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A Child Within Us Wants to Talk

Your Inner Child

Many of us have a younger part within us, also called the “inner child”, that has not been heard, seen, or treated the way it wanted or hoped for in her/his live. As a result, whether it is an inner child, adolescent, or younger adult, feelings of being ignored, abandoned, or not loved may be retained. The memories of these unresolved feelings are carried into our adult life and often become buried in the subconscious. However, the younger part within us remains waiting to be found, to be listened to and to be nurtured, and keeps acting out in attempt to be discovered and attended to.

Anna described having a deep sense of loneliness and struggling with depression. When she searched for the answers of where these feelings originated, she discovered her 9 year old inner child. Her little girl was feeling lonely, bored, and sad, waiting in her room for her mother to arrive from work, even though she knew she was going to be yelled at. Her mother was working many hours and wrapped in her fatigue and worries, she became blind to what her daughter needed. During this time this young girl came to a few conclusions and beliefs about herself, her parents, and the world around her. One conclusion was that she had to stay busy to distract from her pain; the other decision she made was that she needed to please her mother as much as she could in hope to be loved in return. A pattern of having to please everyone and staying busy had been ingrained to the current day and she eventually forgot where these habits were coming from.

Anna decided to contact her “inner child” and began to have age appropriately conversations with her. These dialogues felt strange at first and building a connection between the inner child and the adult took time and trust, and did not go smoothly in the beginning. But after a while, they both formed a beautiful relationship in which little Anna was finally heard and was able to express herself. Although Anna’s work did not change her childhood, it changed her habits and perceptions because she recognized that her habits were coping techniques that had no functions anymore. She also realized that loneliness was an old feeling that lingered inside of her and unconsciously colored most of her experiences. As her relationship with herself improved, so did her feelings of lonesomeness, her relationships with others and the world around her changed in return.

Depending on children’s ages they do not always interpret their environment and parents’ actions correctly. When connecting to the younger part, false memories can be uncovered and give the inner child a chance to understand and make sense of something that was misunderstood in the past. For example, a pregnant mother told the story of her 4 year old daughter Sophia who believed that she no longer was needed because her sister was going to be born in a few months. In a straightforward way Sophia claimed that it wouldn’t matter if she died. The surprised mother told her that it would matter and that she is the best thing that ever happened to her. Her daughter replied “but you have Mikaela now”, to which she explained that Mikaela could never replace her and that she could love both of them. Children are not always able to make sense of their situation the way an adult can and therefore sometimes form beliefs that are not based on reality but their conceptual ability.

Many leading authors such as John Bradshaw, Erika J. Chopich and Margaret Paul, Whitfield and 12 step programs have written about the importance of building a relationship with the “inner child” and found that it can help with many issues including loneliness, fears, depression and raising confidence. The journey of discovering younger parts within us can be surprising and awkward at first but may also be very rewarding.

Compassion Fatigue Bodily Symptoms of Empathy

Compassion Fatigue

Medical professionals such as physicians, nurses, psychotherapists, and emergency workers, who help traumatized patients may develop their own Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms as an indirect response to their patient’s suffering. This phenomenon has been referred to as compassion fatigue, vicarious traumatization or secondary traumatic stress.

A survey showed that “86.9% of emergency response personnel reported symptoms after exposure to highly distressing events with traumatized people” . . . [and] . . . “90% of new physicians, between 30 to 39 years old, say that their family life has suffered as a result of their work”. When health care professionals struggle with their responses to the trauma suffered by their patients, their mental health, relationships, effectiveness at work, and their physical health can suffer.

Caregivers who reported experiencing compassion fatigue, expressed such feelings as, “I frequently dissociated and felt that I walked around in an altered state. I didn’t realize that I had been in a gray space all year. That had sort of creeped in” and “It got to the point where I would feel physically sick before the appointment and feeling nauseous.” Others described that they picked up their client’s symptoms and explained that they had “tightness in the exact same spot” as their clients and continued to carry the sensation sometimes for days. One psychotherapist expressed, “I am the empathy lady from the old Star Trek episode and get may be 45 % hit of what my patients might be feeling 100% of.”

The helpers symptoms, frequently unnoticed, may range from psychological issues such as dissociation, anger, anxiety, sleep disturbances, nightmares, to feeling powerless. However, professionals may also experience physical symptoms such as nausea, headaches, general constriction, bodily temperature changes, dizziness, fainting spells, and impaired hearing. All important warning signals for the caregiver that need to be addressed or otherwise might lead to health issues or burnout.

