Restoration & Balance TM

1. Restoration & BalanceTM Chinese Medicine’s Gift to Survivors of Trauma Alaine D. Duncan Licensed Acupuncturist Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

2. Restoration & BalanceTM • Assessing Acupuncturist, Acupuncture and PTSD Study, WRAMC in 2006. • Acupuncturist, War Related Illness and Injury Study Center since 2007. • Clinical Director, Restore & Renew Wellness Clinic, WRAMC 2005-2010. Designed clinical intervention for a VA Merit Grant Research on PTSD-Related Insomnia, DC WRIISC, 2010. Lead Acupuncturist, Designed Intervention for TBI & Chronic Headaches Research Study, WRAMC, WRNMMC, FBCH. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

3. Central Nervous System Neocortex/ForebrainRational - Consciousness, memory, presence, complex thought Limbic Area/Midbrain Relational – Feelings/ emotions, governs social engagement, attachment dynamics Brainstem/Reptilian Brain Instinctual – breathing, circulation, digestion, sexual arousal, fight/flight/freeze. Understands sensation-based language (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

4. Words and Concepts Neocortex/Frontal Thinking, language, higher brain functions, consciousness The Upper Jiao (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

5. Limbic or Mid-Brain Emotions Gutsy, juicy, emotional, rapport, social brain The Middle Jiao (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

6. Reptilian/Brain Stem Sensations Instinctual center - fight/flight/ freeze; breathing, circulation, digestion, reproduction - things below conscious control. The Lower Jiao (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

7. Vibrational Medicine for Vibrational Illness Acupuncture’s greatest contribution to the world of healing is its understanding of qi – life force, or vital energy. Understanding Qi and its regulation can be a major resource for understanding the dysregulation caused by traumatic stress. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

8. Restoration & BalanceTM YANG/Sympathetic Arousal Daytime, summer Awake and alert Inhale Exhale Nighttime, winter Rest and digest YIN/Parasympathetic Restoration Balance is a constantly changing state. It exists in a dynamic and fluid interplay between our more substantial, dense yin aspect and our more insubstantial, active yang aspect. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

9. Vibrational Medicine For Vibrational Illness Sympathetic Activation - Stuck “On” Daytime, summer inhale Awake and alert Rest and digest exhale Nighttime, winter Parasympathetic Collapse - Stuck “Off” Disrupted, depleted, stuck, disorganized Qi (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

10. Manifestations Of Disorganized Qi Low tone or high tone in tissues and mental processes Difficulty in processing or interpreting physical sensations Phobias and hyper- or hypo-arousal with touch, sensations, smells Compromised capacity for relationship Engages in re-enactment behaviors Gets triggered by remotely similar circumstances Wrecks havoc with sleep, immune, metabolic, cardiac, and endocrine systems. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

11. The Threat Response Animals in the wild instinctively discharge very high levels of traumatic activation. Why don’t humans? (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

12. Restoration & BalanceTM The Five Phases of Chinese Medicine interface seamlessly with the five steps of the Self Protective Response. The correspondences of the Five Phases can deepen and bring nuance to your service to trauma survivors. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

13. The Threat Response Stop, Notice (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

14. Startle – Signaling Threat May Happen Simultaneously With Arrest Response (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

15. Mobilization Response Initiates Threat Determined to be High (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

16. The Whole Body Is Engaged (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

17. The Autonomic Nervous System

18. Every Element Is Involved In The Stress Response c) Alaine Duncan, 2011

19. Completion 1 Threat Does Not Materialize (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

20. Completion 2 Successful Defense (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

21. Exploratory Orienting Returns (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

22. Too Much Too Fast Every aspect of our body, mind, and spirit is affected: Our organs, tissues and cells. Our thinking, cognition and focus. Our fundamental experience of God. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

23. The Incomplete Threat Response The flight/fight response mobilized but didn’t complete. They remain “stuck” in what was a successful survival approach – but now the danger has passed. Their instinctive survival responses are unreliable. There is a cascade of physical and psychological symptoms. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

24. Incomplete Threat Response (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

25. The Threat Response When the nervous system is not restored to balance, symptoms can develop weeks, months, years later. Our traumatic disorganization, dormant for years, can reappear with aging, illness, vulnerability or a triggering memory. Onset of symptoms is usually 6-18 months after the event and can be years later. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

26. Insomnia/Hypersomnia Irritable Bowel Syndrome Memory lapses Cognition problems Migraine headaches Stomachaches Anxiety Depression Terror Rage Pain Patterns Metabolic disturbance Auto-immune disturbance Endocrine disturbance Cardiac symptoms Weight gain in the middle The Threat Response (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

27. It’s Not Wrong Our response to trauma is not about our values, courage, or choice.It is an instinctive, highly adaptive and successful negotiation for survival. Fight Flight Freeze (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

28. 5 Types of Traumatic Stress Water/Kidney Type Fear or the lack of fear predominates. Eyes can’t sit still; scan constantly in anxious and fearful attention. Can’t sink deeply and often won’t sleep out of fear of what may come in the night. Manifests as hyper-vigilant alertness or collapsed and frozen, agoraphobic at extreme. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2015

29. 5 Types of Traumatic Stress The Liver/Gall Bladder type Anger or a collapsed lack of capacity for assertion predominates Will look for obstacles rather than see openings -- or will be frozen, imploded, suppressed, and hopeless. There is a mountain of rage whether visible or invisible. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2015

30. 5 Types of Traumatic Stress The Heart type Sadness predominates: flat eyes, flat emotions; slow memory and cognition, socially inhibited, anxious. Heightened sexual expression, without intimacy, connection, engagement. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2015

31. 5 Types of Traumatic Stress The Spleen/Stomach Type Digestion shutdown; can’t receive or hold onto anything, can’t digest, integrate experiences. May manifest with irritable bowel syndrome or GERD. Undigested, their trauma story goes around and around; “victim” identity. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2015

32. 5 Types of Traumatic Stress The Lung/Colon type Grief is predominate emotion. It is hard to inhale, to receive life — or to exhale and let go. “How can a loving God allow bad things happen to good people? Shallow breathing, deeply soulful survival guilt. (c) Alaine Duncan, 2015

33. Restoration & BalanceTM Our Job: The Gumball Principle (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014

34. Contact Information Alaine D. Duncan Licensed Acupuncturist Somatic Experiencing Practitioner Alaine.duncan@integrativehealingworks.net 301-806-4003 (c) Alaine Duncan, 2014