The Impact Of Trauma On the Body

When animals are faced with a threat, one that is life-threatening, their bodies experience a flood of chemicals, like cortisol and adrenaline, that throw their bodies temporarily out of whack. Once the threat has passed, their bodies discharge the survival stress energy, in the form of shaking or stretching, allowing them to move on with their lives as if nothing ever happened. 

For us humans, it's not so simple. After stressful events, whether it's a single event or cumulative "mini traumas", whether it's actual or perceived, whether it's remembered or repressed, our bodies often do not have ways to effectively clear the arousal chemicals produced. This residual energy tends to store in our bodies resulting in PTSD, depression, anxiety, muscle aches and pains, irritable bowel syndrome and other digestive issues, insomnia, and autoimmune disorders. 

In his revolutionary book, The Body Keeps the Score, Dr. Bessel Van Der Kolk, trauma therapist and researcher, draws on 30 years of experience to argue powerfully that trauma is one of the West's most urgent public health issues. He explains how its stressful impact can predispose us to everything from diabetes to heart disease, maybe even cancer. 

Van Der Kolk and other innovative researchers say that while traditional "talk therapy" may be helpful to a degree, working with the body to locate the source of the trauma and having a way release it safely, is the key to lasting resolution of the psychological and physiological effects of trauma.