Understanding Anxiety, PTSD, Depression

Anxiety and Depression

Depression and anxiety are increasingly on the rise within our society. In 2015  8% of Canadians  experience depression, and 12% anxiety symptoms.

The pharmaceutical companies are hard at work manufacturing mountains of anti depressants and anti anxiety medications to serve supply and demand for these life altering disorders.

You might find yourself asking…is there another way?

Hi my name is Deborra Cameron and I have a nursing background and have been a clinical reflexologist for 20 years.

My area of  clinical expertise is directly related to the study of how imbalanced emotions directly effect our body, and I have developed a program called ‘Emotional Blueprint’, that I apply to my sessions.

People flock to my table with themes of depression and anxiety disorders, looking for another way to deal with their problem.

The ancients Chinese discovered over 5000 years ago how the vital organs of the body store specific emotions.

The Lungs hold sadness, despair and depression, where the kidneys hold fear and anxiety. A person with depression will often have a rounded shoulder posture, and complain of neck, shoulder pain, and even pain the extends down the arms into the elbows and fingertips. Notice how the lungs are compressed with this posture. A person with depression traditionally has a very shallow breath pattern, and can often suffer from lungs conditions such as bronchitis, pneumonia, asthma etc.

As you can see as illustrated in this chart, the cycle of creation, the lungs actually support the kidneys, so if the breath is shallow, this will stress the kidneys and accentuate anxiety symptoms.

Learning how to breathe properly is one of the most effective ways of assisting anxiety and depression.

Understanding your Emotional Blueprint and finding the deep seeded root of your anxiety and depression, pave the way for cellular memory release of these restrictive, sometimes paralyzing patterns.

Book your emotional blueprint session, and let us begin clearing the way to expanded lungs, revitalized kidneys and  relief of your depression and anxiety symptoms!

The Breath of Life

Sit back and take a deep breath. Feel the air flowing from your nostrils to your brain and all the way to your feet. Push it deep into every cell in you body and then relax and let the breath go; exhale. Feel all the used air leaving your body climbing up your throat and out through you mouth. Repeat the process multiple times and you will suddenly feel calmer, more balanced and poised. However, what happens when we take a breath? Why a simple thing as “taking a breath” can affect our lives and cause massive changes? And how?

To say that the breath is important is an understatement, as virtually every health condition and human activity is improved with optimal breathing! Breathing is our body’s mechanism for supplying over 99% of our entire oxygen need for fueling our cells and activating our body. However, with our current rushed style of life, poor breathing became the prevalent habit adopted by most. To put it simply, the levels of Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide are in imbalance in our bodies.  This phenomena can cause/ or worsen the below (this list only covers few of the diseases):

  • asthma
  • allergies
  • anxiety/depression (nervous system out of balance)
  • heart conditions/high blood pressure (heart goes into spasm when deprived of oxygen)
  • Insomnia
  • obesity (oxygen burns calories fat and calories)
  • Increases symptoms of PTSD

The average person reaches peak respiratory function and lung capacity in their mid 20’s. Then slowly over time, respiratory capacity (meaning expansion of the lungs), begins to decline between 10% and 27% for every decade of life. Anxiety and lack of awareness and practice causes this decline. However, looking at the Brightside, regardless of your age, you can always improve the function of your respiratory system.

The number of people that are suffering from “Panic Attacks” has been increasing year after year, especially with the young population. The physical demands that the society is imposing on the individual and the individual’s need to abide has lessened his/her own stand and literally affected his/her breathing pattern. We suddenly are now experiencing “shallow breath” syndrome as if we don’t have time to even breathe anymore. This precipitates and then perpetuates heightened anxiety and lessens the overall optimization of bodily functions.  

Proper breathing is the pathway to more energy, and a better outlook on life. Proper diet, improved external environment, and internal cleansing, do need to be addressed as well. However breathing is for many the primary method for becoming vibrant and maintaining our health!

So Breathe away! And Breath Deep! Let’s all start every day with a deep rich breath and expel all the unneeded elements out of our bodies. Let’s start improving our own systems, let’s regain control of who we truly are.

 

Breathing Practice:

In the ancient practice of Qi Gong, we learn the importance of the breath and it’s relationship to healthy organs and balanced emotions. Below is a simple exercise that you can perform daily:


Start by sitting on a chair. Have your body posture straight and feet flat on the floor. Have your hands on your naval. Close your eyes and imagine a blue star above your head (about 6 inches). Now bring yourself to the oceanside and imagine standing on the beach barefoot. Imagine an earth star beneath your feet. See it very deep down, in the centre of the earth.