Researchers and authors such as Babette Rothschild, Charles Figley, Laurie Anne Pearlman and Karen Saakvitne, and B. Hudnall Stamm have recognized that medical personnel and psychologists may experience trauma symptoms similar to those of their clients. They speculate that the emotional impact of hearing traumatic stories could be transmitted through deep psychological processes within empathy. Further, Babette Rothschild hypothesizes that it is the unconscious empathy, the empathy outside awareness and control that might interfere with the well being of the caregiver.

Hearing and witnessing horrific stories of abuse and other traumas can be very stressful and trauma experts have found that self-care techniques, both psychological and somatic, can reduce susceptibility to the internalization of traumatic stress and compassion fatigue. Bernstein indicates that paying attention to and being aware of physiological signals and somatic counter transference such as “dizziness, emptiness, hunger, fullness, claustrophobia, sleepiness, pain, restlessness, sexual arousal, and so forth” can be an important method of preventing and managing compassion fatigue. Somatic countertransference entails the psychotherapist’s reaction to a client with bodily responses such as sensations, emotions, and images that can only be noticed through body awareness. Since somatic countertransference is often neglected in both the literature and in the caregiver’s training, many are not aware of the somatic countertransference elicited in the helper-patient relationship.

Reducing compassion fatigue means not fighting the symptoms but working with  feelings which occur during and after the interactions with the traumatized patient. One psychotherapist shared;  “If I start to not feel my body, I pause and just take a moment.” There is a lot to take in. Giving oneself permission to take a break for a short time and taking care of oneself, may not only help the caregiver but may also provide a role model of self-care for the patient. Taking a break might be just to stop and feel one’s body, asking the patient to slow down, taking a deep breath, or making a small movement, which are forms of regulating the nervous system and decreasing the stress of working with traumatized patients.

Since caregivers commonly dissociate, staying connected or reconnecting to one’s identity and physical presence has been rated as very important as well. Some professional helpers use visual or kinesthetic reminders of their lives outside of their work. Visual reminders might be placing pictures of family, certificates, and favorite artwork in the office. Whereas kinesthetic reminders bring awareness back to the body and might be accomplished by feeling one’s feed on the floor, intentionally fiddling with a wedding ring or holding the office chair. One caregiver expressed, every time she closes the office door she uses the door as a kinesthetic reminder and says, “This is my life outside and that’s where I’m entering.”

Studies have also shown that the attitude toward life such a sense of humor, self confidence, being curious, focusing on the positive, and feeling gratitude ranked high in being helpful in treating traumatized people. Additionally, support, supervision, balancing work and private life, relaxation techniques, and vacation time have been useful.

Research indicates that caregivers are not immune to trauma and might experience compassion fatigue. A better understanding and knowledge about this phenomenon as well as self care techniques that include both psychological and somatic tools can help caregivers to more effectively deal with patients’ sufferings.

Susanne Babbel, MFT, PhD is a licensed marriage and family therapist, somatic psychotherapist, and workshop leader in San Francisco. If you would like further information on this topic please visit her website: www.bodyconversations.com

4 Steps to Recognize Internal “Alarm signals”: A Pathway to Forgiveness

forgiveness

Learning to recognize and respond to our internal “alarm signals” which assess every situation and inform us about appropriate reactions to follow, might help us to let go of grudges and to forgive another person.

A woman, whom I will call Laureen, expressed that she noticed getting upset at her friend’s comment made a day ago. Time had passed and rehashing their conversation did not seem to be the right solution. She believed that her friend had no intention of hurting her, yet her anger would not subside. Laureen explained that she just wanted to forgive her friend but did not know how.

Forgiveness is accepting what happened in the past and what someone did, not holding on or dwelling on it anymore. Forgiveness does not mean denying important feelings such as anger or sadness. In fact, in order to access forgiveness, connecting and paying attention to anger is often a necessary step. Yet people who have been abused or had poor role models in their lives are often not comfortable with their own anger. Because anger was not safe to express but necessary in the circumstances to suppress, feelings of anger were avoided. Not showing anger could be a conditioned cultural response as well.

