Psychosomatics: The back is a place where we put everything we don’t want to look at.

Description: This article highlights the psychosomatic nature of back pain and tension. Possible connections between emotional experiences, conflicts, injuries and physical manifestations in the spine are considered. It offers ways to consciously work on the repressed emotions and long-standing problems we carry on our backs.



Introduction
The back is not just the support of our body, but, according to a number of psychological and psychosomatic theories, the “place” where we add up everything that we do not want to see and realize. For many people, pain and discomfort in the back become a constant companion of life: daily spasms, shots, chronic tension in the lower back or between the shoulder blades. At first glance, these problems may seem purely mechanical – “wrong posture”, “overstretched muscles”, “sitting at the computer for too long”. However, if you delve deeper, it becomes clear that our body is closely interconnected with the psyche, and the tension in the back can reflect the accumulated resentments, fears, unresolved conflicts and emotions that we refuse.

But why does the back often become a dumping ground for hidden feelings and experiences? What are the mechanisms of psychological influence on muscle tone and spine condition? And most importantly, what can be done to free yourself from the old emotional “burden” and thereby alleviate the physical state? In this article, we will analyze the main approaches of psychosomatics to back problems, analyze the symbolism of various parts of the spine and see how to learn how to work with your “hidden” feelings to return the body to freedom and ease.

Main part

1. Back from the point of view of psychosomatics: a brief overview
Psychosomatics is a branch of medicine and psychology that studies how our psychological factors (thoughts, emotions, beliefs) can affect the state of the body. According to Wikipedia, psychosomatic diseases often manifest as bodily pain and functional disorders, although their root cause lies in the emotional sphere. The back occupies a special place in this picture: it carries the weight of our body (and, symbolically, the weight of our life) and is a “back” in which we do not look, and sometimes we are afraid to look.

A person suffering from persistent back pain may experience the following internal conflicts:

• Unspoken grievances. Repressed irritation or anger that does not find a way out can be fixed at the level of the muscles of the back, causing tension.
• Feeling guilty. When we are shy or ashamed of something, it is difficult to look at it “in the open”, we “turn away”, and as a result clamps form in the spine.
• Fear of the future. Fear of change, anxiety for future events can also “hang” in the lumbar zone or neck, as if not allowing us to go forward.
• The cargo of responsibility. People often say, “You have to pull all the work around your neck.” If this responsibility is excessive, the muscles literally overstretch, displaying emotional load.

Thus, the back becomes a kind of “reservoir” of suppressed feelings, accumulated problems and unresolved tasks. When we refuse to admit it, the body begins to signal that something is wrong. Excessive stress, conflict with others, or internal hesitation about important decisions can all exacerbate back pain.



2. Symbolism of different parts of the back
It is believed that different parts of the spine can reflect different types of emotional stress. Of course, this interpretation is rather metaphorical and should not be taken as an absolute dogma. However, it helps to better understand the possible links between the psyche and body symptoms.

• Neck and upper back. Responsible for the flexibility of thinking and the ability to accept new experiences. When our neck “jams” it may indicate stubbornness, unwillingness to “turn face” to problems. It also reflects feelings of guilt and shame that we try to ignore.
• Chest section. In the area between the shoulder blades, suppressed emotions often accumulate: unspoken resentments, fear of deception, irritation. If a person feels constant heaviness in the chest and upper back, it is possible that he harbors a lot of pain, not giving them an outlet.
• The lumbar. This zone is associated with a sense of security, financial and household issues. It is not for nothing that people, faced with financial problems, say: “It is as if my lower back is breaking.” Excessive anxiety for material well-being can be expressed in pain of the lumbar region.
• Sacred and coccyx. The lowest part of the spine sometimes reflects basic instincts, a sense of belonging to the family, roots. Conflicts in relations with parents or children, a sense of non-recognition in “their tribe” – all this can be localized by pain in the coccyx or sacrum.

Again, these interpretations are quite conventional, but they allow us to see how bodily sensations in a particular area can relate to certain types of emotional load. Many body-centered therapists use these “codes” as reference points to help them work with patients.

3. How tension is formed in the back
When a person is faced with a conflict situation or a difficult emotional experience, he may consciously “not notice” it. But the body, being more honest, reacts by increasing muscle tone, narrowing blood vessels, changing breathing. So, unmanifested aggression, for example, leads to the fact that the back begins to “take on” this unexpressed anger. A person does not want or is afraid to speak out, and then the body launches “defensive” reactions, maintaining tension in the muscular frame of the spine.

Reactions that contribute to the formation of pain:

1. Constant alertness. If we wait for threats or criticism all the time, the back muscles remain slightly “squeezed,” ready to flee or fight.
2. Emotional suppression. Instead of allowing ourselves to cry, scream, express disappointment, we hide it and the tension settles in the body.
3. The expression of “hidden” responsibility. People who constantly feel like they have to “hold the whole situation” may experience chronic heaviness in their shoulders and upper back.
4. Ignoring signals. The first bells of pulling pain often go unnoticed: “I will endure”, “it will pass.” But if you ignore bodily signals, the problem deepens.

