How do you know? It’s a question often asked…in song, in film, in life. How do you know you love someone? How do you know someone loves you? How do you know which job to accept? How do you know your spaghetti sauce has enough oregano? Is it important to know how we know? Is it enough to just know? These questions have fascinated me for years in regard to Zero Balancing.

On the one hand, it can be very helpful to know how much structure to use or how long to hold a pause. But does investigating how we know have value? As in many Glass of Wine conversations, there may not be a definitive answer. Yet asking yourself these questions will hopefully lead you in some interesting directions!

When we consider how we know the spaghetti sauce is properly seasoned, we might identify that we are using our sense of taste. There is usually a signature taste for “enough oregano” unique to each cook. In this instance, knowing how we know is fairly easy and if we needed to teach someone how to season spaghetti sauce, we would likely instruct them to rely on their own sense of taste and preference. 

Knowing whether we love someone might be a bit more complicated. There may be multiple streams of information from sensory organs, intuition, beliefs, or the opinions of others. If there is a recognizable signature feeling in one’s body it likely doesn’t originate from a single source. However, like learning the “enough oregano” taste, once we learn the “I love this person” feeling, we should be able to recognize its presence or absence fairly easily, shouldn’t we? 

What if it’s someone we feel we shouldn’t love or someone we are afraid might not love us back? What if there is some situational aspect that clouds our internal feedback? Perhaps we feel frightened or anxious and the strength of those body signals overrides the “I love this person” feeling? In this instance, would knowing how we know be helpful? Could it provide us with a more nuanced experience that might help us navigate the cloudiness to find more clarity?  

How do we know what we are doing when we give a Zero Balancing session? How do we know a fulcrum is working or that our client is expanded? In Core ZB  classes, we learn to watch for working signs and listen for voice quality. We learn to recognize the feeling of held energy in bone. We learn to use touch, vision and hearing for feedback. In more advanced classes, we learn internal feedback signals that help identify our own state of expansion. 

Is that all you need to know what you are doing? If the session has gone beautifully or not beautifully, how did you know? How can you determine your client is deeply processing versus dissociating? Where in your body do you get signals? Are you receiving information from sources other than vision, hearing and touch? 

Do your signals remain clear if you are working on someone you want to impress? What if you feel intimidated? If the situation is fraught, would more self-awareness of how you know what you are doing be helpful? Could it provide a road map out of the tangle of emotions you might feel if your ZB session is going awry? Or direction toward something else to focus your attention on? 

I hope this stimulates your curiosity about your own process. Thanks for reading!

Welcome to the first in a new series of articles shining a spotlight on Zero Balancing Principles. Let’s begin with The Witness State…

In Zero Balancing, the Witness State can be defined as neutral presence on the part of the practitioner. The ZBer does not have an agenda or opinion about what needs to happen, how it happens, or where the session needs to go. We facilitate a balance between energy and structure without attachment to a particular process or way the increased balance is manifested. Having an agenda or opinion is not a bad thing. It’s just not the Witness State. It’s not ZB. 

There is a relationship between the paradigm of the practitioner and the Witness State. If the practitioner was trained as a Physical Therapist like myself, the paradigm or lens through which the body is seen involves concepts such as body symmetry, alignment, strength, and flexibility. If I am a Physical Therapist treating a client, I am looking for a linear relationship between cause and effect, for the client’s body to change in a particular way in response to my treatment. This is true of many similar and similarly excellent treatment modalities like massage therapy, chiropractic, and acupuncture. We may be looking for a rib that’s out to go back in, a tight muscle to loosen, an acupuncture point to become unblocked in response to our  treatment. An action is intended to create a specific result. 

In the ZB paradigm, the practitioner is not attempting to create any particular change other than energy and structure coming into a better state of balance. This improved state of balance may manifest in any number of ways determined not by the practitioner but by the client’s inherent healing essence. To paraphrase a quote by Dr. Fritz Smith, “The ZB practitioner gives the session, nature gives the experience.”