Ideally, Laureen would have felt comfortable to talk to her friend and express her feelings, if not immediately, a short time after their encounter. However, she wanted to look at her anger and her difficulty in forgiving. Forgiveness is not an act of kindness for others; it is the coming to peace for ourselves. According to Frederic Loskin’s research, holding grudges can negatively impact one’s health, whereas forgiveness has beneficial health effects.

With a method called Somatic Experiencing, Laureen discovered that her friend’s comment had triggered Laureen’s childhood memories when danger was a reoccurring theme. She discovered that holding on to her anger was a subconscious survival method — an attempt to prepare her for a possible reoccurring “attack.” She noticed that her state of anger put her into a fight mode whereas forgiveness would have meant being relaxed and not ready to act. Her session revealed that because her “alarm sensor” did not indicate her hurt and anger immediately, her subconscious decided to hold on to her delayed emotions so that next time she would be ready to protect herself.

Everyone has a built-in alarm system, monitored by the Limbic Brain, that indicates when we might be in danger or not. This alarm system prepares us to react quickly with a fight, flight (escape), or freeze (shutting down feelings) response. When the situation appears to be danger free, we go back to our “base” state. Over time our experiences form associations so that we can analyze new situations even faster. However, Psychological Trauma or conditioned cultural responses may result in a delayed reaction of our “alarm sensor.” People can find themselves reacting hours or days later rather than reacting in the moment. Because it was always dangerous or they were not allowed to express their emotions they might have learned to suppress their alarm system.
On the other hand, with repeated trauma the limbic brain might also habitually overreact and perceive a threat when there is not one. For example, a combat veteran might jump into a bush when he/she hears a car backfire even though there is no current danger.

Laureen realized that she needed to recognize her alarm signals so that she could react in the moment.

What follows are 4 powerful steps that she used to improve her “alarm system”:

1) She visualized her conversation with her friend.
2) Then she began noticing what she was sensing in her body when her friend made the comment. Laureen became aware of tension in her stomach. It is not only our thoughts that give us our warning signals but our bodily sensations as well. These sensations might appear in different forms such as headaches, shoulder pain, and other physical symptoms. This exercise can also help a person to differentiate between the here and now versus past painful memories.
3) Laureen paused and became the kind observer of her tension.
4) She now knew that her stomach would send her warning signals she needed to listen to. Laureen reported that she felt her stomach again in another conversation but this time she paused for a minute and recognized she was getting irritated again. This time she had the choice to speak up and decided to address her irritation immediately. Her tension and anger were resolved and she no longer needed to hang on to her feelings of anger towards her friend in order to protect herself.

Forgiveness is part of a healing process in which we take responsibility for what we are feeling. We free ourselves of the people who might have hurt us.

Recognizing our internal alarm signals and paying attention to our “warning” sensations can pave the path to forgiveness and, as a result, have additional health benefits.

Follow these 4 simple steps for an alarm signal tune-up:

1.    Visualize the situation that is distressing.
2.    Notice what you feel in your body.
3.    Observe your sensations without judgment, especially if they bring up painful memories from the past.
4.    Return to the original situation or picture another similar situation. Notice what you are feeling. Recognize sensations that signal an opportunity to make a new and different choice. Appreciate your body’s wisdom and commit to noticing its alarm signals earlier, honoring them (not suppressing them), and expressing yourself honestly with kindness toward others and yourself.

The Power of Being You

Power of Being you

Giving too much of yourself and saying yes too often is something many people are accustomed to doing to avoid conflicts and feelings of guilt. A sincere desire to give is wonderful, however, there’s a distinction between giving of yourself and giving up yourself. Ignoring your own desires and views may not only deny “who you are” but, over time, may lead to resenting others, feeling fatigued or anxious, and experiencing stress induced physical symptoms.

The pattern of avoiding conflicts and pleasing others without considering your own needs is typical for someone who was not allowed to say no in his or her family – being criticized, yelled at, or abused in childhood. Bradshaw, an inner child specialist, adds that this pattern might also stem from not having been able to properly complete the toddler phase between 18 months to three years. While still feeling dependant, toddlers are trying to separate from their parents to explore their autonomy by opposing their parents. These interactions are often interpreted as power struggles by parents whose patience is pushed to the edge. If parents do not know how to model healthy ways to handle frustrations and set appropriate limits, children might not be able to test their power successfully. As a result they may end up having difficulty saying no to others or even asking for what they want without feeling great remorse or shame. As adults they might continue this particular pattern without knowing where their behavior originated.

