Session Details - February 1st, 2016 - Exploring Paul Gilbert's work on Compassion Focussed Therapy
"Slow down, be gentle and kind to the ‘old’ brain." - Paul Gilbert
In an evolutionary context, we didn’t chose or design our brain that generates; thoughts, feelings and reactions aimed for survival and protection but can also generate unhealthy stress. So as Paul Gilbert kindly repeats - "remember – it is not our fault!…But we can choose to do something about it." A good starting point is understanding the three main emotional systems that we humans share:
1. Threat system - sympathetic
2. Drive system - sympathetic
3. Contentment / calming, parasympathetic system
Our culture is based on the drive system; our brain is hard wired to default to the threat system. Research shows that we can make changes to bring about a greater state of ease, balance and well-being by consciously practicing turning on the contentment / calming system.
There are 3 important steps to take and practice when beginning to work with activating the calming system:
1. Motivation
2. Mindfulness & concentration
3. Cultivating a sense of stillness within the body and harnessing the calming effect of the Vagus system:
∞ Slowing the breathing, even just bringing sense a slowing of the breath;
∞ Facial muscle awareness, experiencing the feeling of a warm and joyful expression;
∞ Calming anchor (the power of touch);
∞ Warm and friendly tone to the inner voice;
∞ Softening in the belly;
∞ Finding centeredness in standing or sitting.
These three practices lead to taking your compassionate seat- accessing the strength, calmness and inner stillness that is present within, as well as cultivating a sense of connection / faith with your inherent wisdom.
Drawing our three circles exercise:
Reflect on your life over the last week and then using the a blue, red and green pencil draw three circles of the drive / threat / calm systems – draw the size of the circles appropriate to how much this system has been active.
Then write a list within each circle of examples of events that have triggered each system.
Our aim is not to get rid of any of these systems, it is to creatively move towards balance.
(This information comes from Paul Gilbert’s work on Compassion Focussed Therapy)
The gut:
The Vagus nerve is also the fastest route from the gut to the brain. Signals from the gut land in the following areas of the brain: insula, limbic, pre-frontal cortex, amygdala, hippocampus and the anterior cingulate cortex. Regions that are responsible for such things as self-awareness, emotions, morality, fear, memory and motivation.
Therefore the gut has a great influence on our emotional well-being, it is the largest sensory organ we have. The brain is so heavily insulated and in fact cut off from the rest of the body, it relies on information from the gut – as the gut is right in the thick of things.
When we are caught in problematic stress (the drive and threat systems) the blood supply to the gut and the production of the protective mucus layer in the gut are dramatically decreased. These two actions weaken the gut wall – making it leaky rather than working efficiently to only transfer across what is appropriate.
(This information comes from Giulia Enders’ recent book titled - Gut: The Inside Story of Our Body's Most Underrated Organ)