Before you take your next breath in, push your tummy out
( like a contraction outward) and breathe in through the naval and nose. Move the breath up to the Blue Star above your crown. (Many people report difficulty doing this, as the air seems to get trapped in the throat area or throat chakra...practice helps!) Attempt to breathe past your throat by raising your chin slightly upwards.

Now hold your breath for 2 counts and then breathe out slowly with  your mouth open and feel the breath moving down your body, through the soles of your feet and see it move down to the earth star in the centre of the Earth (this is very grounding)

Repeat And practice this several times a day. Over time you will automatically breathe in this way! ‘Practice makes energy’ 

“Cycle of Creation” Series – Stomach & Guilt

 Question:

So Why am I so riddled with guilt all the time, I feel ashamed by my past and present actions, and I feel a sense of injustice within myself; I mean, why me??

This is an interesting question, and many who experience these emotions may indeed have issues with their digestion. You may hear yourself saying, “Life is hard to digest”.

When we begin to look at our family dynamics, you may very well begin to see that most people in your family, extended family and close people around you, may share the same patterns. By looking within, you can begin to contemplate justice and fairness for yourself, and chose to move the lower frequency emotions to a higher expression!

“Cycle of Creation” Series – Heart & Impatience

Question:

Since my last break up, I have been in a state of heartbreak. I have issues around trust, and I seem to repeat the same pattern in relationships over and over again. I long for love and yet am afraid of it.

The Heart..

Matters of the Heart are one of most complex lessons in our human experience. From the time we are born, we are constantly posed with the questions around love and the quest of it. Imagine a 6 week old fetus, about the size of a chocolate chip with a heart beat of 140! The brain is not yet developed, and yet the heart beats on. I believe that the heart is the ‘soul’ of the recipient. It has it’s own consciousness, and it’s own intelligence! We seek love, and we long for love, but really it is already very present within us, we just need to discover it!

The Origin Of Heart Ache

As discussed in the earlier blogs, each organ holds lower frequency emotions, but aspires to higher frequency emotions.

Where the heart can hold heartbreak, impatience, hastiness, and even hatred; we also have a fantastic opportunity to have another expression altogether!

In Qi Gong we work with the 6 healing sounds, and focus on sound, color and posture, to transform the lower expressions of the heart to a higher vibration. We embrace, unconditional love, laughter, we envision an open heart, a light heart!

Tuning into the heart exercise:

Place both hands or one hand over your heart, as discussed in both the lung and kidney blog, close your eyes, and move into the breathing technique and ask that your mind step aside. (do this for at least 5 minutes)

Your awareness will automatically go to the heart with the touch of your hand. Now imagine your heart breathing along with you.( do this for an additional 5 minutes)

Now simply ask that your heart open to love, that you embrace trust, and ask that your heart become lighter. Clients report a feeling of peace and joy with this exercise!

“Cycle of Creation” Series – Liver & Anger

Sometimes situation drive us towards “the edge”. We start fuming and, most of the time without even understanding why have we been triggered, spinning out of control. We even fail to understand the origin nor the depth of our own anger. We exclaim to others that it seems as if it “came out of no where”. What is happening in our bodies when this feeling persists and what can we do about it?

The Liver: Anger, Rage, Hostility

Anger is a big emotion held within a very large organ, the liver.

So you may be asking…why do specific emotions target certain organs? There is actually a specific ’energy’ to each organ. The Taoist masters taught that energy is frequency, therefore the energy of anger and rage for example actually attracts itself to the liver. It does make sense though doesn’t it? A person for example may feel huge anger within his or herself and turn to alcohol for relief. The huge incidence of alcoholism in our society and it’s relationship to anger is becoming more widely known and understood.

However what if there was a deeper meaning to the feelings of anger you may have? The Cycle of Creation suggests that the origin of Anger, leads to the starting point of the cycle which are the lungs and the emotions of sadness, despair, even depression.

The Origin Of Anger

I have found that many people who experience anger can be very good at ‘holding it in’, and then the pressure slowly builds  to reaching a point where the anger explodes. In the aftermath, the feeling of guilt and shame can often set in. I have found time and time again with clients that what actually lies at the base of anger is, surprisingly enough, deep sadness. Could it be by examining the source of the anger, and looking into the sadness that may be present, that the anger could in fact be released? It is worth considering I would think! My experience is this is exactly what happens.

The Goal

The beauty of the Cycle of Creation is that we have the opportunity to shift the lower frequency emotions to a higher frequency. Where the liver holds anger and rage, what a wonderful consideration it is to know that we can embrace acceptance, forgiveness and kindness, for ourselves. By bringing awareness to the anger, we can allow it, judge ourselves less, and begin to see the anger begin to evolve to acceptance of others and ourselves.