One of the most helpful ways of gaining back a sense of “power of being you” is to spend time with your “inner child” that still needs to complete this toddler phase effectively. The best way to access your inner child is when you are still and quiet such as in a state of meditation or self-hypnosis. Before you start, set an intention of how you want to feel. Additionally, telling yourself that you are looking from the here and now is important so that you don’t regress during this exercise.  Also remember that you are not in the same situation you were during childhood. If going back to childhood memories brings up traumatic experiences, I would advise you to have the support of a psychotherapist.

When you are in a relaxed position, ask your inner child to come forward – the child that that holds the original pain of what you are currently struggling with. For example, if you want to resolve your issue of needing to stand up for yourself, you need to connect to the child that is linked to the time you learned not to stand up for yourself. Our subconscious holds “inner children” that are of various ages and therefore a different child may come forward at different times. With a little practice, connecting with your inner child becomes easier and you might receive an image, a sensation, or recall a scenario from your past where you were hurt or needed attention.

Once your inner child appears, do not push or force your inner child to do anything – just observe her and let him or her guide you for a while. Stay with it and notice what is happening as you pay attention. Even though you would think the child knows you, it needs to learn to trust and to get to know you. Often people are not sure what to do or say. Test out what your inner child responds to and value the child’s accomplishments. Say something nurturing and comforting like “I am here for you;” or “It is Okay to say no, to be mad or sad, and to explore;” and “I will make sure you don’t get hurt.” Be patient as all new skills require time and practice.

To help this process, try to gather information about each of your developmental stages and find out as much as you can about your childhood. Additionally, I encourage you to debrief your experience with someone that you can trust and who will support you. Once you have completed the toddler stage successfully, you can reclaim the power of being you and saying “yes” to your own desires and opinions. As you respect your own desires and boundaries and stop repressing them, you might experience increased energy, less anxiety, and less stress on your body. Even more, others have a chance to see who you really are and get to know you on a deeper level.

Depression and neurotransmitters

Interview with Barbara Clark continued.

Dr. Babbel:

I often ask my clients who suffer from depression and/or anxiety to get a neurotransmitter test to make sure their concerns are not based on some kind of nutritional deficits. Could you briefly explain 1) what neurotransmitters and Beta Endorphins are, 2) how they relate to depression and anxiety and 3) what to look for in a neurotransmitter test?

Barbara Clark:

Neurotransmitters:
The center of the nervous system is the brain, which contains over 100 billion specialized cells called neurons. The nervous system also contains very important chemical messengers called neurotransmitters. The brain uses neurotransmitters to tell the heart to beat, the lungs to breathe, and the stomach to digest. Neurotransmitters are also necessary for thought processes, emotions, and other essential body functions including sleep, energy, and fear.

Depressive and anxiety disorders are among the most common neurotransmitter-related conditions. Neurotransmitters are chemicals that relay signals between nerve cells, called “neurons”. They are present throughout the body and are required for proper brain and body functions. Serious health problems, including depression and anxiety, can occur when neurotransmitter levels are too high or too low.

Every neurotransmitter behaves differently. Some neurotransmitters are inhibitory and tend to calm, while others are excitatory and stimulate the brain. Deficiencies involving the central nervous system’s neurotransmitters – serotonin and norepinephrine- appear to be involved in the development of depressive disorders. Disruptions in other neurotransmitters, like GABA (the central nervous system’s primary inhibitory neurotransmitter), epinephrine, glutamate and histamine may be associated with anxiety disorders.

Environmental and biological factors – including stress, poor diet, neurotoxins, or genetics – can cause imbalances in the levels of neurotransmitter chemicals in the brain. These imbalances can trigger or exacerbate depressive symptoms.

Endorphins:
Endorphins are endogenous opioid polypeptide compounds. They are produced by the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus in vertebrates during strenuous exercise, excitement, pain and orgasm and they resemble the opiates in their abilities to produce analgesia and a sense of well being. Endorphins work as “natural pain relievers “and they are actually a complex of at least fifteen potent brain and body chemicals that all amplify pleasure and make pain tolerable. Endorphin depletion is caused by physical or emotional pain, or both.  You could have been born with an endorphin deficiency, too much stress may drain the endorphins, and typically women have lower endorphin levels than men. Taking a supplemental blend of the 9 essential amino acids under the supervision of a health care provider, a good multivitamin, B vitamins and eating a protein-rich diet (proteins are precursors to amino-acids) can help get the endorphins into a more balanced state. Ideally these steps need to be supervised by an appropriate health care provider.

