THE PSOAS HOLDS THE KEYS TO CORE STRESS RELIEF!

The Psoas muscle is the deepest core muscle of the human body, it affects our structural balance, muscular integrity, flexibility, strength, range of motion, joint mobility, and organ functioning. Together with the iliacus (pictured below) they form the iliopsoas.

It is essential to our health, vitality and emotional well being. The Psoas is the only muscle connecting the spine to the legs!

The psoas originates starting at T12 and each of the lumbar vertebrae L1-L5 and attaches to the head of the femur. It is connected to the diaphragm via fascia or connective tissue, and controls breath and fear response. 

Our modern lifestyle runs on adrenaline released by the sympathetic nervous system, and leads to chronic tension in the psoas muscle. Consistently contracting the psoas muscle leads to shortening and can create a host of painful conditions including low back pain, sacroiliac pain, sciatica, disc problems, scoliosis, hip degeneration, knee pain, menstruation pain, infertility, as well as emotional and digestive problems.

As a fight or flight muscle, chronic contraction of the psoas muscle signals to the body that it is in danger, eventually tapping into the adrenal glands and exhausting the immune system. On the other hand, a flexible and strong psoas grounds us and allows subtle energies to flow through the bones, muscles and joints. Giving us access to deep relaxation, relaxed diaphragm, hip and core stabilization, spinal flexibility, vital and creative energy and forward motion~ physically, mentally and emotionally.

Muscle balance is key to a healthy body! Muscles control the bones, and the internal (visceral) organs control the muscles. Specifically, Chinese medicine states that the Spleen rules the muscles and the Liver rules the tendons and ligaments.

According to Jo Ann Staugaard-Jones, Internal or visceral organs communicate messages directly to the brain, and because the organs rest into the psoas muscles, they play a role in stimulus that we call "gut feelings". The psoas is like a vertical bed for the abdominal aorta (our largest artery) and the massive lumbar nerve complex that passes through it. The psoas and the diaphragm, our primary breathing muscle, come together at a junction know as the solar plexus. The solar plexus houses a major nerve network, where the abdominal aorta branches into the renal arteries (kidney). The kidneys are our battery, the storehouse of our vital energy, the root of lIfe that governs birth, growth, development, reproduction and sexuality. The health and functioning of our psoas has a direct correlation to the health of our kidneys and other internal organs because of its influence on blood flow, nerve impulse energy and breathing patterns.

If we look deeper, we see that because of it's position and action, the psoas is an organ of perception, as well as a bridge of neural, muscular, and fascial connection between upper and lower body. It affects the central and and peripheral nervous systems, and therefore plays a fundamental role in our emotional and psychological patterns.. The memory of stress and trauma is stored in the psoas and leads to constriction, unresponsiveness, and pain. The corollary of this dynamic means that the release of the psoas can initiate a profound Healing process!

Back to the brain.. the psoas plays a major role in our emotional response to our environment, and expresses it's magic through a language called "body intelligence." The more stress and trauma we experience and hold onto, the less our psoas can express it's core intelligence. If it gets chronically stuck, the held energy can manifest as disorders of the mind, both brain dysfunction and emotional issues that cause physical symptoms, such as: PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder), Addictions, Depression, Regression, Phobias, Anxiety disorders, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and Sleep Disorders. These chronic dysfunctions are caused by the miscommunication of the central nervous system, so when we release the psoas muscles, emotions like fear and anxiety, stored within the organs and tissues of the body, can surface. Once they surface, they can be integrated and or let go of, and the body can balance and harmonize itself once again.

Wishing you Health, Strength & Happiness my friends!

Isaiah Fliessbach