Remaining in the Witness State often requires vigilance. Our own unconscious beliefs about health have a way of sneaking in and influencing our sessions. Here’s an example: you are giving a Half Moon Vector (HMV) to a client and you notice that one leg feels longer than the other. You decide to pull harder on one leg to equalize the length. That’s you leaving the Witness State. You have an agenda; that the client’s legs should be the same length. Remaining in the Witness State would mean holding the HMV the way you usually do with your other clients. In other words, you are simply witnessing the difference in leg length. 

If nature is giving the experience, then we as practitioners do not have to know what or how much change is best for our client, nor do we need to know how to create that change. Clients on our tables instinctively feel accepted as they are because we aren’t thinking they need to be any different. And we aren’t trying to change them. They feel safe and can drop into themselves more deeply.  And by remaining in the Witness State, we also become witness to our client’s process. Witnessing amplifies the field and creates a sacred space in much the same way a witnessed ritual becomes more powerful. As we witness our client’s experience without intention, surprises can happen. Radical healing. Healing in ways we could not anticipate because we are not trying to move clients in one direction or another.  

We trust the wisdom of nature. And herein lies the power…the magic…of the Witness State.

We all know what Interface is, right? This fundamental Zero Balancing principle means touching at the structural and energetic boundary, where we end and the client begins. In a ZB session, we touch at Interface. Is this all we do? When we hold the receiver in High Regard and remain in the Witness State, are these the same as Interface? Can one have a clear boundary and not hold the other person in high regard? Can one have an agenda, meaning not be in the Witness State, and still be at Interface? From a broader perspective, can one stay at Interface and behave unethically? Can staying at Interface equalize archetypal power differences? Is Interface maintained if one is conscious of a boundary and crosses it anyway? In the realm of ZB sessions and human relationships, is Interface all we need? Let’s have a glass of wine or a cup of tea and talk about it. 

Let’s start our conversation within the context of a Zero Balancing session. Is Interface all we need to give a good ZB? Is Interface the same as meeting the Donkey? Can one touch energy and structure simultaneously and consciously (Donkey Touch) and not be at Interface? Have you ever blended with your client’s energy and structure so you really felt connected to their Donkey, yet not been at Interface? Can one be at Interface and not touch energy and structure simultaneously and consciously? Have you received ZB sessions where the practitioner was at Interface yet did not meet your Donkey? 

Can you be at Interface and not in the witness state? Have you received, or given, sessions where the boundary was clear, yet you judged or felt judged in some way? Where your client’s head tilted to the left and you thought it should remain midline? Or where your head was tilted and your practitioner kept trying to place it midline? In these examples the witness state is lacking. Does that mean Interface is lacking as well? Can you maintain a clear boundary and be in judgment or have an agenda? Or does having an agenda mean you can’t be at Interface? 

Let’s apply this question more broadly to human relationships. Is Interface all you need for clarity and safety in a relationship? I have lots of questions here. For one, do both parties need to be conscious of Interface? If I’m at Interface with my neighbor, but my neighbor has no concept of boundary, is remaining at Interface all I need? If my neighbor keeps parking their car in my driveway and I keep telling them where my property ends and theirs begins, that should clarify the boundary and establish Interface. Will that change their behavior? 

Does being at Interface mean the other person will do what you want? Or that you will do what they want? What if this neighbor acknowledges it’s my driveway (clear on whose is whose) and parks there anyway? Do they need to respect my boundary to be at Interface? 

What about relationships with multiple layers or power differentials? What if my neighbor is my boss and knowing it’s my driveway, asks to park there every weekend? Or if your client is your landlord and asks for a discount? The boundary is acknowledged in both cases as is asking permission. Is there any pressure to say yes, given the power differential? Are they at Interface? If so, does maintaining Interface equalize the power and remove any additional pressure? 

I hope this stimulates some interesting Glass of Wine conversations. Thanks for reading!

This is the fifth and last in the series of articles looking at the variety of ways we can use the Half Moon Vector (HMV) through the legs. It’s a continuation of the question explored in Part 4…

How far up in the client’s body can you connect with your HMV through the legs? 

