What is Somatics?
‘Somatics’ refers to a practice of movement developed by Thomas Hanna, which enhances internal awareness of one’s body and allows for better movement through improved sensorimotor control. The Greek word ‘soma’ from which ‘somatics’ derives, refers to the body as it is perceived internally by the individual, or from the first person perspective. Somas can self-sense and self-regulate based on what they sense. When the attention is brought to the inner sensations of the body, the soma naturally adjusts to find the most comfort and ease, and maintain balance for efficient movement. Somas can self-guide based on the impetus to move forward to meet its’ needs. Somas can self-actualise, or experience the freedom that comes from self-sensing, self-regulating, and self-guiding. To begin to move towards self-actualisation, we need to be aware of both what we do know and what we don’t know about ourselves. Three basic reflexes created by the nervous system in response to stress can cause a functional lack of efficiency in movement that Thomas Hanna termed ‘sensory motor amnesia’. This lack of efficient movement often leads to structural problems in the body.
The Three Stress Reflexes
Based on the work of Hans Seyle, Thomas Hanna asserts, that there are three unconscious reflexes within our nervous systems that are caused by stress. The reflexes are responses to stress and trauma, both physical and emotional, and go largely unnoticed in the individual until their structural effects are felt as pain and discomfort. These effects are often attributed to old age, but are in fact problems that arise from at a functional level, and can only be dealt with at this level.
The Green Light Reflex
The green light reflex is activated when there in response to on-going demand or stress. When we are constantly on the go and very busy we tend to tighten the back muscles to thrust us forward into action. This can create problems such as sciatica, lower back pain, neck, shoulder pain, herniated discs and jaw pain.
The Trauma Reflex
This reflex is a response to accidents or injuries. When we injure ourselves on one side, the surrounding musculature contracts to protect the injured area often leading to an imbalance between the two sides of the body. This can create tight waist muscles, a twist at centre of body, side bending and rotation of pelvis, shoulders, back and neck, which can cause painful hips and knees and an uneven gait.
The Red Light Reflex
This reflex is a primitive response common to all animals in response to anxiety and fear. The body curls inward to protect itself, but it is also a common posture of those that spend long periods at a computer or driving. It can lead to tightness in the abdomen and hip flexors, rounded shoulders with head jutting forward, which in turn can lead to issues such as shallow breathing, hip and knee problems, neck pain and respiratory problems.
Sensory Motor Amnesia
Sensory motor amnesia is the term given by Thomas Hanna that describes the inability of the brain to be able to sense or consciously control muscle activity in the body. Muscles only move when the brain gives them a signal to do so. If muscles are continuously given the signal to contract, they will become good at doing that, and will remain in that position until you intentionally relax them.
The motor cortex in the brain receives sensory signals from your muscles to tell them how to move. Riding a bicycle for the first time is a classic example of a new movement being learnt. When the movement becomes learned it becomes an involuntary movement which is the responsibility of the sub-cortex. For example when stuck in a traffic jam, the motor cortex of the brain tells you to tighten the shoulders or neck. And when this is repeated over and over again, it becomes a learned habit. The sub-cortex has finally learned the movement and takes over the automatic function of tightening the muscles. The motor cortex then goes on to learning something else. This is sensory motor amnesia.
The three reflexes mentioned above, create sensory motor amnesia in different areas of the body. Groups of muscles become chronically tight, and cannot switch off, even when we are relaxing, which often goes unnoticed until it shows up as pain in the body. It is often not just one muscle that is tight, as nothing works in isolation, but rather a whole kinetic chain that can create dysfunctional movement patterns.
Sensory motor amnesia is the body’s reaction to stress. It is not necessarily the stress itself that causes muscular problems, rather the way we reflexively react to stress over and over again that creates the tensions. Stresses on the body can come from physical injuries, emotional responses to our life situations, the inability to relax, and also just from poor posture or repetitive movements through work or even sport and recreational activities.
Pandiculation
Pandiculation is a natural movement that allows muscles to release tension through stimulating the sensorimotor tract. There are three stages to a pandiculation. First, a contraction of a muscle or muscle group slightly stronger than what is already there, then a slow, controlled release of muscles, then complete relaxation of the muscles.
Animals tend to pandiculate after having a rest, and will do it many times throughout the day. When you actively contract a tight muscle a little more than the contraction that is already there, a signal is sent to the brain via the sense receptors in the muscles, which recognises the new contraction. Then, on a slow, controlled release, gradually the brain learns to allow the muscle to lengthen to its’ resting length. By paying close attention to the movement, new neural pathways are formed to make the movement easier and more efficient. This then increases their range of motion and improves the ability to contract and relax on demand.
Re-educating the Brain through Essential Somatic Movement
The movements taught by Essential Somatics are based on the teachings of Thomas Hanna, and incorporate an understanding of the three stress reflexes, where and how sensory motor amnesia shows up in the individual, and how pandiculation can help to improve our sensorimotor control. Understanding the reflexes helps us to identify within ourselves, the common patterns that show up when particular reflex is dominant. Each reflex will create common patterns of sensory motor amnesia, which gradually begin to become clear as the learner goes through the various movements. The learner is guided by the movement educator to begin to gradually sense what is occurring in the body at a subconscious level, and begin to make the movement more conscious and voluntary. What is unconscious gradually becomes conscious. The pandiculating movements create new neural pathways in the nervous system, which allow for easier and more controlled motion. This learnt movement happens at the motor cortex of the brain, and begins to replace the habitual movements in the sub-cortex region. When the new movements are repeated over time, then they become established in the sub-cortex, and the functioning of our soma becomes more efficient, improving our everyday movement such as walking, running, reaching up for objects or bending down to tie shoelaces.
Essential Somatic movements are whole body movements that connect what is happening at the centre of the body to what happens at the periphery. Thomas Hanna noted that when functioning of the muscles at the trunk became distorted, the movement at the periphery of the body is also distorted. All movement connects to the centre, so through a balanced practice, the muscles at the front, back and sides in the centre of the body are always dealt with first as this is where the distortion begins. When the trunk muscles are gradually brought into our awareness, then movement in the rest of the body becomes more coordinated and easy.
The learner is guided to sense for themselves, and become responsible for their health and wellbeing. This can be very empowering for the learner, as they gradually begin to learn how to find more comfort and move better without having to rely on anyone else. The learner may also find that not only do they feel more at ease in their body, but at the mental level, they can become clearer and more focused. Somatics works as a whole system where the mind and body are considered the same. What goes on in the mind shows up in the body, so when the issues in the body are dealt with, the mental activity that created the tension in the first place, can begin to subside.
