4 Gentle Ways to Release Emotional Tension From Your Spine 

What is it like to walk away from a stressful conversation or conflict? Most people experience their shoulders locking up, their jaws clenching, and their lower back aching. 

That’s not a sign of poor posture but an indication of emotional tension settling into the spine. Whatever your mind is unable to process in the moment is stored within your body. This is precisely why it’s difficult to truly move on from a traumatic incident until inner emotional healing occurs. 

Over time, the stored tension can affect your mood and energy levels. In truth, the spine carries the heaviest emotional weight because it is the body’s core. 

Need help releasing this weight? Keep reading as this article will share four gentle practices to follow. You will discover that it’s possible to heal, one moment at a time. 

Breathwork That Travels Down Your Spine 

Breath can be called the source of all life. It’s more than just air; it’s a conversation between the body and the mind. During moments of fear, panic, and stress, this conversation rapidly breaks down. 

When the body’s fight-or-flight mode is activated, panic attacks begin. In some cases, they may lead to a full-blown panic disorder. 

In England, one in four individuals suffers from a mental health condition, including panic disorder. Thankfully, more and more people have started seeking help, pushing through the stigma and shame. 

The better news is that breathwork can help tackle anxiety-related issues. This is important because the spine becomes a highway of tension, being wired into the nervous system. 

Mindful, downward-focused breathwork can help reverse the pattern of panic attacks. Each inhale brings awareness, and each exhale encourages release. 

Try this: Sit or lie down in a comfortable position. Inhale slowly through your nose and visualize the breath moving from the crown of your head to your lower back. While exhaling, imagine the tension being released. Continue like this for five minutes, allowing breath to be your anchor. 

Spinal Decompression Therapy for Deep Relief 

Keep in mind that not all tension is muscular. Some of it may live deeper, between vertebrae or along nerve roots. Over time, the pain and tension stored in these areas not only tighten the muscles around the spine but may also create compression. 

The latter can only be described as life becoming too heavy to hold upright. This is where the value of nonsurgical spinal decompression therapy is felt. 

According to Phoenix Integrated Medical Center, this therapy gently relieves pressure on spinal discs by stretching the spine in a controlled way. 

As a result, nutrients, oxygen, and moisture are returned to areas that require healing. Trials support this, as one found that 80% of patients experienced pain reduction after 20 decompression therapy sessions. 50% even showed considerable improvement in their daily function.  

Non-surgical spinal decompression therapy not only provides physical relief but also a somatic one. This happens in two ways: 

• The gentle traction allows the nervous system to relax and let go. 
• The body softens as discs are rehydrated and nerves are freed. 

Try this: After a spinal decompression therapy session, pause before getting up. Close your eyes and inhale slowly. As you do so, notice where your body feels spacious. While exhaling, ask yourself which emotions you’re ready to release. 

Somatic Stretching That Invites the Body to Speak 

Stretching is often associated with an activity, something that we do with the body. Somatic stretching is much more tender than that. It invites you to listen closely to your body’s cues. 

Traditional stretching focuses on fitness or flexibility, whereas somatic stretching involves slow, intuitive motion. This helps build awareness between the body and the mind. What you’d be doing is observing where tension is stored in your body and exploring how it wants to move. 

A 2024 report in PopSugar noted that somatic exercises are increasingly being recognized for benefits like stress reduction, improved sleep, and emotional release. The spine, in particular, is a rich archive of experience. Moving it intentionally, be it swaying gently from side to side or arching and curling like a wave, should give you certain cues. They may be as follows: 

• A tightness between the shoulder blades when you think about a painful memory 
• A release in the lower back as you exhale slowly 
• A subtle shift in posture that seems to communicate that a weight is being lifted off 

These are ways your body may speak. You need to listen to what it is saying through mindful somatic stretching. 

Try this: Come to a tabletop position on your hands and knees. After closing your eyes, inhale and slowly arch your spine in a cow pose. Now, begin to move intuitively, be it via gentle hip circles or shoulder rolls. Ask yourself where your body wants to move and for how long. 

Journaling Paired With Body Scanning to Release Held Tension 

The human body has its unique way of speaking. It can convey things long before the mind can find relevant words. A flutter in the chest, a tightening in the throat, or a heaviness in the lower back are not just sensations but messages. 

In today’s fast-paced world, it’s easy to ignore the messages, and worse, even suppress them. Body scanning is a simple grounding technique that brings awareness to what the body is communicating. When paired with (emotional) journaling, this practice becomes even more powerful. 

Think of it like offering your body a voice and your mind a pen. Chiefly, the spine stores what you may not have processed. Consider the examples of: 

• A clenched jaw that held back words 
• A stiff neck from saying yes to something you wanted to say no to 
• A sore back from carrying burdens that you were never meant to 

Scanning the body and journaling what you discover turns the signals into language. Writing calms down racing thoughts and breaks the loop of emotional suppression. 

Essentially, you teach your nervous system that it is safe to feel. This is something supported by research. A 2024 report confirmed that body scan meditation led to the highest reduction in self-reported stress. 

Try this: Perform a slow body scan, pausing where tension lingers. Then, gently ask yourself what your body might be holding or suppressing. Journal whatever comes to mind, be it memories or feelings. No need to perfect the prompts, just witness them. 

The world expects you to learn the art of holding yourself together, even when your inner world is falling apart. That’s a band-aid solution, and worse, may even harden you to your plight. 

If emotional tension is weighing on your body, particularly your spine, healing is long overdue. Neglecting it will negatively impact your long-term physical health and emotional well-being. 

You don’t have to force healing; simply make space for it. Be gentle with yourself and let your body unwind.