In the previous article, we looked at how far up in the client’s body you can connect as a function of the practitioner’s skill. You can read that article here. Now we will explore when the issue may be due to imbalances in the client.

As you may recall, an imbalance between energy and structure can inhibit energy from moving freely through structure between heaven and earth when the person is standing or between the skull and the feet if a person is lying on the table. The implication is that the further up the body one can connect, the more connected between heaven and earth this person might be once they are standing. 

How do you obtain the information? 

Because the information you are seeking here is how far up you can connect, the thing to pay attention to is which parts of the client’s body you are able to engage and where it stops. During the first HMV, it’s important to simply observe, rather than trying to change what you are feeling by doing something additional or something different. You will get much more information by placing all your attention on your observation. 

Use all your senses to observe. If you can only connect as far as the hips, what is the quality of what’s stopping you? I once felt connected as high as my client’s dorsal hinge, yet that “stop” felt like a steel band. I observed it and filed the information away until my next HMV. Staying in your sensory experience is most helpful, rather than attempting to analyze or plan your response. Trust the imbalances will be addressed simply by doing the protocol. It works!

How can you use this information to guide your sessions? 

Using the example above, where the “stop” was in the dorsal hinge, I might pay particular attention to the dorsal hinge when balancing the Sacroiliac Joint–Dorsal Hinge area. I also might see if there is a corresponding imbalance in the sacroiliac joints as we know the two areas are energetically connected. If my orientation is from a Zero Balancing Expanded (ZBX) organs perspective, I might evaluate the person’s diaphragm, liver or stomach. In this client example, I did find an issue in her diaphragm and I chose some of the diaphragm ZBX fulcrums. When I introduced the second HMV, I was able to connect up to her neck but not past. This both confirmed that the session had been effective thus far and that there was more to attend to. 

There are two additional, very important points. First, if you choose to use your HMV to evaluate how far up you can connect, please pay attention to the same thing in the second and third HMVs. This way you will be able to track changes through the session. Second, note I did not conclude from the HMV that the issue was in my client’s diaphragm. I only concluded that I needed to evaluate the dorsal hinge area, including her diaphragm. If her diaphragm had been clear, I would have chosen different fulcrums. 

How might you improve your skills?

Every week, choose one or two clients to focus on. Pay particular attention to how the 1st, 2nd and last HMVs feel. Evaluate more closely when you address the imbalanced area. Have fun and let me know how it goes!

Have you ever wondered why receiving Zero Balancing (ZB) feels so good? You may have received massage or other helpful bodywork, yet there’s something unique about your experience during a Zero Balancing session. It feels so relaxing, so safe, so good! 

Safety and relaxation go hand in hand and both feel good. It’s very difficult to feel relaxed if you feel like you need to keep an eye on the practitioner. It’s difficult to feel good if you feel anxious. Think about the people in your life you feel most relaxed around. These are people you trust. You can relax because you know they aren’t likely to hurt you by suddenly saying something mean or seeking to physically harm you. Instinctively, you feel safe. 

Yet the quality of Zero Balancing touch goes deeper than safety and relaxation. There’s a feeling of acceptance and support that is communicated. Touch communicates instantly and touch doesn’t lie. 

Zero Balancing touch results from the practitioner’s focus on two important things: 1) touching your structure and energy simultaneously and consciously and 2) maintaining a clear boundary. 

What is touching your structure and energy simultaneously and consciously? First, it’s important to understand that Zero Balancing practitioners view the world through the lens of structure and energy. Structure is what can be seen. Energy is unseen. If you look at a tree on a windy day, you see the leaves, the structure. You can’t actually see the wind, the energy. You see the leaves moving and you know the wind is blowing but you can’t actually see the wind. 

In people, structure includes all parts of us that can be seen, either with the naked eye or with a microscope. Examples would include bones, muscles, organs, and cells. Energy encompasses what can’t be seen but is still very much a part of us, like our thoughts, feelings, and beliefs, the movement of our organs and blood, and our life force, vitality or chi. 

