Stalking Wild Psoas by Liz Koch

Author:Liz Koch
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781623173166
Publisher: North Atlantic Books
Published: 2019-03-24T16:00:00+00:00

Facing

The lifting of the head is a developmental phase in early infancy that ignites a major proprioceptive orientation to ground. This orientation of the head to the horizon takes place within the inner vestibular sensory system. Located in the inner ear, the vestibular system supports our ability to face the world. Any disparity between the vestibular system in the head and the pelvis will be communicated by psoas.

During a two-day workshop in Santa Fe, a woman comes up to me complaining of a persistent pain in her hip socket that she believes is due to a tight psoas. She is anxious to resolve the pain and feels that releasing her psoas will bring her much-needed relief. I immediately notice that her head is tilted even though her eyes are focused. Throughout the workshop, we explore centering the pelvis. Sitting on top and slightly forward on the pelvic tuberosities helps proprioceptive signals orient the head. We also play with peripheral vision associated with gaining a sense of spatial dimension. Peripheral vision can be lost due to accidents or shock. Not seeing the danger coming overcorrects our focus, which can limit our receptivity to the larger visual field. Disruptions can also be due to a narrowing of focus or persistent staring that occurs with the frequent use of electronics—a deer-in-the-headlights response. So, I am curious to see how her head tilt will resolve and reorient once these various ways of gaining a sense of ground awakens. There are a few subtle changes, but I notice her head is fixated and remains out of balance. Her attention, however, is on her tight psoas needing to be released. I ask her if she is aware of the tilt, and might she possibly tell me more about the imbalance? She thinks for a moment with her head tilted and then tells me she almost drowned in the ocean when she was a young child. Swooped up by a wave that left her hanging upside down for an extended period of time, she sums up the recollection by saying it was a terrifying experience.

Although this woman’s eyes have somewhat readjusted to the constantly tilted head, having a strain from the lack of orientation to the horizon is a disruption in her vestibular system that is playing out in her psoas. The vestibular system, located within the semicircular canals of the ear, is a gravitational locator that detects all motion in the head. Within the labyrinth of the ear, the crystals, floating in a gelatinous substance, move and stimulate the sense of orientation and location, so I am pretty sure her crystals are not responding to the gravitational axis. I suggest that she research and seek out a professional who can help her work with her vestibular system as I think it might be the source of her hip pain and the message her tight psoas is attempting to communicate.

It is worth noting that in the Chinese Five Element theory, ears, as well as bone, blood, kidney, minerals, and fear, are all “housed” within the element of water.

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