Neurotransmitter test:
There are laboratories who do urine testing for neurotransmitter (Neuro Science, www.neuroRelief.com) and there are laboratories who have testing available for blood platelet serotonin and catecholamines

(Vitamin Diagnostics) www.integrativepsychiatry.net/blood_platelet_neurotransmitter_test.html

Diet for Stress

Hello Barbara,

By observing my clients, I have found that most health problems are related to psychological stress and may not go away until the right solution has been found. As I explained in the article “Physiology of Trauma”, during a traumatic event the body excretes hormones to help the body not only to prepare a person to fight, fight, or flee a situation but also to block out pain. Often, even though ones traumatic experience happened a long time ago, their nervous system still produces stress hormones and acts as if they are in the same situation. As a result, one might not only experience psychological symptoms such as depression and anxiety but also might experience physical symptoms such depleted adrenal glands, constipation, numbness, headaches, and memory loss. In my practice, I help people to restore a balanced nervous system by addressing their psychological issues. What nutritional advice could you give people to boost their body after a long stretch of stress on their body?

Barbara Clark:

I have seen good results with what I call the” Low Stress Diet”. The objectives are to minimize metabolic stress, support detoxification, and enhance overall health.

General Rules:

·  Eat whole foods as provided by nature; vegetables are especially beneficial, organic whenever available.

·  Eat raw foods with every meal. The best raw foods are salads. (The enzymes in raw foods help digest your food)

·  Eat small meals, but eat as often as you are hungry.( To keep your blood sugar balanced) Many people overeat at one   particular  meal and overload their digestion! The same amount of food eaten in smaller quantities, several times per day, would not impose a burden.

·  Best between-meal-snack- vegetables. Best dessert-fruit.

·  To improve a poor appetite, normalize excessive appetite or lose weight, eliminate sugar and starches.

·   Drink lots of pure water (free of chlorine and fluorides)-1/2 your body weight in oz. every day, example: 150 lbs:2=75 oz of water, which is about 2 quarts or roughly 9 glasses.

·  The less sugar, refined carbohydrates and processed foods you eat, the healthier you will become.

Important! Eliminate foods that contain:

· Hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fats

· Preservatives

· Artificial sweeteners

· High fructose corn syrup

I suggest this diet as a first step to regenerate physical health. Lifestyle, appropriate exercise and a healthy sleeping patterns are just as important. I may suggest testing for food intolerances or biochemical imbalances such as neurotransmitters or hormones. I also may suggest certain high quality nutritional supplements which will be tailored to the individual needs. However, a good basic plan will include a multivitamin, B vitamins and fish oil. Digestive enzymes and herbs for adrenal support are often also part of the protocol.

Dr. Babbel:

Could you explain why it is called a low stress diet and why does this diet might help someone who is depressed?

Barbara Clark:

We live in a junk food epidemic, and most everybody is undernourished on a cellular level as never before. We often can’t limit our consumption of stressful sweets, high fructose sodas, caffeine and other fast foods, and often we don’t eat at all. But the more stress we are under the better we have to eat to keep our strength. Most fast food is low in nutrients and high in system shocking sugar, rancid fats and chemicals, so it actually adds to our stress load instead of subtracting from it.

Keeping your blood sugar steady is very important for optimal functioning of serotonin and Beta Endorphins.
-Eating whole, unrefined foods is important for our physical body and brain to get the benefit of all necessary protein, vitamins and minerals for optimal function.
-Proteins are building blocks to amino acids which are necessary for proper neurotransmitter functioning.
-Fruits and vegetables supply the necessary vitamin and minerals.
-Good fats (such as olive oil, flaxseed oil, coconut oil, limited amount of organic butter, fish oil, avocados, nuts and seeds) are also necessary to feed our brain properly which consists of approx. 70% fat. Sugar and simple carbohydrates are mostly devoid of any kind of good and necessary nutrients.

I hope that the above suggestions will be helpful to your readers. For more information I offer your readers to visit my website www.marinnutrition.com where they can find my contact information.

