{"id":2538,"date":"2023-12-05T06:09:21","date_gmt":"2023-12-05T11:09:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/daniellerousseau\/?p=2538"},"modified":"2023-12-05T06:09:21","modified_gmt":"2023-12-05T11:09:21","slug":"exercise-as-a-form-of-therapy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/daniellerousseau\/2023\/12\/05\/exercise-as-a-form-of-therapy\/","title":{"rendered":"Exercise as a Form of Therapy"},"content":{"rendered":"

We all know exercise is an important part of our daily routine. While many use it as a way to stay fit and healthy, some also use it as an outlet for trauma, specifically PTSD. Our nervous systems are incredibly delicate, so when we experience trauma, it can throw off the whole body. This triggers anxiety, depression, panic, sleep disorders and many more symptoms. The <\/span>Trauma Institute and Child Trauma Institute <\/span><\/i>explain how different movement techniques help people gain confidence and overcome their trauma (Lederman & Greenwald, 2023). In addition to different movement techniques overcoming trauma barriers, running and walking even 30 minutes a day can lower stress levels and improve quality of life (Lederman & Greenwald, 2023). Other types of healing exercise include yoga, where not only is the person exercising but they are also practicing mindfulness and self-control (Rousseau, 2023). Group exercise can also help people overcome trauma. Van der Kolk\u2019s <\/span>The Body Keeps the Score <\/span><\/i>explores this citing \u201c…the third group engaged in a routine exercise program\u2026after three months the participants reported that they felt happier and healthier\u201d (2014).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Of course, there is a line that needs to be drawn in order for the exercise to not become an addiction. This can often happen to victims of trauma, where they supplement feeling depressed or anxious for exercise (Van der Kolk, 2014). Numbing, as it is often referred to, can have a negative impact on mental health just as much as suffering from trauma. Victims have reported emotional restrictions after a traumatic event, thus needing to supplement with the sort of happiness that exercise can give (Litz & Gray, 2002). Being able to identify when the exercise addiction is causing the victim to become emotionally numb is key to overcoming PTSD. This is why regulation and speaking with a mental health professional is important for the patient.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Many forms of exercise have helped victims work through trauma. It is a great self-care technique and when done in groups, can lead to an emotional release and\/or relationship building.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

References:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Lederman, I., Greenwald, R. 2023. <\/span>Exercise to support trauma healing. <\/span><\/i>Trauma Institute & Child<\/span> Trauma Institute. <\/span>https:\/\/www.ticti.org\/exercise\/<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Litz, B. T., & Gray, M. J. (2002). Emotional numbing in posttraumatic stress disorder: current<\/span> and future research directions. <\/span>The Australian and New Zealand journal of psychiatry<\/span><\/i>,<\/span> 36<\/span><\/i>(2), 198\u2013204. <\/span>https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1046\/j.1440-1614.2002.01002.x<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

M.D., B.V.D. K. (2014). The Body Keeps the Score. Penguin US.<\/span> https:\/\/bookshelf.vitalsource.com\/books\/9781101608302<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Rousseau, D. 2023. <\/span>Module 2\u2013 Childhood trauma. <\/span><\/i>Boston University. <\/span>https:\/\/learn.bu.edu\/bbcswebdav\/pid-12438218-dt-content-rid-91015208_1\/courses\/23fallmetcj720_o2\/course\/module2\/allpages.htm<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We all know exercise is an important part of our daily routine. While many use it as a way to stay fit and healthy, some also use it as an outlet for trauma, specifically PTSD. Our nervous systems are incredibly delicate, so when we experience trauma, it can throw off the whole body. This triggers […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23061,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/daniellerousseau\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2538"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/daniellerousseau\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/daniellerousseau\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/daniellerousseau\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23061"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/daniellerousseau\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2538"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/daniellerousseau\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2538\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2539,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/daniellerousseau\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2538\/revisions\/2539"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/daniellerousseau\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2538"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/daniellerousseau\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2538"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/daniellerousseau\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2538"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}