The result is chronic pain that can no longer be explained by physical exertion alone. At first, you can contact a massage therapist, take painkillers, but the root of the problem will continue to exist if the emotional conflict is not resolved.

4. Dealing with “hidden” emotions and conflicts
To get rid of psychosomatic back pain, it is important not only to relieve muscle tension, but also to release from repressed feelings. Let’s take a look at a few approaches to do this.

• Body-oriented therapy. Various forms of somatic work (for example, Alexander Lowen’s bioenergy) help identify and work out muscle clamps. Sometimes it is enough to give yourself the opportunity of intense movements, screams, deep breathing, so that the emotional “congestion” shifted.
• Psychotherapy. Individual sessions with a psychologist or psychotherapist allow you to realize what emotions are “hidden” behind back pain. It is often found that behind chronic pain is an unlived resentment against a loved one or fear associated with self-esteem.
• Mindfulness practices. Meditation, breathing techniques, yoga and other directions teach a person to “hear” his body, notice areas of tension and gently release them. Regular exercise reduces stress levels and helps change muscle patterns.
• A symbolic farewell. Sometimes it’s helpful to perform a “ritual” in which you mentally imagine taking a bag of past grievances off your back and putting it aside. Such a symbolic act can trigger the processes of inner liberation.

The important thing is to understand that our emotions are not our enemies. They become a problem only when we stubbornly refuse to notice them. Therefore, timely awareness of feelings and their ecological expression is the foundation of mental and physical health.



5. Practical recommendations for the care of the “back”
To not only eliminate existing pain, but also to prevent their return, it is important to combine psychological and physiological methods. Here are some practical tips:

1. Posture is a mirror of state. Teach yourself to control your back during the day. Try to look at it not as “discipline,” but as care: “I want to keep my back straight because I respect myself and my body.”
2. Listen to the body's signals. At the first signs of discomfort, make several warm-up movements: slopes, rotation of the shoulders, stretching of the neck. Don't wait for the pain to get worse.
3. Regular traffic. My back loves dynamics: walking, light training, swimming. Strengthen the muscle corset to support the spine. But do it without bigotry - excessive workloads can exacerbate the problem.
4. Track the emotional background. Pay attention to stressful periods, conflicts, emotional “congestion”. If you notice that you have become irritable or depressed, redouble your efforts in “bodily discharge”: massage, yoga, talking with a close friend.
5. Don't be afraid to ask for help. If the pain is constant and intense, consult a doctor to rule out organic pathologies. In parallel, consider visiting a psychologist or therapist if you feel that the cause may be emotional experiences.
6. Record your emotions. It’s sometimes helpful to keep a “back diary” where you note when and under what circumstances the pain gets worse. You may find patterns, such as after a serious conversation with someone or during work deadlines. This will help to recognize the triggers and react in time.

By combining such measures, you will create conditions in which your back will cease to be a dumping ground for unresolved problems and turn into a strong, flexible support. It is important to keep a comprehensive view: the body and mind are inseparable, and it is worth taking care of them both.

Conclusion
The back is in many ways a symbolic center, reflecting our willingness to “carry” our own lives, accept challenges and move forward. When we try to hide from ourselves internal contradictions and emotions, it is in the back that painful clamps and chronic tension often form. Psychosomatics sees the back as a “battlefield” in which a person struggles with what he does not want to see: resentment, fear, guilt, accumulated responsibility.

The gap between mind and body is an illusion. By closing this gap, we can regain our physical freedom and emotional comfort. Benevolent attention to your feelings, moderate physical exertion, relaxation techniques and timely work on conflicts - all this helps to get rid of the "garbage" on your back.

Every pain has a message, and back pain is no exception. By listening to the body and trying to understand what it wants to communicate, we can draw important conclusions about what has happened (or is happening) in our soul. And most importantly, we can change the situation by learning not to put heavy ballast in the back, but to face problems, express emotions and thereby maintain the spine in a healthy and flexible state.

Glossary

• PsychosomaticsA field in medicine and psychology that studies the relationship between psychological factors and physical health.
• Body-oriented therapyA set of psychotherapeutic methods that focus on working with bodily sensations, muscle clamps and movements to release suppressed emotions.
• Suppression of emotionsA psychological process in which a person consciously or unconsciously holds or ignores their feelings without allowing them to manifest.
• Bioenergy by Alexander LowenA method of body-oriented psychotherapy aimed at awareness of bodily blocks and the restoration of natural breathing and movements.
• Stress metabolism: a set of reactions of the body, which includes changes in hormonal background, muscle tone and emotional state when faced with stress factors.
• The “cargo” of responsibilityA metaphorical expression that describes an excessive sense of duty or responsibilities that a person carries, often accompanied by emotional and physical stress.
• Mindfulness (mindfulness)The practice of being in the present moment with full attention to what is happening, without judgment or evaluation.
• SomatizationA process in which psychological or emotional conflicts are expressed in the form of bodily symptoms and complaints.