Peta speaks body language
Article by Danielle Rush in the Chester Chronicle 22/3/02
Holistic therapy treatment 'listens' to muscles to cure imbalances and physical illness
Although the body is a weird and wonderful machine, it is difficult to comprehend that muscles can actually talk.
I visited kinesiology therapist Peta Pendlebury at her Hope clinic and soon became convinced this holistic technique of balancing the body's energy system by asking what it needs in return for optimum health actually works.
The body can be thrown out of balance by anything from stress and the food we eat to physical injuries.
Peta looks for what stresses are putting the body out of balance by initially talking to the client and then talking to the body through muscle testing.
She has helped clients cope with everything from coming to terms with life-threatening illnesses, abuse, and combating digestive problems, bloating, migraines, menopause and PMT.
Dealing with emotional problems such as crises, work stress, phobiuas or relationship difficulties is also a common concern.
Having never heard of this therapy, which originated in the US during the 1960's, I was a little sceptical at how any diagnosis and relief can be achieved without the client having to explain what is actually bothering them.
But as soon as Peta began what she terms 'detective work', testing my arm muscles by applying gentle pressure and assessing the response - I was intrigued.
The fully trained kinesiologist who set up her business eight years ago at her home at The Beeches explained that if the muscle becomes difficult to hold there is a problem which needs addressing. If it holds strong there is no imbalance.
The concept holds that various muscles are associated with specific organs and glands and a muscle weakness signals a problem elsewhere in the body.
Corrections may be made with massage and follow-up exercises, accompanied by nutritional and stress relief advice to help the body heal itself.
Peta must ask the body if the complaint is primary or is there something else causing the difficulty before getting to work on tackling the issue.
The body is offered various techniques and is able to select procedures which will help to restore balance.
Just by lifting up my arm and asking me to hold it in an upward position, Peta came to an immediate conclusion I was suffering from dehydration. Although I wasn't able to benefit from the full hour session I still saw results.
Most people initially visit the clinic looking for relief from physical problems - but as Peta gains their trust emotional problems often come to the forefront.
And often it's the psychological disharmony which is causing the body to react in a negative manner by inflicting pain.
Gently touching two sensitive points on the forehead during a process called emotional stress release she can determine whether the problem is recent or historical.
By apply gentle pressure to the front and back of my head she told me I was suffering from digestive problems due to an incident more that six months ago.
But within minutes the condition felt as though it had been eased away.
She explained the technique of getting the brain to remove the emotional element from memory - not by taking away a particularly stressful or painful incident, but removing the emotional gut reaction to it which is damaging to the body.
'I encourage the client to look at the situation with a fresh set of eyes,' she said.
One of Peta's most rewarding experiences of using this technique was helping a client and a colleague who were undergoing treatment for breast cancer to feel calmer and more positive about facing their illness.