26/03/2026
In my career I have undergone a paradigm shift in how I understand touch.
With massage, shiatsu and chiropractic I often used strong, quick interventions; poking, prodding, stretching, manipulating. The main goal was freeing up structural issues.
It was fun, but did not work so well with trauma, persistent pain and anxiety.
I now use touch as tool primarily to convey feelings of safety, to support emotional expression and to improve a sense of embodied connection.
An idea for a book on touch had been in my head since 2019, but when we went into the 2020 covid lockdowns it really took root, and Touch is Really Strange was created.
The idea for a book on touch has been in my head since 2019, but definitely a lockdown project.
The Really Strange series has been huge fun and continues to get heartwarming feedback. There have been suggestions for books on Depression, Adverse Childhood Experiences, Grief or Breath.
Whilst I have some experience with clients with all those topics, I realised I have far more to say about touch. I use touch everyday in normal work life and teach two year courses on being skilful with touch.
Touch Is Really Strange is a celebration of slow, gentle, meditative touch - ‘relational touch’. Touch that is focused on the whole person and all their stories. Touch where the goal is to connect to feelings states that are often hidden, rarely simple and sometimes scary.
I really appreciated getting this review:
Touch is Really Strange is a wonderful addition to the Really Strange Series. Steve is a creative storyteller who is adept at making the science of complex human experiences accessible, interesting, engaging, and understandable, especially as it is brought to life through Sophie’s visually arresting and deeply human artwork.
This is a beautiful story about science, touch, and being human. It doesn’t shy away from nuance and complexity, it embraces them to wonderful effect.
- Joletta Belton, Pain Patient Advocate,
You can see the link in my bio to get your copy.
