Shock or trauma mobilizes body/mind/spirit to meet the new situation. The adoptive
system  (i.e. endocrine) is called into action. However, after the event one feels exhausted,
and if the extreme emotion is not dealt with, the related organ becomes at first
hyperactive, leading later to pathological disorder. In Oriental Medicine, fear affects
kidneys, shock affects heart and pericardium, and heart’s spirit component, Shen, the
ruler of the body/mind. The extreme emotions, by disturbing related organ, have also a
domino-like effect on other parts of the body. The extreme emotion can also become a
dominant emotion, one that arises consistently, although often inappropriately, in a
stressful situation.

Trauma, either physical or emotional, like a beaver dam, creates
blocks that divert the energy from its natural flow forcing us into repeating the same
patterns again and again. To recover from shock or trauma, one needs to find an inner
urge for self-expression and self awareness. There are two very clear areas in the abdomen
where traumatic reactions can be palpated:

1. sympathetic dominance “ Fight or Flight; (diaphragmatic constriction – tightness
across the abdomen on the level of the sternum or in the right subcoastal and
lower left abdominal regions) manifesting as agitation, inappropriate anger, pit
feeling in the throat, shallow or mouth breathing, etc.

2. parasympathetic dominance “ Fear and Exhaustion; (tightness 1 inch away and
around the navel) manifesting as lowered immunity, chronic fatigue, sleep
disturbances, etc.

Other causes of shock and trauma

However, one needs to probe deeper. What about prenatal traumas: unwanted
pregnancies, deaths, illness or issues with relationships during pregnancies, womb toxins,
or difficult births? What about postnatal traumas: postpartum depression of the mother,
adoption, lack of parental love, sexual abuse? These are the traumas that are the hardest
to neutralize since they have nothing to do with intellect (neo-cortex) but are registered as
emotions in the limbic system (midbrain).

According to England’s Robert St. John, the time in the womb, from conception through
birth, can be checked for each of the 38 weeks by palpating points on the spine of the foot.
Robert St. John identified the points while working on his widely practiced prenatal massage
in the mid-1950’s.

In my practice, before I meet the child, I ask the mother about the conception process,
pregnancy and labor. I want to know about her state of health, her relationships and any
traumatic experiences during her pregnancy.

I find that often behavioral issues at school with particular teachers as well as self esteem
issues can be traced back to mother’s ambivalence about her pregnancy or mother’s rejection
of the baby due to the postpartum depression.

How I work with shock and trauma

At the Shining Mountain Children’s Center, I use a variety of non-invasive therapies:
non-insertive acupuncture, color, sound, emotional tapping techniques, movement,
detoxification, essential oils, etc. These help a child or adult release their conscious or
unconscious traumas.

Both color and essential oils are some of the oldest and most powerful therapeutic
agents known to us. They have multi-millennium long history of use in healing and rituals.
In this article, I will present 3 specific cases where application of color, essential oils and
movements were of a great benefit.

I use Color-light therapy (Colorpuncture) based on the work of German scientist
Peter Mandel. Mandel introduced Kirlian photography to the field of medical diagnosis.
He also combined photobiology and photon physics with empirical knowledge of
acupuncture creating his therapeutic methodology of light. Dr. Fritz-Albert Popp, father of
photobiology, postulated that light is present in every cell of our bodies.

He proved that the radiation from the living cells can be measured and constitutes œintra
and inter cellular regulation and communication.”

In Mandel’s therapy, the color is the message to the system to correct the information
that has been lodged within its recesses. To apply the light, I use plant dyed quartz glass
rods inserted into a stainless steel, battery operated pen that is focused on specific points
on the skin.

For home use, silks, gems or color plastic overlays can be used. The light is shined on
specific point combination, however the exact point location is determined by testing for
sensitivity “ pressure pain indicating that something is amiss in the energy flow.

Essential oils, through their fragrance and unique molecular structure can directly
stimulate the limbic lobe of the brain and the hypothalamus (hormonal control center).
Therefore, through the sense of smell, we are able to bring balance to the
mind/body/spirit and produce profound psychological and physiological effects.

