FIND YOUR HAPPY. Christine Varnavas, local certified TRE trainer, released a new book about experiencing stress. (Photo by Renee Barth)

Everyone at one point or another experiences stress but not everyone has the necessary tools to try and combat that stress, which can often lead to even more challenges and a feeling of hopelessness. Christine Varnavas, a globally certified TRE trainer, recently published her book, Heal Your Sh!t Find Your Happy, directed towards anyone who has experienced trauma and wants to learn how it works in the body – and how to release it.

TRE – which stands for Tension and Trauma Release Exercise – has been a huge part of Varnavas’s life for the last seven years. The practice was created by Dr. David Berceli when he noticed that children, much like animals, allow their bodies to shake when they need to release stress chemicals when in trying situations. As adults, most people have stopped these tremors due to societal “norms” and not wanting to seem out of place, but Varnavas says this does us a disservice.

“Learning about how stress and trauma work can be very empowering,” Varnavas said. “It's directly related to mental wellness and mental health and it's easy. Healing from trauma and managing your stress doesn't have to suck all the time, it can be fun. And that's my point – it can be done doing fun things like exercising, yoga, and laughing.”

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Learning about how stress and trauma work can be very empowering.

Christine Varnavas

author and tre trainer

Heal Your Sh!t Find Your Happy explains how stress works in the body and the tools you can use, including TRE and laughter, to help push past that stress and into healing. Varnavas’s main goal in writing the book was to use her own experiences with trauma to help others who don’t know much about it and don’t think they have the necessary knowledge to help them get out of their fight or flight mode. She also hopes to help mitigate generational trauma that can be passed down through families.

Varnavas explains stress in the body by describing humans to cell phone towers. Cell towers are always emitting signals and so are humans – the good, bad, and anything else. Our built-in safety system, our autonomic nervous system, is constantly scanning our environment to pick up on cues of safety and will pick up on others’ signals, causing us to feel the same anxiety that others in the room may be feeling. She experienced this firsthand when she realized her past trauma affected her as a mother and as a result, affected her two children.

“We're passing on these things to the people around us unconsciously,” Varnavas said. “So it's our job to do the best work we can to not have a negative impact on those around us.”

Varnavas moved to Eau Claire when she was in high school and has a 30+ year professional background as an educator alongside a 30+ year passion for fitness and yoga, using both of these sectors in her life to helping her write Heal Your Sh!t Find Your Happy. She published her book through local publishing company, Inner Peace Press, since their ethos matched perfectly and she knew Heather Felty, the owner, for years past.

Anyone wanting to learn more about stress and TRE should pick up a copy of Varnavas’s book and can also reach out to Varnavas directly, as she will soon launch a new program in the fall that teaches women self-care practices to utilize daily in managing their stress.

Get your copy of Heal Your Sh!t Find Your Happy at christinevarnavas.com and at The Local Store.