The Body Remembers: How Trauma Lives in Our Muscles and What We Can Do About It
In recent years, there has been a growing recognition of how trauma affects the body as well as the mind. We now know that trauma is stored in our somatic memory and is expressed through a biological stress response. Because the body often holds onto traumatic experiences, it displays them through tension, pain, or unexpected emotional responses. This discovery has led to somatic therapies, which focus on the body’s role in healing trauma.
Bessel van der Kolk, MD, has completed research and written a book known to many, The Body Keeps the Score. In it, he discusses how we can self-regulate through body focused interventions such as yoga, mindfulness, and other movement and sensory modalities.
I recently read an article in The Good Trade, written by a yoga teacher, Jamie Kahn, who reflected that students often find themselves unexpectedly crying in poses like pigeon or savasana. These moments of emotional release are evidence of somatic release, a powerful, involuntary process where the body lets go of stored emotional energy. As Kahn notes, these reactions surprise people as they often aren’t consciously thinking about anything upsetting. That’s because our bodies can hold onto trauma even when we think our minds have moved on.
How Trauma Gets Stored in the Body
Trauma usually activates the body’s survival responses: fight, flight, or freeze. Ideally, the body will process and release this energy. However, trauma can be overwhelming and persistent, leading the body to hold onto it in the form of tightening muscles, shortening breath, or tension patterns. When we engage in activities like yoga, the nervous system becomes engaged, and the limbic system releases these unresolved experiences. Somatic releases aren’t always huge or dramatic. Kahn emphasizes that people may experience “smaller” forms of release, like sighing or trembling and extra movements during activities like yoga.
Modalities That Support Somatic Release
To intentionally support this healing, many individuals turn to somatic modalities, therapies that focus on the connection between the mind and body to address mental and emotional well-being.
These somatic modalities provide pathways for the body to do what it already knows what to do: restore balance, release stress, and return to a state of peace.
Dr. Katrina Kuzyszyn-Jones is trained in, and a zealous advocate for, ART and EFT. If you are interested in trying something different, feel free to reach out to drkatrina@kkjpsych.com.
Sources
1. https://www.thegoodtrade.com/features/what-is-somatic-
release/
2. https://www.verywellhealth.com/somatic-trauma-therapy-5218970
3. https://www.downtownsomatictherapy.com/article/5-kinds-of-somatic-therapies
4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9384857/
5. https://acceleratedresolutiontherapy.com/what-is-art/
6. https://www.healthline.com/health/eft-tapping