Trauma Reactions

Your original perceptions and filter of your world may have been altered through an overwhelming experience. In the absence of full processing of the experience you continue to have mental and physical manifestations of unresolved stress. Some of these symptoms begin shortly after the trauma; some develop later. Reactions you might have are:

Emotional Reactions:

_    You feel shame and not worthy
_    You overreact or are overemotional
_    You feel great sadness or anxiety on a regular basis
_    You have a very strong inner critic
_    You are afraid to be abandoned and feel lonely
_    You avoid certain situations
_    You can not feel emotions and are often numb
_    You lack confidence and self esteem
_    You have mood swings

Physical Symptoms:

_    Your body may stay in alert and stress mode until it knows it is safe (Hyperarousal)
_    You have a hard time relaxing and do not know how to settle down (Constriction)
_    You have difficulty sleeping and have nightmares
_    You have body image and weight problems
_    Your memory is not fully functioning
_    You feel numb and cannot feel your body (dissociation)
_    You are suffering from chronic pain
_    Skin disorders
_    Constipation

Relationship Patterns:

_    You may have developed specific patterns that you keep repeating
_    You try to control your partner, friends and family
_    You have a hard time saying no, setting limits or boundaries
_    Relationships can be difficult for you
_    You feel disconnected and detached

If you recognize yourself in these examples, you might have an unresolved traumatic experience.

Trauma symptoms can be expressed days, months, or even years after the traumatic event. Symptoms may suddenly arrive through a trigger in the environment and might appear as emotional, cognitive, or physical reactions. Sometimes the mind is not able to make sense of the internal signals, especially when the person has experienced an overwhelming event or stressful situation. The mind might continue to communicate to the nervous system the necessity to prepare to flee, fight, or freeze. Adrenaline is disbursed and the cycle might perpetually continue until the body-mind perceives that it is safe and recognizes it can rest.

If not addressed these can turn into long-term symptoms such as:

•    Panic attack
•    Avoidance behavior
•    Addictions
•    Risk taking behavior
•    Constant dissociation
•    Memory loss
•    Midlife crisis and fear of dying
•    Self-harming behavior
•    Obsessive or lack of sexual feelings
•    Feeling disconnected

Physiology of Trauma

Trauma leaves memories not only in the mind but also in the body. Sapolsky explains that PTSD is a physiological reaction to overwhelming and ongoing stress and is a fight or flight response. As a result, specific hormones are released that alter such things as skin sensitivity, alertness, heart rate, digestion, and learning skills. Additionally, hormones such as cortisol are excreted to expand pain tolerance. Cortisol can also cause hypervigilance, preparing the traumatized person to act at a moment’s notice.

Other physiological reactions include an adrenaline rush which can raise heart rate, cause heart palpitations, produce pupil dilation (increasing visual changes), and stop digestive physiology. Due to a disbursement of glucocorticoids, the body may react with constipation, diarrhea, headaches, and sleep disturbances. Epinephrine and norepinephrine slow down the blood flow to the digestive system and extremities. These hormones can even inhibit learning skills and cause attention deficit or confusion.

Studies have found that sexually abused women and veterans show a decrease in the size of the hippocampus, causing learning and memory loss.

PTSD affects parts of the brain that are associated with language, visual, and motor responses. During flashbacks, the Broca areas of the brain (responsible for verbal functions) slow down which may cause an inhibition of verbal expression of feelings while sensorimotor memories including visual images, tastes, sounds, smells, anxieties, fears, and pressures can still be recalled.

All non-verbal messages (such as those perceived by our senses) are collected in the implicit memory (subconsciously) whereas verbal messages are processed by the linear language centers of the brain and are stored in explicit memory (consciously) for easy access. Rothschild explains, “When PTSD splits mind and body, implicitly remembered images, emotions, somatic sensations, and behaviors become disengaged from explicitly stored facts and meanings about the traumatic event(s), whether they are consciously remembered or not.” van der Kolk emphasizes that contemporary research on the biology of PTSD affirms that stress hormones and memory processing are altered by traumatic events. It is now thought that people hold an implicit memory of trauma in their brains and bodies.

Candace Pert, author of Molecules of Emotions: The Science Behind Mind-Body Medicine, suggests that not only does the brain carry memories but that cells and proteins (referred to as neuropeptides) hold and transport them throughout the entire body. Levine points out that memories are not literal recordings of events but rather a complex of images that are influenced by arousal, emotional context, and prior experience. Memories may even transform over time as new experiences add layers of meaning to the images.

