Wednesday, August 17, 2016

How to Scream the Way out of Stress?

When’s the last time you had a good scream? No, that is not about the accident, when you stub your toe on a corner table. That is about going somewhere in the secluded place, where you can allow yourself a big loud scream at the top of your lungs. It is probably have been a while, if ever, in your adult life.

It is normal, that screaming is having strong negative connotation to the people. It is usually associated with anger. But yelling at someone because you are angry is not the same thing as screaming load to the Universe to let out frustration.

Yelling at people out of anger is projecting your emotions onto another person, and usually that does not solve issues. It is usually because you have lost control and are not able to express yourself in a calm matter. Notice that most conversations don’t start with yelling. Things may start out pretty peacefully but as you start becoming more frustrated and neither side seems to be “getting” the other, tempers flare and screaming starts.

On the flipside, stress-screaming is controlled. You are purposely planning to let out some steam verbally. Think of it as another physical way to relieve stress and emotional frustration just like running, squeezing a stress ball or boxing.



What is Primal Therapy?

Primal therapy is a trauma-based psychotherapy created by Dr. Arthur Janov, who argues that neurosis is caused by the repressed pain of childhood trauma. Dr. Gabor Mate, author of "When the Body Says No, The Hidden Costs of Stress.", would agree with Dr. Janov.

Dr. Janov argues that repressed pain can be sequentially brought to conscious awareness and resolved through re-experiencing (re-feeling) the incident and fully expressing the resulting pain during therapy.

“I have come to regard that scream as the product of central and universal pains which reside in all neurotics,” states Janov. “I call them Primal Pains because they are the original, early hurts upon which all later neurosis is built. It is my contention that these pains exist in every neurotic each minute of his later life, irrespective of the form of his neurosis. These pains often are not consciously felt because they are diffused throughout the entire system where they affect body organs, muscles, the blood and lymph system and, finally, the distorted way we behave.”

Also called primal scream therapy or primal noise therapy, this form of trauma therapy is high on the list of therapies effective in solving stress resulting from trauma or repressed emotion.

Primal scream therapy was developed as a means of eliciting the repressed pain. Janov criticizes the "talking therapies" as they deal primarily with the cerebral cortex and higher reasoning areas, and do not access the source of pain within the more basic parts of the central nervous system.

Why it Helps?

Scientists suggest based on multiple studies, that screaming actually can have a cathartic effect. For some people, it may become highly therapeutic. When you have internally hidden and accumulated through the extensive periods of time, stress, letting it out verbally may offer you a sense of relief. When you are feeling flustered (not angry) releasing it out can make you feel a little freer and take some weight off.

In fact, some colleges actually encourage students to let out a “primal scream” to help relieve the stress of finals. The screaming helps them to feel better, even thou the effect might be just temporary.

Dr Peter Calafiura, an American psychiatrist, agrees that yelling can have a positive mental influence. “[Yelling] might trigger some endorphins, a natural high,” he says. “They might feel calm and it might even be a little addictive. It’s really similar to a runner’s high. They’re getting the same effect in a different way.”

Therefore, primal scream therapy is a legitimate form of psychotherapy used to treat anxiety, trauma and stress. Obviously, not all your stress may be directly linked to particular traumatic event, but the research shows that screaming can in fact, be therapeutic for some people.



Take a Primal Therapy Survey

Take this survey to learn if primal therapy could help you. Chances are it can. Big chances are it can, because I doubt, there will be any adult reader, honestly answering the questions, and still saying NO to all of them.

If you answer, YES, to anything on the list, then you could potentially benefit from primal therapy. Note that all the statements are very cautious, giving a long range of the possible benefits suggestions, but careful enough not to claim it a magic remedy for all. Because… all people are different, and before you actually try, you cannot tell.

