Search Results for: body keeps score

The Body Keeps the Score (Part Two) — how trauma changes us

Survivors of incest or molestation, and/or extreme neglect often talk about how they are evil or damaged or worthless. When we tell them that is not true, it can make them feel even worse, more alone and misunderstood – despite our good intentions, we have just told them again how wrong they are, even about their own reality. They need for us, as their therapists, to get how ugly they feel about themselves, how ugly their core self map really is.

We need to help them go inside themselves with an adult ego and notice what happened to them without dissociating or avoiding. There is no need to relive the memories, only to witness them as an observer (the reliving of a memory is known entering the memory field). If they bring adult awareness to wounded child-part of themselves, it becomes easier to regulate the core brain stem functions. [This is the foundation of self compassion training.] … [click on title for the rest of the post]

When the body says no

Only an intellectual Luddite would deny the enormous benefits that have accrued to humankind from the scrupulous application of scientific methods. But not all essential information can be confirmed in the laboratory or by modern statistical analysis. Not all aspects of illness can be reduced to facts verified by double-blind studies and by the strictest scientific techniques. “Medicine tells us as much about the meaningful performance of healing, suffering, and dying as chemical analysis tells us about the aesthetic value of pottery,” Ivan Ilyich wrote in Limits to Medicine. We confine ourselves to a narrow realm indeed if we exclude from accepted knowledge the contributions of human experience and insight. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

Yoga for trauma: reclaiming your body

That trauma deeply impacts the body is something people are still just starting to understand.Those of us using yoga and other body/mind techniques to heal learn just how profound the body/mind connection is. Yoga has been a profoundly healing part of my journey for past traumas (both experiential and the iatrogenic trauma that psychiatric drugs imposed) and for rehabilitation after having been bedridden for a couple of years. The below information about yoga healing and integrating PTSD and past trauma is very important practice, news and research. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

The soft animal of the body

By Will Meecham
Bessel van der Kolk’s 2014 book, The Body Keeps the Score, reminds me of how strongly both my physical and mental condition have been shaped by trauma. Spinal arthritis, abdominal pain, chronic muscle aches, fatigue, depression, anxiety, and many other problems combine to form an inner ledger of the abuse, bereavement, and neglect of my childhood and the uproar, frustration, and terror of my adult experience. Why should this be? Why should trauma have such profound effects on body and mind? It’s useful to remember what it means to live as a human organism. There are many ways to explore this, but let’s try an outside-in approach. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

A memoir revisited: 20 yrs on psych meds and beyond the withdrawal

I no longer believe that I “lost” my life to drugs. This is, as Mary Oliver, puts it, my “one wild and precious life.” Yes, this is it and so I celebrate it. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

hiatus

Update: other regular authors who have dashboard access may be publishing while I continue to take hiatus. — The front homepage of the blog has been reorganized with posts that include collections so folks can peruse the archives more easily while I’m not actively posting. Please also visit the drop down menus for more access to the archives. (…) [click on title to read the rest]

Trauma can potentially impact the body and mind for life

Van der Kolk draws on 30 years of experience to argue powerfully that trauma is one of the West’s most urgent public health issues. The list of its effects is long: on mental and physical health, employment, education, crime, relationships, domestic or family abuse, alcoholism, drug addiction. “We all want to live in a world that is safe, manageable… predictable, and victims remind us that this is not always the case,” says van der Kolk. When no one wants to hear about a person’s trauma, it finds a way to manifest in their body. … [click on title to read and view more]

The body knows: trauma and the body

I’ve posted several times now about Bessel van der Kolk’s work. Below are some quotes from his book ” The Body Keeps the Score,” that Laura K. Kerr selected. She is currently reading the book. I look forward to her writing on her thoughts about the book when she completes it. She writes wonderful posts on… Continue Reading →

Restoring the Body: Yoga, EMDR, and Treating Trauma

“Trauma really does confront you with the best and the worst. You see the horrendous things that people do to each other, but you also see resiliency, the power of love, the power of caring, the power of commitment, the power of commitment to oneself, the knowledge that there are things that are larger than our individual survival. And in some ways, I don’t think you can appreciate the glory of life unless you also know the dark side of life” … [click on title for the rest of the post]

The memory of trauma is imprinted on the human organism

The memory of the trauma is imprinted on the human organism. I don’t think you can overcome it unless you learn to have a friendly relationship with your body. The big question: How can you help people confront their internal sensations? … [click on title to read and view more]

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