I use only therapeutic grade essential oils (AFNOR or ISO certified) by applying them directly
on different areas of the body or diffusing them on the air. Most children show strong
affinity to certain blends and love to apply them on their bodies or smell them from the
little bottles they carry with them in their pockets. The Young Living Essential Oil blends
I most often use in my practice are Peace and Calming, Trauma Life, Sara, Valor,
Harmony, Hope, Release.

I also practice Brain Gym® (registered trademark of the Educational Kinesiology
Foundation) a movement-based program that offers specific tools to enhance whole brain
learning. When the communication between gestalt and analytic part of the brain
becomes more automatic and the relation between cerebral hemispheres and the limbic
brain becomes more spontaneous, we are on our way to realize our unique potential.

Case 1: 11 year old girl with uncontrollable tantrums at home followed by periods
of lassitude and disinterest.

During the initial intake, mother disclosed issues of hardship during pregnancy
with thoughts of aborting between 2nd and 3rd month. The situation at home was difficult
since the father was not able to deal with the girl’s tantrums rationally and often resorted
to mental (loud shouting) and physical abuse (spanking).

My initial examination revealed sympathetic dominance pattern in the abdomen and very
sensitive points on the spine of the foot around the 3rd month. During the prenatal color
treatment, the girl experienced sharp, hot pain around that area. The treatment was
stopped and was followed by the endocrine color treatment to calm the nervous system.

The girl was taught simple Brain Gym movement to access both brain hemispheres with
additional movements to calm her down when she felt agitated. She showed great affinity
for the essential oils and she was asked to use Peace and Calming on her ears and wrists,
Release on her liver and Sara on her back.

During the first few days after the initial treatment, the girl experienced a series of
scary dreams in which she was trying to escape and was barely making it. There were
only 2 tantrums the first week and her mother noted that they were less severe.

After five weekly treatments, the whole prenatal color treatment was performed on the
spine of the foot without pain, scary dreams and tantrums were the things of the past. The
girl showed more energy and developed new hobby (playing the piano).

Case 2: 9 year old boy (classified with LD) managing well in school, 11 months
after September 11th (in which the father of his best friend died) showed
regressed behavior.

His school performance was very poor, and he had disturbed sleep. He was very athletic
prior to September 11th, now scared to go to any games close to New York City or in a town
with skyscrapers.

During the first visit, the boy sat in a curled up position in my big chair with a tee
shirt over his knees making strange gutteral noises and every few minutes would tell me
that he is stupid and he likes it that way.

My initial examination revealed cold abdomen with parasympathetic dominance pattern.
Weekly one-hour sessions consisted of Brain Gym movements with emphasis on focus
dimension to improve the relationship of the back and front of the body to get him out of
the “stuck” state and his passive behavior. He was asked to do these movements before
school and before homework.

He was also to apply 4 essential oils: Trauma Life and Valor in the morning, Harmony and
Hope in the evening. He was asked to take 10 minutes walks in nature every day taking deep,
slow breaths and picking one tree to observe and touch.  At night, after application of the
essential oils, he was to sleep with a warm water bottle on his abdomen.

After 6 weeks, all the initial symptoms were gone. The family decided to
continue with the program in order to see if some of his learning difficulties could be
helped with the application of color and additional Brain Gym balances.

Case 3: A 21 year old college student was hit by a rubber bullet in the right eye
during street riots.

I had worked with him for a few months prior to the accident and therefore was
deeply disturbed to see how nervous, confused and sick looking he was one month after
the accident. During the examination, my palpation would solicit involuntary jerks of his
body. His body was in a state of heightened alert.

I applied a few essential oils and the familiar smells allowed him to breathe more deeply.
After the acupuncture treatment to balance his nervous system and to increase the blood
flow to the right eye, I gently stroked color violet over his forehead. This simple color
treatment brought a series of big sighs and a flood of tears. Body/mind/spirit were together
again and a boy was ready for the next step in his recovery.

This case shows not only how deeply trauma affects us but also how traumatic injuries can
change our lives. The boy was right eye dominant before the accident and clearly left brain
dominant. His major in college was business. Since his right eye was severely injured during
the incident, he had to switch to the left eye.

After few months he has noticed that his interests have drastically changed. He found his
business courses very narrow and dry and he was looking to expand his major to include
more humanities and art.