Levine asserts that psychological wounds are reversible and that healing comes when physical and mental releases occur.

What is trauma?

In order to understand and recognize trauma responses one needs to be familiar with the concept of trauma and its symptoms. Originally trauma was associated with someone who was directly exposed to a traumatic event. However, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM IV) broadened the definition of trauma to include people who were not directly involved in the traumatic event but who learned about a traumatic event experienced by another. The DSM IV defines trauma as experiencing an event outside the range of usual human experience that would be markedly distressing to almost anyone; a serious threat to his or her life or physical integrity; serious threat or harm to his children, spouse, or other close relatives or friends; sudden destruction of his home or community; or seeing another person seriously injured or killed in an accident or by physical violence.

Trauma symptoms can be expressed days, months, or even years after the traumatic event. Symptoms may suddenly arrive through a trigger in the environment and might appear as emotional, cognitive, or physical symptoms. Sometimes the mind is not able to make sense of the internal signals, especially when the person has experienced an overwhelming event or stressful situation. The mind might continue to communicate to the nervous system the necessity to prepare to flee, fight, or freeze. Adrenaline is disbursed and the cycle might perpetually continue until the body-mind perceives that it is safe and resourced again and recognizes it can rest. We do not choose the emotions we feel, but we have choices about what we do with them. Bessel van der Kolk  explains that one important aspect of trauma treatment is to stay in the present without feeling or behaving according to irrelevant demands belonging to the past. Psychologically, this means that traumatic experiences need to be located in time and place and distinguished from current reality.

One tool that somatic psychotherapists employ is the tool of body awareness. This enhances our ability to stay in the here and now. There are many more tools and each theory has its own techniques. More than three out of four Americans can expect to be exposed to a traumatic event at least once in their lives. One third of those exposed to trauma develop chronic or at least transient symptoms of PTSD [Post Traumatic Stress Disorder]. Sapolsky explains that PTSD is a physiological reaction to overwhelming and ongoing stress and is a fight or flight response. As a result, specific hormones are released that alter such things as skin sensitivity, alertness, heart rate, digestion, and learning skills. Additionally, hormones such as cortisol are excreted to expand pain tolerance. Cortisol can also cause hypervigilance, preparing the traumatized person to act at a moment’s notice. Other physiological reactions include an adrenaline rush which can raise heart rate, cause heart palpitations, produce pupil dilation (increasing visual changes), and stop digestive physiology. Due to a disbursement of glucocorticoids, the body may react with constipation, diarrhea, headaches, and sleep disturbances. Epinephrine and norepinephrine slow down the blood flow to the digestive system and extremities. These hormones can even inhibit learning skills and cause attention deficit or confusion.

Studies have found that sexually abused women and veterans show a decrease in the size of the hippocampus, causing learning and memory loss. PTSD affects parts of the brain that are associated with language, visual, and motor responses. During flashbacks, the Broca areas of the brain (responsible for verbal functions) slow down which may cause an inhibition of verbal expression of feelings while sensorimotor memories including visual images, tastes, sounds, smells, anxieties, fears, and pressures can still be recalled.

Trauma leaves memories not only in the mind but also in the body. All non-verbal messages (such as those perceived by our senses) are collected in the implicit memory (subconsciously)whereas verbal messages are processed by the linear language centers of the brain and are stored in explicit memory (consciously) for easy access. Rothschild explains, “When PTSD splits mind and body, implicitly remembered images, emotions, somatic sensations, and behaviors become disengaged from explicitly stored facts and meanings about the traumatic event(s), whether they are consciously remembered or not”. Van der Kolk emphasizes that contemporary research on the biology of PTSD affirms that stress hormones and memory processing are altered by traumatic events. It is now thought that people hold an implicit memory of trauma in their brains and bodies.

Candace Pert, author of Molecules of Emotions: The Science Behind Mind-Body Medicine, suggests that not only does the brain carry memories but that cells and proteins (referred to as neuropeptides) hold and transport them throughout the entire body. Levine points out that memories are not literal recordings of events but rather a complex of images that are influenced by arousal, emotional context, and prior experience. Memories may even transform over time as new experiences add layers of meaning to the images. Levine asserts that psychological wounds are reversible and that healing comes when physical and mental releases occur. According to Levine somatic psychology offers tools to effect these releases by raising body awareness and first locating feelings in the body.