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As
published in Interface for Zero Balancing - 2003 By
Donna C. Cerio
I have been a health care practitioner
since 1979 and obtained certification in Zero Balancing
in 1989. Since then, I have used Zero Balancing
consistently in my private practice. I work extensively
with clients who are dealing with the aftermath of
recent and past sexual abuse. The results are profoundly
effective and useful in assisting these clients’
recovery.
Based on 20+
years of research and personal and professional
experience, I have found that people who have
experienced the trauma of sexual abuse are at risk of
having flashbacks, dissociation, Post-Traumatic Stress
Disorder, and other related symptoms. These symptoms can
be triggered by any
stimulus in any environment, from direct hands-on
therapy to common everyday situations. I have worked
with clients who have had the above symptoms triggered
by common events, such as a routine medical exam, a
dental procedure or a firm pat on the back by someone
who intended the pat to be friendly, as well as
instances where physical contact did not occur, for
example a verbal conflict with a friend, a conversation
with a clerk in a department store, or witnessing an
automobile accident.
Due to the hands-on nature of bodywork
(touch therapy) practices, this is an especially risky
arena for the client. Any touch therapy can feel
invasive and abusive to the client if the touch triggers
symptoms related to the initial abuse. Because the
experience may be internal or not even emerge until well
after the session, the inexperienced or untrained
practitioner may not realize anything has been triggered
unless told so by the client. A client may feel the
experience as surreal or imaginary, and/or feel confused
and traumatized without understanding why. The client
may not inform the practitioner about their experience
at all
While Zero Balancing is not meant to
provoke experiences or memories from the past and is
designed to be applied in a conscious, careful way with
clothing on, it is not immune to the potential of
triggering the symptoms I mentioned in the above
paragraphs.
I have found that there are a number of
areas that are important for Zero Balancers to be aware
of when working with clients traumatized by sexual
abuse. I continuously find that the donkey of a client
who has been sexually abused leans in a different way
and at a different pace then the donkey of a client who
has not. This client’s donkey often does not know how to
step up as the dirt is piled on top of its back, to
borrow the analogy from the Winter 2002 Interface
newsletter. One of the beneficial results of Zero
Balancing is that the client will develop the ability to
lean through the development of trust in the therapeutic
relationship. It is miraculous how it works. I fashion
the “client sitting” step of the protocol to accommodate
the donkey. At this starting point, I set the stage by
staying 100% present with the donkey’s apprehension and
reluctance. By detaching from any need to proceed, I
quietly wait for the client’s signal to go forward.
Presence, patience, and choice are the keys to encourage
the client to open into trust.
The energy field of a person who has been
sexually abused often has an amplified antennae sensory
receiving system. This means there exists an
ultra-sensitivity to the obvious as well as the not so
obvious in the environment. For example, if I have not
taken care of and centered myself before the treatment,
the client will pick up on this and it will influence
their ability to let go into the session. At those
times, they will almost always ask me how I am doing and
be very concerned about my well-being before they can
let go and let me assist them. I have found that my
self-care has to be a priority in order to serve clients
with a sexual abuse history. I receive a Zero Balancing
every month as well as use the smile meditation each
morning. I leave enough transition time in between
sessions, use parallel breathing before each session and
make sure I disconnect completely at the end of the
session. These practices keep me well cared for,
centered and grounded, which allows my client to take
the focus off of me.
The usual monitoring system of a client
with a sexual abuse history tends to under-function,
making for weak boundaries. This means that the client
may not let you know that something is not working for
them in the session. They may not even know this
themselves until long after the session is over. Sexual
abuse is done to a person without consult or consent and
as a result of being overpowered by size, verbal threat
or authority. You represent authority in your work and
this alone may awaken the victim in them. I prevent this
by including the client from the very beginning as an
equal participant in the health care I offer. I call
this “participatory health care.” I use an Intake and
Framing protocol in session one as the vehicle for
establishing the equality between client and
practitioner.
There are modifications that have to be
made in order to accommodate the special needs of
clients who have been sexually abused. Customizing the
approach and pace of applying the fulcrums & vectors is
essential. Since the cellular and energetic imprints
that are the result of the trauma are often deep and
very close to the surface at the same time, any quick,
unexpected touch might be felt or interpreted as abrupt
and or rough, thus awakening deeply buried emotional,
mental and or body responses from the time of abuse. One
of the ways I tailor my work to the needs of my client
is to start with an intake session. This time gives the
client and practitioner the opportunity to set the pace
and style of approach together by gathering information
and setting a foundation and intentions for future
sessions.
In the United States, bodywork practices
are only recently accepted as viable, effective health
care. Specialization is relatively new. Working with
clients with a history of sexual abuse is a specialty,
which needs to be defined and developed. I want to
emphasize that the client with a history of sexual abuse
benefits significantly from Zero Balancing. I am deeply
committed to making alternative health care and Zero
Balancing available to this population through my work,
as well as educating other health care practitioners on
the subject. It is a challenge I feel privileged to have
the opportunity to meet.
Donna
C. Cerio has been a Health Care Professional
incorporating Zero Balancing as well as other bodywork
systems for 23 years. She served as Founding Director of
the Holistic Health Program at University of California,
Santa Cruz for 20 years. Donna is currently in the Zero
Balancing Training Program and working on her Ph.D in
Integrated Health Sciences. Her work, Intentional Touch™
addresses the needs of people recovering from sexual
abuse, suffering with serious illness, and dealing with
chronic emotional, physical and/or mental pain. A member
of the Zero Balancing Association, American Massage
Therapy Association, and International Alliance of
Healthcare Practitioners, Donna is in private practice
and teaches Intentional Touch to health care
professionals. She delivers educational seminars and on
site services across the nation. Donna is pleased
to be a resource for the Zero Balancing community on
this topic. She can be reached at The Cerio
Institute: email:
dccerio@thecerioinstitute.com or (831) 475-5472,
phone & fax. Visit her website at
www.thecerioinstitute.com. |
