emotional supra-programs). Having the appropriate physiological and the psychological base, the attacks may be activated by trash-programs - with or without any discernible contribution of chemical or physical agents. It seems that in the overwhelming majority of cases, the leading factors are the psychological ones, especially the trashy emotional supra-programs.

An important point to emphasize on is that the following suggestions are not intended to be an alternative method for any medical, psychological or other treatment the reader has had in the past, may have now, or may be intending to receive in the future. The suggestions we offer here, and those we offer in other parts of this book, are intended to supplement the other measures you have already taken.

In this section we offer procedures that use the natural biofeedback processes in order to decrease or even temporarily (short or long periods) to stop the psychosomatic events. This can happen if one succeeds in stopping the trash-programs from contributing their share to the creation of the psychosomatic processes (symptoms and attacks included). These procedures are meant to supplement the focusing on natural biofeedback received from any other steps you may be taking, in order to improve the quality of your life, and are not intended to supplant them.

By changing the psychological factors, one can lighten or alleviate the deleterious and unpleasant aspects and effects of the psychosomatic attack, even at the peak of its intensity. Though ongoing psychosomatic processes respond to focusing gradually, they do fade faster than expected. Thus, during the focusing training attacks and other eruptions tend to become milder, they become less and less frequent, and after a few months of focusing, they practically disappear for months or years.

Though we still do not know exactly how the sensate focusing contributes to the cessation of psychosomatic processes, it seems that the weakening or disappearance of the unpleasant sensations of the psychosomatic processes gives the physiological component a lethal blow. It seems that asthma without the choking suffocation, and hemorrhoids without pain, are like Migraine without a headache, Eczema that does not itch or a car without an engine.

During my focusing and that of my trainees, we found that it is possible to stop, to weaken or to at least bring significant alleviation to the following psychosomatic phenomena:

• Strong and long frequent headaches of suspected Migraine;
• Recurrent and sporadic headaches of indeterminable origin, of varying
• duration and intensities;
• Pains and pressures of diagnosed Sinusitis;
• Chronic and acute allergy of the nose (including its passages and
• sinuses);
• Repeated burning sensation and pressure in the upper chest (including
• "Globous Hystericus") and other "projections" of pains originating in the heart;
• Choking attacks of asthmatic origin;
• Pain of hemorrhoids;
• Chronic constrictions of muscles - those that distort the facial
• expressions or "freeze" them as well as those that take place in other parts of the body;
• Various feelings and sensations of burning related to ulcers or "pre-ulcers"
• Various unpleasant sensations of the lower abdomen related to the menstrual cycle;
• Many other unpleasant physical sensations of undiagnosed origins.

There is no reason why this technique should not help with other psychosomatic processes that are not included in the list. The actual struggle with the disturbances mentioned above comprises several steps:

First: you have to acquaint yourself intimately with the introductory sensations that come before the full onset of the unwanted psychosomatic process - sometimes called "aura".

Second: experiment with repeated focusing on various intensities of the unpleasant sensations.