The root of all evil

What does the title of today's blog make you think of? I bet a lot of things are running through your mind! Especially if you are watching the news. But, I'll wager that only a couple of people will think of the psoas muscle. The what? How do you even say that? Pretend the "p" is not there.....so-as. The psoas was coined "the root of all evil" by my very funny friend from Barcelona that started massage school the same day as I did. And we were doomed to work on each other's psoas from that day forward. We learned (from our super smart teacher, Bob) that the psoas has a lot to do with the way you feel everyday. It is a big muscle that goes from your lumbar vertebrae to the inside of your thigh bone. It helps you flex your trunk, it helps you lift your legs and helps keep you standing upright, even if you've had too much to drink. But it does so much more than that. It also holds a lot of your past emotions and trauma. An unhappy psoas can create lower back pain. People are skeptical when you want to massage their abdomen ('cause that's how you get to it!) when it's their back that hurts....but when you relieve the stress in the psoas..you can't believe how good the absence of that tension feels. Bob also taught us that if your psoas is angry it tends to use up it's fair share of muscle resources...food if you will...also known as ATP...and that leaves all your other muscles not as able to work optimally. I know that when I have my psoas worked on, I will feel absolutely no pain anywhere for several days. It's one of those muscles that people don't really pay attention to because the psoas doesn't hurt like a sore shoulder or neck...they just know they don't feel that great...and don't know why. It also can hold onto some emotional trauma. Sometimes working on the psoas will trigger an emotional reaction, usually sadness. And some people are afraid of that, which I understand. It's hard to be willing to let go sometimes. But think of how healthy it is to be rid of that potentially damaging garbage from yesterday! So, if your back is hurting or you know you are holding tension in your gut....take a big deep breathe and call your favorite massage therapist and ask them if they are ready to work on your psoas! If they are like me, they will jump at the chance!!