“Cycle of Creation” Series – Kidneys & Fear

In this Blog I will address the kidneys and fear and how this can relate to anxiety disorder, panic attacks and even post-traumatic stress (PTSD).

Kidneys and Fear

The kidneys are the size of your fists in the lower aspect of your abdomen. According to the ancient Chinese, the  kidneys hold fear, fight or flight, nervous tension and the fear of the unknown. Think about it, do you not sometimes feel tension in your lower back region when you are stressed?

The adrenal glands are like little brains or caps that sit atop each kidney. These endocrine glands secrete cortisol and adrenalin and when in excess can cause an adrenal overload or often adrenal fatigue. This adrenal overload also greatly stresses the kidneys.

The kidneys are the ‘water’ element as reflected in the Cycle of Creation. For most people water will bring on a feeling of peace, joy and tranquility. This what all people crave, especially when stressed to the max!

As can be seen from the Cycle of Creation the metal element or rocks of the lungs support the water of the kidneys, as the rocks support the water in nature.

Kidneys and Fear and Using the Breath

So, as the lungs support the kidneys, it only stands to reason that the breath is very important to the well being of the kidneys. In fact I often suggest to my clients that the breath is actually your best friend where anxiety is concerned. When we have a full fledged ‘panic attack’ our diaphragm freezes and has very limited movement. The lungs therefore have very little capacity to take in a full breath.

People that report panic attacks share the experience of shortness of breath, a struggle getting a breath in at all, heart palpitations, and often sweating. It is a very frightening experience, and is frequently set off by a present moment event that actually triggers memory within the body from a past experience.

There is often a feeling of leaving the body and not being in touch at all with the lower aspect of the body (waist down). These people therefore do not have a sense of grounded-ness. In short they simply are not ‘grounded’.

Learning how to breathe properly and learning how to ground with the breath will help you not only recover from a panic attack, but will actually prevent future panic attack episodes.

So with further to my Lungs and Grief blog, if the lungs which support the kidneys, are not fully expanded, this  can stress out the kidneys and adrenals. Where an extreme shallow breath, can sometimes indicate sadness or depression, the next emotion to kick in will most definitely be ANXIETY.

Please review the breath technique as outlined on my previous Lungs and Grief blog. Practice this daily and before too long it will come naturally!

Deborra Cameron offers a series of Qi Gong classes. Through this ancient practice discover which emotions relate to each organ, and learn how to release these emotions bringing healing to each of the organs. Contact her to find out more; Deborra Cameron soletosoulholistics@rogers.com

“Cycle of Creation” Series – Lungs & Grief

Why is it that when we have an emotion such as depression or sadness that we feel discomfort in our body? In many cases, people feel that their neck hurts, their shoulders are sore and stiff, and they feel some pain or numbness in their arms and into their wrists and fingers. What is the reason behind all of these symptoms?

The organ that is responsible is the Lungs and the emotions associated with it are Grief, Sadness, Loss, and Loneliness.

The Lungs hold grief, sadness and depression. There can be a feeling of hopelessness, isolation, perhaps a feeling of weakness and not belonging. We long for joy, laughter a feeling of strength, courage and a sense of belonging to return to our life experience.

Often people who have had asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia and other chest complaints, frequently beginning in childhood, and perhaps throughout life hold grief and sadness within their lungs. This will predispose the person to depression that can remain for long periods.

Lungs and Grief and Your Posture

A person who is sad and depressed will often hold a typical posture of shoulders rolled forward, and the head is looking down.

Note that with this posture, the lungs are compressed, with no room for a full expression of openness. Holding this posture over time will often cause back, shoulder and neck pain. There is usually a feeling of a heavy weight sitting on the chest.

Lungs and Grief and The Breath

When grief, sadness, loss, loneliness are held in the lungs, the breath tends to be very shallow, and often people will breathe only in the upper chest or the throat. Often people comment: ‘it feels like the breath cannot move past my throat’.

It is staggering how many people have a very shallow breath. Again this does not offer a full expression of the lungs, and so the lungs can become grey and dehydrated. With the proper breathing practice/technique people report having a much-improved sense of calm and well being. They can begin to experience more joy, laughter and feel a renewed sense of strength and courage in their lives!

Lungs and Grief, a Breathing Practice to Release the Trapped Emotions

In the ancient practice of Qi Gong, we learn the importance of the breath, and it’s relationship to healthy organs and balanced emotions.

