Mind-Body Workbook for PTSD (4 page)

List two new things you’ve noticed about your life since starting your mind-body bridging practice:

______________________________

______________________________

2.
Improve Everyday Life by Melting Away Your Tension

You may have noticed that we haven’t talked about your trauma experiences or focused on your most troubling PTSD symptoms. We are not underestimating the significance of your trauma. We know it affects every aspect of your life. For now, let’s focus on the role the I-System plays in keeping your PTSD going. The truth is that right here, right now, you are healing yourself from PTSD when your I-System is resting.

In the first chapter we focused on your foundation tools (bridging awareness practices and thought labeling), and you learned that using your senses and labeling your thoughts gives you new information about yourself and the world around you. You learned to use those tools to quiet your overactive I-System. In this chapter, you will learn to use tools that
prevent
the I-System from getting activated. You will move from a reactive state to a proactive state.

Let’s talk about how the I-System works. Many different systems regulate our bodies. For instance, we have a temperature regulation system that keeps our body temperature around 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit. If our temperature goes up, we sweat, and if it goes down, we shiver, as our system tries to get back to the body’s normal temperature. Similarly, we all have an I-System. It works like our temperature regulation system, but instead of an ideal temperature, the I-System has an “ideal picture” of how the world should be. Each moment, both systems sense whether they are meeting their requirements. When the temperature regulation system requirement is not fulfilled, we shiver or sweat. When the I-System requirements are not fulfilled, we have body tension, mind clutter, and trouble doing what we need to do.

The natural state of the I-System is to rest. It’s activated only by requirements.
Requirements
are rules your I-System has about how you and the world should be at any moment (for example,
My spouse should be more understanding
,
People shouldn’t drive twenty-five miles per hour in a forty-five-mile-per-hour zone
). Noticing your I-System’s requirements is the first step to keeping everyday events from negatively affecting you.
Any
thought becomes a requirement when it triggers the I-System into action; for example,
It shouldn’t rain
is a thought, but when the I-System makes it a requirement, that thought creates body tension, like a tight back, and may bring up past memories, like sloshing through the Vietnam battlefields. It’s not what the thought is about (the content), but what happens to the thought, that makes it a requirement. When the I-System makes it a requirement, the thought brings up memories that are full of stories and body tension. You experience the rain through that filter and go through your day living in the past. When your I-System is resting and doesn’t make a thought into a requirement, your mind is clear and your body relaxed. You see the rain as just rain and think it’s just another rainy day.

The determining factor is whether or not your I-System is active. For example, when you’re driving, someone recklessly cuts in front of you. You might think,
How could he cut in front of me? He should know better; he’s reckless.
Your hands clench around the steering wheel, you breathe faster, your face gets red, and your shoulders go up. You have the telltale signs of an active I-System that’s been triggered by the requirement
No one should recklessly cut in front of me.
Everyone thinks others should drive safely. When the I-System takes control of the thought,
No one should recklessly cut in front of me
,it becomes a requirement. Your blood pressure and stress level rise, impairing your ability to drive safely. Even after the careless driver has turned off the freeway, your mind remains cluttered with thoughts, and your body is still tense. Isn’t it bad enough that a reckless driver has nearly caused an accident? Your I-System pours salt on the wound by continuing to spin your thoughts and tense your body. Your day could be ruined, or even worse, your distress could cause you to have an accident later. It’s important to notice that whenever the I-System captures a natural thought and makes it into a requirement, you become a victim of circumstances. Using bridging awareness tools and thought labeling helps you prevent your I-System from turning events into destructive experiences. Recognizing requirements is the most important tool you’ll learn.

In this chapter, you will map your I-System requirements. Remember, maps are short writing exercises that take only a few minutes. Like doodles, they’re little snapshots of your thoughts and body tension. Every map you make increases your awareness of your requirements, reduces your I-System’s control, and increases your personal power.

Day One     Date:____________

1. Throughout the day, look out for the telltale signs of an overactive I-System: body tension, mind clutter, and difficulty doing something. See if you can quiet your I-System by using bridging awareness practices and thought labeling, and returning your awareness to your activity.

1. What happened when your I-System was overactive?
   

   

2. How often was your I-System overactive today?____________
   
3. Describe what happened today when you rested your I-System using mind-body bridging tools (bridging awareness practices and thought labeling).
   

   

4. When you quieted your I-System, was your mind clearer? Yes ____ No ____
   

2. Do a How the World Should Be map (see the following sample map). Take a few minutes to scatter around the oval any thoughts you have about how your everyday world should be, (for example,
Others should be kind and appropriate
or
I shouldn’t make any mistakes
). Be specific, working quickly without editing your thoughts.

Map: How the World Should be

Sample Map: How the World Should be

1. Do you think everything on your map will happen? Yes ____ No ____
   
2. In this chart, write each thought and your body tension when you realized it might not happen.
   

   

3. The body tension you listed is a sign that the thought is a requirement and has activated your I-System. Place a check mark in the third column to indicate that the particular thought is a requirement. Your I-System can capture your thoughts about how the world should be. When you experience the reality that how you think things should be isn’t how things happen, your body tenses and your mind gets cluttered, limiting how you live your life. Remember, thoughts that trigger your I-System are requirements. In the previous example, take the thought
   Chris should show me respect.
   When you have thoughts about how Chris is being disrespectful, your body tension might be tight fists and a tense jaw, like in the example. So your requirement would be
   Chris should show me respect
   . For the other thought listed as an example,
   There should be peace in the world
   , you would have minimal body tension when reality doesn’t match that thought. In that case, your I-System isn’t triggered, so the thought
   There should be peace in the world
   isn’t a requirement. It doesn’t mean you won’t work toward having a peaceful world, but it does mean you can do so with a calm body and clear mind.
   

3. Now you’ll use the bridging awareness practices you learned in chapter 1 and do a How the World Should Be map again. Before you start writing, listen to any background sounds, experience your body’s pressure on your seat, sense your feet on the floor, and feel the pen in your hand. Once you feel settled, keep feeling the pen in your hand and start writing about how the world should be. Watch the ink go onto the paper, and listen to any background sounds. For the next few minutes, jot whatever comes to mind about how the world should be.