Shake IT OFF

No, it's not just a Taylor Swift song. Shaking therapy, which works directly with the body and nervous system, is proving to be an effective tool for dealing with stress and trauma stored in the body

- Samantha Page

Stress, according to the World Health Organisation, is the "health epidemic of the 21st century". Its impact on emotional and physical well-being can be devastating and, in some cases, debilitating. Increased levels of job stress, in which workers feel less control but more demands, have been shown to be associated with higher levels of obesity, hypertension, addiction, anxiety, depression and heart attacks.

Stress is the body's natural defence mechanism, activating the useful "fight-flight-freeze" response when we are in danger and feel threatened. However, chronic stress (feeling constantly pressured and overwhelmed for prolonged periods) is more damaging and can result in a painful, achy body, insomnia, unfocused thinking and withdrawal from people.

“We humans are very good at facing a challenge, solving a situation or reaching out to someone to get support,” says Rajita Sinha, director of Yale Medicine’s Interdisciplinary Stress Center. “We’re wired to respond to stress and remove it, sometimes even automatically. But life has become more complex, and many situations don’t have easy answers or solutions.”

In South Africa, traumatic stress has become part of daily life – whether through direct exposure or via media reports – and the high levels of abuse and violence in our country have an undeniable impact on the physical and mental well-being of citizens.

While therapy and medicines can help to facilitate healing from traumatic life experiences, physical interventions like ‘shaking therapy’ (to release the deep tension in the body) are also showing success.

WHAT IS SHAKING THERAPY?