Survey:

·         Were you premature at birth?
·         Were you below normal weight for your gestation age at the time of delivery?
·         Did your mother receive pain relieving drugs or anesthesia during labor?
·         Did you require active resuscitation after birth (as needed with babies born blue)?
·         Did you spend time in an incubator or a special baby unit after birth?
·         Were you circumcised shortly after birth?
·         Were you breast-fed?
·         Did you undergo the procedure of genital mutilation as a child?
·         Do you have suicidal impulses?
·         Have you ever attempted suicide?
·         Have you ever been admitted to a hospital for psychiatric treatment?
·         Have you ever been raped or sexually assaulted?
·         Are you a survivor of childhood sexual or physical abuse?
·         Do you use recreational drugs, or have you used them in the past?
·         Are you currently on tranquilizers?
·         Are you subject to heavy use of alcohol?
·         Have you ever been diagnosed as being alcoholic?
·         Do you regularly smoke tobacco?
·         On average how many cups of tea/coffee do you drink per day?
·         Do you regularly suffer from anxiety?
·         Do you regularly suffer from depression?
·         Do you suffer from phobias?
·         Are you subject to recurrent destructive thoughts that enter your mind in an obsessive fashion?
·         Do you have frequent muscle tension?
·         Do you have high blood pressure?
·         Are you subject to heart palpitations?
·         Are you subject to excessively cold hands and/or feet?
·         Have you been diagnosed to have any other disease of the heart or circulation?
·         Do you have asthma?
·         Do you have tension headache?
·         Do you suffer with migraines, which have been medically diagnosed?
·         Are your menstrual periods usually regular?
·         Do you suffer from P.M.S.?
·         On average, how many hours of sleep do you have per night?
·         Do you feel rested when you get up in the morning?
·         Do you usually have difficulty falling asleep?
·         Do you use hypnotic drugs (sleeping pills) to ensure sleep?
·         Do you have nightmares?
·         Have you tried psychoanalysis in the past?
·         Have you tried transactional analysis in the past?
·         Have you tried behavior modification in the past?
·         Have you tried bio-energetics in the past?
·         Have you tried transcendental meditation in the past?
·         Have you tried hypnotherapy in the past?
·         Have you tried biofeedback in the past?
·         Have you tried re-birthing in the past?
·         Have you tried electro-shock in the past?
·         Have you tried drug therapy in the past?
·         Have you tried counselling in the past?
·         Do you ever cry?
·         When was the last time you cried?
·         How would you rate your social life?
·         Have you ever been subjected to violence?
·         Have you ever engaged in any violent behavior?



How to Scream to Relieve Stress (Without Seeming Crazy)

Let’s be honest, you are definitely going to look insane screaming in the middle of the office, even if you do it in a fancy scream box. We do not advise you just start yelling in the middle of a crowded room during the stressful meeting.

It is better to find safe private space for hearty scream. Ideally, somewhere other people can’t hear you. Screaming in your apartment is probably a good way to have the police knocking at your door to calm you down through the means they have.

Some good options are:

·         Your car (assuming nobody else is around)
·         A mountain or somewhere high up
·         A sound proof room, if you can find one
·         Near a train track, just wait for the trains to go by so it can drown out your noise
·         A beach or park early in the morning when nobody is there
·         Into a pillow

The most important thing to remember is to look for places where nobody is around.

Next is the actual scream. How loud should you scream? How long should you scream for? Do you have to scream out words or just yell? The answer to all of these questions is the same. It doesn’t matter, there are no rules!

You’re just trying to let out some stress. Scream as loud as you want, for as long as you want and however you want. As long as you feel some relief afterward, that’s all that matters. You can effectively get rid of much of the negative and harmful energy in your system by simply yelling for 1-3 minutes. Remember: Long, deep yelling, from the stomach, not the throat.

I feel like a million trucks, each with a million bucks in them, after I yell for 1 minute. A huge weights lifts from my body after a quick session. Sometimes, more than others, and I assume that is because sometimes, I am carrying more emotional baggage. We know that the body must keep in motion, to keep clean. We know we must breathe deep to circulate blood through the entire body. We know we must drink plenty of water to keep our machine-like bodies running smooth. We also know that becoming stagnant paves breeding grounds for illness. We also know that the human body is energy, emits energy and can influence surrounding energy. Yelling is a tool in which we can help release, pent up, harmful energy (often caused by early hood trauma) which manifests in the body as a variety of medical, life threatening issues.



What if it does not help?

Like all stress management techniques, screaming is not going to work for everyone. If you just feel weird and awkward after letting out a good stream, but still stressed out, maybe it’s not your thing. Try other stress management techniques, which may work better for you.

Warning: Be careful, applying this methodology, as for some people such cathartic approaches would not be suitable. If you one of them, stop your experiments immediately.

Sources and Additional Information:




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