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Let your body do the talking

Bodytalk is a simple yet effective holistic therapy that stimulates our bodies' innate healing ability to initiate healing and maintain health. Birgit Ottermann tried it out.

The first time I discovered BodyTalk was at the Natural and Organic Fair in Cape Town earlier this year. I was on my out of the venue, when I passed a stall where dozens of people were queuing. Despite my tired feet and information overload, curiosity got the better of me, and I went to see what the fuss was all about. What I discovered was mind-boggling, even though I was quite sceptical at first.

After a brief explanation of BodyTalk (in a nutshell: it is a holistic therapy that helps to repair communication within the body in order for it to return to perfect balance and health) one of the practitioners on duty offered me a mini session to show me the effects: he lightly tapped with his fingers on my head and then on my chest - he repeated this a few times and voila! That was it!

When he saw my disbelief and complete scepticism, he just smiled and told me to go home and see for myself whether I felt any improvement. I was left speechless. Was this the treatment? What had he actually done? And why were so many people falling for it?

I went back to the office and told my colleagues about my "ridiculous" encounter. However, I soon had to eat my words. That very same evening I discovered that my sinus headaches (that had been plaguing me for days) had disappeared - and so did my backache. Furthermore, I felt very centred and full of energy. It was as if a shift had taken place in my body.

This surprising BodyTalk experience bugged me for weeks until I decided to make work of it and see a BodyTalk practitioner for a full consultation. 

My visit to BodyTalk practitioner Karen Fair in Durbanville, near Cape Town, turned out to be truly fascinating.

What is BodyTalk?

I discovered that, unlike body language where you use your body to talk to other people, with BodyTalk, your body talks to you.

"The short treatment that you received at the Natural and Organic Fair is called the Cortices Technique, one of the core techniques of the BodyTalk System that is used to bring about significant improvement in health in just a few minutes," Karen explains to me.

"BodyTalk is a holistic therapy that utilises the body's ability to heal itself. During the treatment that you received, communication between the two hemispheres of your brain was improved and balanced. This improved the efficiency of the brain - thereby boosting overall health. It's like hitting the reset button on your brain's computer and making your body work at optimal levels again."

So, even if you don't consciously know what your problem areas are in your body, your brain is "reset" to re-synchronise energy systems so they can operate as nature intended, and accordingly your body will be able to address the imbalances directly.

Stress causes disconnection

According to Karen each system, cell, and atom is in constant communication with each other at all times.

"However, through exposure to the stresses of day-to-day life, these lines of communication can become compromised or disconnected, which then leads to a decline in physical, emotional and/or mental well-being."

Reconnecting these lines of communication enables the body's internal mechanisms to function at optimal levels, thus repairing and preventing disease while rapidly accelerating the healing process.

"In this way BodyTalk stimulates the body's innate ability to balance and heal itself on all levels," Karen adds.

So, where does the tap-tap-tap (on my head and chest) come in?

Neuromuscular biofeedback

Karen explains that the BodyTalk practitioner facilitates communication with the innate wisdom of the body by using neuromuscular biofeedback.

"By understanding that your body has an inherent knowledge of itself, the BodyTalk practitioner is able to quickly and easily ask your body what communication circuits have become compromised and in which order these lines of communication need to be re-established for the fastest possible healing process to occur. 

"After asking a series of yes or no questions, the client's own body wisdom leads the practitioner to locate the imbalances within the body that are a priority, or are not communicating correctly and are out of balance with the rest of the body.

Next the practitioner holds the areas that have been highlighted by the testing procedure and taps gently on the head and the sternum.

"By tapping on the head, the brain becomes aware of and repairs the communication. Tapping on the sternum, or heart, ensures that the new pattern is stored and communicated throughout the whole body," Karen says.

‘Strange, but true’

I found the whole tapping exercise a bit amusing and hard to believe. But, even though it sounds a bit outlandish to me, I have to admit that it really does work. It somehow brings about positive change and balance in your body.

After my chat with Karen, a full BodyTalk session followed. I lay down on a treatment table, fully clothed and closed my eyes. Karen commenced by gently using my arm to establish the Yes/No communication. She used the BodyTalk Protocol Chart to navigate through every facet of my body and whenever a weakened or broken energy circuit in my bodymind complex was identified, my arm moved involuntarily. (I swear I did not move it consciously.)

As I don't have major health problems, there were no dramatic revelations, but once again I did feel very energised and focused at the end of the session, and my backache from sitting too long hours in front of the computer, vanished. Interestingly enough, Karen also detected the fact that my senses of taste and smell are not always 100% in sync and that I hate smoking. This could also mean something on a more figurative level, but the message about smoking is spot-on! Because of my sensitive sinuses, cigarette smoke can actually make me sick.

Perfect First Aid tool

BodyTalk has been credited with some major health improvements for a great number of people ranging from relief from insomnia, chronic pain, migraines, concentration problems and hyperactivity, allergies and depression to chemotherapy support and help to quit smoking. It can also be applied very successfully on your pets and other animals. 

BodyTalk is also an important First Aid Tool that is non-invasive, safe and very simple. It can, for example, help to stop bleeding and to stabilise a patient from a loss of blood and shock, until specialised health care arrives. The BodyTalk Access programme, which features 5 techniques for the care of everyday health challenges, is taught across South Africa and takes only one day to learn. It includes the BodyTalk "Fast Aid" technique and is a great tool, particularly for mums and school teachers.

Miracle’ recovery from a coma

However, for me the best testimonial for BodyTalk is the amazing recovery of a 16-year-old Cape Town girl, Vicky, who fell into a coma after a major car accident in which she sustained severe injuries.

Says Karen: "The hospital file said ‘severe brain injury’ and the neurosurgeon gave her 5% chance of coming out of the coma or recovery." However, Karen's colleague, BodyTalk Access Trainer Laurel Bramley, started giving Vicky BodyTalk sessions from the night of the accident and continued daily.

“She came out of the coma on the 6th day. "The hospital staff called Vicky their 'miracle girl'. She went home after only five weeks and after six weeks she was walking with the aid of a crutch. Her functioning is as normal and she is almost fully rehabilitated."

Find a practitioner

The BodyTalk System was developed in 1995 by Dr John Veltheim, an Australian chiropractor, acupuncturist, philosopher and author. Currently there are nearly 2 000 BodyTalk practitioners worldwide and 80 instructors teaching BodyTalk in 35 countries.

For more info on BodyTalk or to find a practitioner near you, visit www.bodytalksystem.com

You can also contact Cape Town BodyTalk practitioner Karen Fair on 083 661 4352 or fair@icon.co.za. Or check out her blog here.

(Pics of Cortices Tapping Technique, Karen Fair with Dr John Veltheim, and BodyTalk logo supplied by www.bodytalksystem.com)
 
- (Birgit Ottermann, Health24, June 2010)

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