Posted by anneke06 on November 11, 2006, at 9:07:00
In reply to OK, thread on TOUCH., posted by muffled on November 10, 2006, at 15:46:30
Touch in therapy is a really interesting topic to me, in part because there is such a range of opinions about it from both therapists and clients.
For me, touch has been an extremely important part of my therapy and I'm not sure I could work with a therapist who didn't use it. A well-timed hug or arm around my shoulder or pat on my arm can give me the courage to go deeper. It sounds cliche, but it makes me feel "safe", although I understand that it could have the totally opposite effect on someone else. I agree totally with you Muffled, touch HAS to be handled carefully and it HAS to be something that both therapist and client are comfortable with, otherwise it could spin horribly out of control.
I was hardly ever held or hugged or touched as a child and never, at least as far as I can remember, by my mother. For me, being held by my therapist for the first time with tears rolling down my face, let me know in a totally different way that tears and feeling sad and out of control really WAS OK. I "knew" it in intellectually before that, but experiencing that physically is something very different.
It makes me think about the discussions on here about how corrective emotional experiences can actually change wiring in our brains....for me, I feel like this might be true in terms of touch, hugs, etc.
Anyone else?? Good topic, BTW, muffled. I always really like your posts; I just don't post myself very often
poster:anneke06
thread:702345
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20061109/msgs/702520.html