stress

I’ve cancelled half of my appointments

irmgard background information, client experiences 20 August 202420 August 2024autonomic nervous system, menopause, stress

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A woman comes to me with menopausal symptoms. She has a full schedule and has put a lot of pressure on herself. But after a number of treatments, she feels better about herself and is more in touch with her needs.
She says: “I looked at my busy schedule and thought, this is ridiculous. So, I’ve cancelled half of my appointments.” A while later, she realises that she doesn’t like her job anymore either: “The contact with my customers drains me completely.”
A short time later, she has a new job with contacts that give her energy.

When you are in stress mode, you are often no longer in contact with your real needs. The nervous system is in fight-or-flight mode and every action becomes a ‘must’. When you relax into the resting position, you can feel where the need lies; not from a feeling of ‘must’, but from a sense of ‘being’.

Headache

irmgard background information 20 August 202420 August 2024food, headache, posture, stress

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In my work, I seem to be constantly busy unravelling elaborate puzzles. Let me explain what I mean with the following example about headaches.
Headaches can be caused by a variety of factors, such as:

foods containing refined sugars, E-numbers or foods that you are intolerant to. The liver is then too busy detoxifying the body which can cause headaches.
medication can cause headaches as a side effect.
bad posture, whether done subconsciously or because of the nature of your work, can cause tension in your neck muscles, resulting in headaches.
vision problems: if you don’t see well, you will squint which may cause a headache.
stress often causes you to pull your shoulders up slightly and tense your neck and shoulder muscles. This can cause poor bloodflow in your neck and result in headaches.

With all these different, possible causes, there is no standard treatment. It’s a puzzle. That’s why I first ask questions, listen carefully and then fine-tune my treatment in accordance to your how you respond.

Off to a flying start at the ultimate cross-country ice skating race (Elfstedentocht)

irmgard background information, client experiences 20 August 202420 August 2024body awareness, stress

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In the winter of 1997 I witnessed a special spectacle at the start of the Eleven Cities Tour – the ultimate cross-country ice skating race through eleven northern cities. A man, in his forties, sportily dressed, is eager to start this two-hundred-kilometre skating race.
He steps onto the ice and with quick, powerful strokes he sprints towards the finish line that he mentally can already see in front of him. However, he doesn’t move an inch, but he doesn’t realize that, focused as he is. People shout at him: ‘Hey dude, you still have your skate protectors on’. After a one-minute sprint, the penny drops. With heavy legs and freed from skate protectors, he continues his race.

I am reminded of this event when I treat a man who returns to work after a burn out. He is very reluctant to open his laptop for the first time and, well prepared as he is, has resolved to only do things that have priority.When he opens his laptop, in no time he’s doing tasks that don’t take priority and that he hadn’t set out to do. His brain is focused on ‘the finish’ and the connection with his body is lost.

I ask him to open my laptop as an experiment and feel where the tension is in his body. He can clearly feel it around his diaphragm. I ask him where he experiences peace in his body. He feels it in his feet. I then ask him if he can feel a connection between the diaphragm and the feet. He succeeds and now feels a lot calmer behind the laptop.

By connecting with his body in this way, he can avoid starting the marathon called work with a sprint that puts his whole body in stress mode. Landing in his body prevents him from sprinting like an unguided missile towards the endless horizon. And so he can set the right pace for the work marathon without getting heavy legs.