Zero Balancing practitioners are trained to be consciously aware of both the structure and energy of the client with each technique throughout the session. Someone shaking your hand is actually touching your energy along with the skin, muscles and bones of your hand, but may not be paying attention to the unseen aspects of you. Receiving therapeutic bodywork that attends to both your structure and energy means all parts of you are being seen and cared for. This engenders a feeling of deep support and acceptance. 

The second important aspect is the practitioner’s attention to boundary. This type of touch is called Interface. There are many therapeutic ways to work with energy when doing bodywork that may or may not emphasize boundary. In Zero Balancing, the practitioners are trained to pay special attention to maintaining a clear energetic boundary with their touch. Both client and practitioner can feel where the practitioner stops and the client begins. This aspect can be especially helpful with trauma survivors. I’ve had several clients who have survived serious trauma comment, “I don’t know why I feel so safe.” Interface touch is one of the reasons. 

Lastly, conscious touch that feels safe is a highly held value in Zero Balancing training and practice. The belief is that the respect, acceptance and safety that are instantly communicated through conscious touch creates a space where deep and lasting healing can happen. 

Clients frequently tell me that a muscle or part of their body feels tight. Sometimes the tightness affects a daily function, like turning their head when backing out of the driveway. Sometimes it’s a feeling of tightness that just feels uncomfortable. Or sometimes it’s an aspiration, like wanting to achieve a yoga pose. The optimal way to improve flexibility varies from person to person and the more you understand about your body, the more likely you are to choose a successful approach.

There are several possible causes of the tightness and understanding the cause can guide you to choosing the best path forward. 

Freedom of movement is determined by both joints and muscles. The causes of tightness are directly related to the tissues that make up muscles and surround joints. Joints consist of 2 or more bones connected by tissue that is essentially non-elastic. This connective tissue, or fascia, encapsulates the joint. The connective tissue can become looser with warmth and stiffer with cold. Muscles consist of elastic components, cells that can contract and stretch, as well as the same fascia that surround joints. For a part of your body to move freely, there must be enough length in the muscles and enough looseness in the joint capsules.  

Some people experience stiffness mainly in their joints, like having arthritis in your back or knees. For joint stiffness, activities that increase warmth, such as repeated movements or active range of motion, can be very helpful. The repeated movement warms the fascia which makes it looser. Looser fascia means less stiffness. While this exercise is very effective, staying in one position will cause the fascia to cool down and stiffen again. So with joint stiffness, improved flexibility is an ongoing activity, like doing these repeated movements frequently throughout the day and especially after being in one position for a while. The true cause of the stiffness is likely arthritis and unfortunately, exercise is not a cure. It can, however, give you the power to improve the way you feel. 

So after sitting for a while, you might gently make small, painless bending and straightening motions in your knee 20 or 30 times without stopping. Lots of repetitions without stopping is important because it generates warmth which loosens the fascia surrounding your knee joint.    

If the tight feeling is due to a tight muscle, a different type of exercise is needed. In this instance, the muscle is too short. Tight muscles do benefit from small, repetitive movements that help warm the fascia in the muscle. However, the muscle needs to be stretched in order to gain length. 

A stretching exercise involves putting the target muscle in a position where one end is held steady and the other end is moved away. Picture stretching an elastic band. You must hold one end steady and move the other end for the stretch to happen. When held long enough and often enough, 3 repetitions, 20-30 seconds each, the muscle will change so that it gains length and you feel more flexible. For example, the hamstring attaches to the pelvis and also to the shin just below the knee on both sides. To stretch, you might sit, which holds your pelvis steady, and straighten your knee, which moves your shin, until you feel a moderate pull. You could also hold your shin steady, and move your pelvis until you feel a stretch. In both cases, you need to hold the position for 20-30 seconds, rest, and repeat the activity at least 3 times in a row. Any stretch performed this way daily over several weeks will lengthen your muscle and give you more flexibility. 

Any exercise should be performed consistently, gently, and without pain! Consult with your exercise trainer or Physical Therapist for exercises specifically tailored for your specific needs.