Psycho sensory techniques represent a category of therapeutic interventions that utilise sensory input to influence mental and emotional states, particularly in the reduction of anxiety. These techniques work on the principle of the mind-body connection, acknowledging that physical sensations can directly impact our thoughts, feelings, and behaviours. Rather than relying solely on cognitive restructuring or verbal processing, psychosensory methods engage the nervous system directly to promote calmness and reduce anxiety responses.
Generally, psychosensory techniques are thought to exert their effects by modulating brain activity, particularly in areas associated with stress and emotion regulation, such as the amygdala (the brain’s fear centre) and the prefrontal cortex (involved in higher-level thinking and emotional control). By providing specific sensory input, these techniques can help to downregulate the stress response, promote relaxation, and even reprocess traumatic memories. Some techniques focus on breathing patterns to activate the parasympathetic nervous system and induce a relaxation response. Others involve physical movements or touch that can directly influence neurological pathways associated with emotional regulation.
Havening Techniques: A Focus on Touch for Anxiety Relief
Havening Techniques®, also known as Delta Wave Techniques, are a specific type of psychosensory therapy that employs simple touch to help permanently alleviate unwanted emotions and physical sensations stemming from distressing memories and events, including anxiety. These techniques are rooted in neuroscience and are designed to be easy to learn, self-applied, rapid, gentle, and generally without adverse effects.
The Role of a Havening Practitioner
A Havening practitioner plays a crucial role in guiding clients through the process of reducing their anxiety. They begin by understanding the client’s specific anxieties and any underlying events or memories that may be contributing to them. While Havening can be used content-free, meaning the client doesn’t necessarily need to detail the traumatic event, identifying the core emotional distress is often a starting point.
The practitioner will then explain the theory behind Havening, helping the client understand how the techniques work on a neurological level. This psychoeducation can be empowering, providing a sense of control and understanding over what can feel like overwhelming anxiety.
The core of the Havening intervention involves the application of Havening Touch. This is a gentle stroking motion performed by the practitioner (Facilitated Havening) or by the client themselves under guidance (Self-Havening). The touch is typically applied to specific areas of the body, including the:
- Face: Stroking down the sides of the face.
- Arms: Stroking from the shoulder down to the elbow.
- Palms: Rubbing the palms of the hands together.
These areas are believed to have a strong response to tactile stimulation, sending calming signals to the brain.
The Havening Procedure
During a Havening session for anxiety reduction, a practitioner might guide a client through the following steps:
- Identifying the Distress: The client is asked to bring to mind the anxiety-provoking situation or memory and to rate their level of distress on a scale of 0 to 10 (Subjective Units of Distress – SUD).
- Applying Havening Touch: The practitioner will then begin to apply the Havening Touch, instructing the client to continue focusing on the anxious feeling or memory. In Self-Havening, the practitioner will guide the client on how to perform the touch themselves.
- Distraction Techniques: While the touch is being applied, the practitioner often incorporates simple distraction techniques, such as having the client count aloud, visualise a calming scene (like walking up a staircase), or hum a familiar tune. The idea is that this helps to further disrupt the anxious thought patterns and engage different parts of the brain.
- Repetition and Re-evaluation: The process of applying the touch and using distractions is repeated several times. After each round, the client is asked to re-rate their level of distress. The aim is for the SUD score to decrease significantly, ideally reaching zero or a very low level.
- Testing the Outcome: Once the distress level has reduced, the practitioner may ask the client to bring the anxiety-provoking situation or memory to mind again to assess if the anxious feelings have diminished or been eliminated.
How Havening Works in the Brain
The exact neurobiological mechanisms of Havening are still being researched, but several theories exist. One prominent idea is that the gentle touch facilitates the depotentiation (un-encoding) of traumatic or distressing memories stored in the amygdala. It is thought that the touch generates delta waves in the brain, which are associated with relaxation and can help to alter the electrochemical state of the brain, providing a “calming bath” for the amygdala. This process may help to reduce the emotional charge associated with the memory, so it no longer triggers an anxiety response.
Furthermore, Havening can help to activate the parasympathetic nervous system, promoting feelings of safety, peace, and calm. By repeatedly pairing the distressing memory with the calming sensory input of the touch, the brain can learn a new, less anxious response to the trigger. Havening is also believed to harness neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to form new neural pathways, helping to build resilience and improve emotional regulation over time.
Havening practitioners often teach clients Self-Havening techniques so they can use them independently to manage anxiety in their daily lives. This empowers individuals to take an active role in their well-being and provides them with a readily available tool for anxiety relief. Some practitioners also teach couples to haven each other, which can be a valuable tool for mutual support and stress reduction.
In summary, Havening Techniques offer a promising psychosensory approach to reducing anxiety by directly engaging the nervous system through gentle touch. Practitioners guide clients through a structured process that aims to depotentiate distressing memories, promote relaxation, and foster new, less anxious responses, empowering individuals with tools for self-management.
Summary: Psychosensory Techniques
Psychosensory techniques reduce anxiety by utilising sensory input to influence brain activity, particularly in areas related to emotion regulation. These methods work on the mind-body connection to downregulate the stress response and promote calmness. Havening Techniques® are a specific type of psychosensory therapy that uses gentle touch applied to the face, arms, and palms to alleviate anxiety linked to distressing memories. Havening practitioners guide clients through a process involving the application of this touch, often combined with distraction techniques like counting or visualisation. This is believed to work by generating delta waves in the brain, helping to depotentiate traumatic memories in the amygdala, activating the parasympathetic nervous system, and fostering neuroplasticity, leading to a reduction in anxiety levels. Clients are often taught Self-Havening to manage anxiety independently.