W
hat is TRE ?
![]() We all know that feeling of stress and tension in our body as we get nervous, it could be butterflies, tight muscles, freezing up. This is the natural automatic response of our bodies when we are under threat. The good news is that inbulit into our bodies is an evolutionary mechanism to release the stress, tension, tightness and trauma.
What TRE does is allow us to access that mechanism, which then gives us a way to release the effects of stress, anxiety, trauma and tension from the body. TRE is a set of six exercises that help to release deep tension from the body by evoking a self-controlled muscular shaking process in the body called neurogenic muscle tremors. The uniqueness of this technique is that this shaking originates deep in the core of the body of the psoas muscles. These gentle tremors reverberate outwards along the spine releasing tension from the sacrum to the cranium. Once the technique is learned and mastered after several sessions, the warm-up exercises can be accelerated or replaced with your normal exercise activity like walking or yoga, and the technique then becomes a quick and effective method for consistent relaxation. You can be relaxed simply, in as little as 10 minutes lying down. Eventually, these tremors will evoke themselves naturally in a rest position to reduce any stress or tension that was accumulated over the course of your day. TRE is being used by thousands of people around the world as an effective tool for releasing chronic stress, physical tension and emotional trauma. It is also quickly becoming a popular way to release the everyday stress, tension, and anxiety that evolves comes from the daily pressures of life. |
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How does it work ?TRE works by invoking your body's own natural healing and release mechanism, the neurogenic muscle vibration, to 'shake off' the 'fight and flight' adrenalin and cortisol stress/trauma biochemistry releasing your deep core protective muscle groups and restoring your nervous system to the healthier 'rest and digest' state.
During everyday life, and under more traumatic circumstances, we are constantly exposed to stress, for example workplace deadlines, relationship conflicts, accidents, injuries, worry about finances etc. Each of us knows that gnawing anxious feeling, when we are worrying about something, or has felt the nervous knots in our stomachs about some stressful event. This is our body preparing us for the stressful event, giving us the extra energy we might require to cope with the situation.
These reactions are your body's natural biochemical and nervous system reponses to stress. The resulting flood of adrenal energy primes your muscles for action, to 'fight' or 'flight', your muscles become like tightened springs ready for action to defend and protect you. Meanwhile your bodily systems that aren't required for 'survival' in the stress times, like your vital organs including immune system, growth and healing and digestive systems, are shut down in this state of stress.
When a threat is perceived or a trauma encountered, the brain energizes the body through activation of the Sympathetic Division of the Autonomic Nervous System, a process that is called the fight/flight response or stress response. The limbic system of the brain automatically takes charge, signaling the release of hormones from the hypothalamus, pituitary and adrenal glands. The body produces chemicals, pumping them into the muscles to reinforce our ability to defend ourselves. Being a primitive survival instinct, all logic is suspended. The flexor muscles on the anterior side of the body contract, bringing the extremities together to protect the vital organs, genitals and head, priming the body for fight, flight or freeze. After the immediate threat has passed, if this biochemical stress response is not cleared from your body, and your nervous system is not reset back to the 'rest and digest' state for repair and growth, the effects continue in your body, keeping muscles tight, and diverting blood flow from important immune and digestive funcions. This can be why your back pain and neck and shoulder pain increase during stressful times, due to the tighter, primed muscles, and why you may be more susceptible to colds and flu, take longer to heal after an accient or injury, be more prone to injuries and digestive issues, suffer constipation, energy issues or pyscho-somatic symptoms when you are chronically stressed.
For other mammals, once the danger has passed, they will enter the discharge phase of the stress response, which brings the organism back to homeostasis or balance. This phase produces Neurogenic Movements (trembling and shaking) as the body releases the high levels of adrenalin and cortisol out of the muscles. For long term exposure to stress or in overwhelming circumstances, such as in the case of trauma, longer term illnesses, organ dysfunction and auto-immune conditions can arise in the mind and body as symptoms of this deep state, so it is important to deal witth these states when the opportunity arises. The good news is that there is a natural and readily available means for your body to reset itself, releasing the stress effects and promoting the recovery and health and wellbeing of your body. In nature, other mammals use this evolutionary reset mechanism all the time, to clear their body of the stress state, after surviving a chase from a lion, or fight with another rival. Humans however, with our large cortex and over-emphasis on thinking can over-ride this body based, brain stem initiated, release mechanism, fearing it as loss of control. TRE gives us back control of this mechanism, allowing us to reset our own nervous system in a safe, gentle, controllable way.
TRE invokes your body's natural release mechanism, to release the adrenal stress energy state and reset the nervous system to 'rest and digest' through rapid muscle contractions. A series of exercises are used to gently fatigue the leg and deep core muscles, to induce neuro-muscular shaking. Several yoga style stretches allow these rapid muscle contractions to become neuro-genic (meaning 'of nerve origin'), which allows the body to shake off the excess adrenal energy and reset the nervous system, releasing tight core muscles, clearing stress chemicals and returning the body to balanced state of health and wellbeing for your optimal functioning, and connectedness between mind and body.
As TRE is a process that can be used regularly on an ongoing basis to gradually release the body’s chronic holding patterns over time, most people will experience ever greater freedom, grace and ease in their body resulting in a more positive outlook and greater psychological and emotional stability.
Plus the release of stress chemicals and state of the body allows blood flow to immune and other vital organs to aid health and their natural function in the body. |
"Earlier on the day, I had completed a Pilates class, then went along for an osteo appointment (pains in my right shoulder and hip which I have had for 3 months but nothing seems to be fixing.) After completing the exercises, we sat back up for a discussion and to my amazement I no longer had any pain my hip. In the couple of days that followed, the pain hasn't returned to my hip or shoulder. I am so happy that I have been introduced to these “Even though I do not regularly tremor more than once a week, I have realized that my use of magnesium for feet and calf cramps, had halved! Also the release seems to have similarly reduced my hand and hip joint stiffness for which I use glucosamine. My diet and exercise remains I changed so I can only attribute this significant health difference to TRE. Before, when the cramp started nothing would stop it playing out its course ... Now, if I wake up with cramp I can relax and massage enough for the cramp to ‘dissolve’ . It is a big deal for those of us who cramp!!” Some other comments from people doing TRE... |