Here’s an exploration of what’s new about psychosensory therapy, how a Havening practitioner uses it, and how individuals can use it on themselves:
What’s New About Psychosensory Therapy in Mental Health?
- Beyond Talk and Drugs: Psychosensory therapy represents a third therapeutic pillar, distinct from traditional talk therapy (psychotherapy) and drug therapy (psychopharmacology). It uses sensory input rather than language or chemicals to effect beneficial change.
- Electroceuticals: In psychosensory therapy, the active ingredient is what’s called an ‘electroceutical’. An electroceutical broadly encompasses anything that employs electrical stimulation to affect and modify brain functioning. In Havening, touch is used to internally create electroceutical delta waves in the brain.
- Mind-Body Connection: It acknowledges that well-being requires addressing both physical and emotional dimensions, which have historically been separated.
- Neuroplasticity: It harnesses neuroplasticity, the brain’s capacity to change, to enable systems to learn, change perception, and create new dialogues with the mind-body.
- Emphasis on Sensory Input: Psychosensory therapy involves the application of non-specific sensory input to generate an extrasensory response to effect a beneficial change, either transiently or permanently within the brain.
- Addresses Trauma Encoded in the Body: Recognises that trauma is always trapped in the body, in ones physiology and by working on the body a therapist can fully liberate someone from the pain of their past.
How a Havening Practitioner Uses Psychosensory Therapy
- Facilitated Havening: A Havening practitioner provides instructions and guidance, helping the client to locate and activate the emotional core of a problem. The practitioner may apply Havening touch.
- Assessing Distress: A Havening practitioner may use the Subjective Units of Distress Scale (SUDS) to provide a client-specific evaluation. It provides the current subjective intensity of distress experienced by the individual undergoing an exposure therapy.
- Content-Free Work: A Havening practitioner can work with clients without needing to know the specific details of a traumatic event. This is helpful for those who find it difficult to disclose what happened to them.
- Integrating with Other Modalities: A Havening practitioner might combine Havening with other techniques like NLP or trance work. Havening is beautifully integrative. The practitioner is using it to augment and accelerate other approaches.
- Creating a Safe Environment: A Havening practitioner will give a simple explanation that the purpose of Havening Touch is to provide a sense of safety removes the act from the sexual arena and places it in a therapeutic context.
- Growth Havening: The Havening practitioner may help the client discover a purposeful future. During Growth Havening, the practitioner seeks ways to make clients happier. Talk Havening is very useful to move things ahead, with the practitioner learning more about the client and the client using the electroceutical delta wave to open up new ideas.
How an Individual Can Use Psychosensory Therapy on Themselves
- Self-Havening: Individuals can learn and apply Havening touch themselves by following a set of written instructions.
- Applying Havening Touch: Self-Havening involves the application of light, gentle touch on specific areas of the body—particularly the arms, face, and hands.
- Mindful Touch: Mindful touch techniques, like self-havening, incorporate soothing touch to locations such as the brow, cheek, shoulders, and hands, which exhibit the strongest response to tactile stimulation.
- Daily Integration: The foundational principles of Havening can be integrated into daily life for self-care.
- Combining Touch, Attention, and Imagination: Havening uses a synthesis of touch, attention, and imagination.
- Self care: Health care providers can use Havening techniques as self care to reduce the negative stress they experience, reduce their tension, and promote peace.
Summary: Psychosensory therapy represents a new direction in mental health by using sensory input to alter mood, sensation, thinking, and behaviour. A Havening practitioner uses facilitated Havening to guide the client with the method. An individual can apply the method on themselves with self Havening. This involves the application of gentle touch on specific areas of the body, while using focus, attention and imagination.
Tags: psychosensory therapy, Havening practitioner, self-havening, touch, neuroplasticity, electroceuticals, mind-body connection, sensory input.