  • Start by sitting on a chair. Have your body posture straight and feet flat on the floor.
  • Have your hands on your navel. Close your eyes and imagine a blue star above the crown of your head (about 6 inches).
  • Now bring yourself to the oceanside and imagine standing on the beach barefoot. Imagine an earth star beneath your feet. See it very deep down, in the centre of the earth.
  • Before you take your next breath in push your tummy out (like a contraction outward)
  • Now breathe in through the naval and your nose, imagine the breath travelling up to the Blue Star above your crown. It is reasonable to experience difficulty doing this at. First, the air seems to get trapped in the throat area or throat chakra. Keep going as practice will bring improvement.
  • At the top of the in breath hold your breath for two counts and then breathe out slowly through your open mouth and feel the breath moving down your body, through the soles of your feet and see it move down to the earth star in the centre of the Earth (this is very grounding)
  • Repeat

Deborra Cameron offers a series of Qi Gong classes. Through this ancient practice discover which emotions relate to each organ, and learn how to release these emotions bringing healing to each of the organs. Contact her to find out more; Deborra Cameron: beyondemotionalblueprint@gmail.com

“Cycle of Creation” Series

The Teaching of the 5 Elements

The Ancient Taoist Masters taught that emotions are stored in different vital organs in our bodies. Henceforth, an emotion can affect an organ. Also, when flipping the other side of the coin, a malfunction of an organ can be caused by an emotion. This caught my attention, as these teachings are 5,000 years old and yet very remains applicable in our current time. The more I dove into its teaching the more I was awed. I discovered that despite the simplicity of the Wisdom of Taoism, its effects are boundless. This ancient Wisdom taught me the ways the human body truly functions and how to cultivate our energies for the body to function at its optimum. 

There exists a divine connection within all things in this reality. Every element is connected somehow to a different element and can reflect a certain aspect of reality/ or personality. As an example, in our body, each 

organ represents an element in nature. However, due to the Law of Duality, it would also reflect its opposite. Therefore, the Heart represents Love and Trust, but it also represent Hatred; or the lack of Love. The Kidneys represent Peace and Tranquility, but they also represent Fear; or the lack of Inner Peace. Our bodies are a mirror of the nature that surrounds us and of the life that we lead. Having certain pain or discomfort in an a certain area of the body can be extremely informative in regards to the person’s environment and current way of thinking.  

As the environment around us can be portrayed as a system by itself, our bodies also have interconnected systems of their own, which connects, in turn, with our environment. Those systems exist to ‘thrive and survive’. In order for them to function, a connection between the different elements/organs exist. Thus, a progression or a regression in one element/organ affects the whole system, therefore the whole cycle. 

This is very much the representation of the ‘holistic model, as we recognize the ‘whole’, as opposed to the western medicine model , which often targets the individual organ. Targeting an individual organ most of the time signifies targeting the symptoms, without fixing the root cause nor rebalancing the overall system. Therefore, we are being prescribed with a number of pharmaceutical drugs that would cover the pain however never actually extracting the cause of the pain itself. In other words, we are just silencing the body that is trying to tell us to “watch out, there is an imbalance that needs fixing”. 

 

Below is a short summary of the relationship between emotions and some vital organs. A deeper description for each organ is posted on separate blogs. 

 

The Lungs hold sadness and depression

The Lungs, and also colon, are the ‘beginning point’ in the cycle. They hold, on a cellular level, sadness, grief, and depression. This makes sense when you think of that heavy feeling in your chest when you feel sad. The lungs represent the metal element in nature, meaning the rocks, gemstones and minerals. This topic is addressed more deeply in my lungs and sadness blog. The lungs also hold joy, laughter, as feeling of strength and courage. When we feel depressed, we can generally have a feeling of weakness.

The Kidneys hold stress, and anxiety

As you can see the lungs support the kidneys. The bladder, and the kidney’s hold fear, fight or flight, nervous tension, anxiety and fear of the unknown. As human beings we long ultimately for peace, joy and tranquility. The kidneys reflect the water element in nature. Water, generally for most people, can evoke a feel of tranquility.

Please see my kidney and fear blog for a deeper understanding and a breathing tool which can help to transform anxiety into peace.

The Liver holds anger, rage, judgement, intolerance

The kidneys support the liver and gallbladder, and the liver stores anger, rage, hostility, frustration, irritability, judgement, intolerance and jealousy. If we can embrace tools that help us move into a place of acceptance, forgiveness and kindness; we can begin to evolve the often genetic pattern of anger into a more gentle place.

The liver represents the tree element in nature. Trees offer us a feeling of inner love, and self-sufficiency. When you walk in the forest, it gives you the space you need in order for you to perceive issues from a different light. You can often feel less irritable, and start to direct attention to how you can rectify a situation in your life that may be causing you to feel angry or resentful.

I will be addressing the other organs in deeper detail with blogs I will post shortly.