Unwinding the Belly: Healing with Gentle Touch
by Allison Post, Stephen Cavaliere
"The emotional charge of unresolved or unexpressed grief and love is stored in the tissue surrounding these organs and cannot be stored without evident pain. If the emotion continues to be held inside, without expression, the muscle and fascia become stiff and blocked, inhibiting the function of these organs."
"Unnatural, or what I call panic breath, occurs when the diaphragm is pulled upwards on the inhale breath, and there is much less of a vacuum created, or none at all. This kind of breathing fills only the top lobes of the lungs with oxygen. The body attempts to make up for this lack by contracting the chest and rib cage muscles to expand the lungs. And this is the root of neck, shoulder, and back pain. Worse, inadequate breathing deprives the entire body of its mainstay—vital oxygen."