As a bereaved spouse herself, Lyn Prashant specializes in “body work” after loss. She recently talked with Dr. Gloria Horsley from the Open to Hope Foundation about options for those in various stages of grieving when it comes to using the body as part of the healing process. “After my husband died, I found that talking did not deal with the pain in my body.” A few months after her husband passed, Prashant’s friend recommended seeing a masseur to address the physical pain. She explains that having your body touched with love and care can encourage emotions to surface that were previously trapped and unable to arise from other coping mechanisms.

“Thought, feelings, and all kinds of memories of my life with Mark became very available for me to talk about—work with—and feel as I was speaking.” Prior to this experience with body work, Prashant said she hadn’t been able to access that pain. Finally, the numbness gave way to feeling and it was as if a dam had burst. Today, Prashant teaches others how to tap into this strategy in courses like her “De-griefing Body Work.” The body doesn’t know how to lie, explains Prashant, so helping your body understand that it has wisdom allows you to tap into places where you hold grief.

A Holistic Approach to Healing

“Conscious, caring, compassionate touch” is the secret to utilizing this strategy. Prashant has published numerous articles, books and videos on the subject, which are all available on her website. She doesn’t take a clinical approach, but rather a user-friendly approach of using expressive arts to leverage grief for fuel.

De-griefing, explains Prashant, is actually an oxymoron. It’s not something you can undo, but something you can certainly make use of in various ways—some positive, some negative. Find out more about Prashant’s work and her connection with Open to Hope Foundation today.