THE BODY KEEPS THE SCORE.
THE BODY KEEPS THE SCORE.
That’s the title of a well-known book about how trauma is stored in the body, and how it’s becoming a well-documented phenomenon… causing everything from chronic pain to conditions like autoimmunity & cancer.
This idea was completely foreign to me when I worked in conventional medicine. The concept that trauma can cause physical symptoms, or that emotions can manifest as physical pain, was never talked about. You see, conventional Western medicine that we have in the U.S., tries to separate each function of the body, and tries to identify the singular cause of an ailment. Yet, healing practices, like ancient Chinese medicine & Ayurveda, have known for thousands of years that the body works as a system, and that the mind & body are not separate… they are one. These ancient practices have also recognized for centuries how trauma is stored in the body.
Don’t believe it? Tears are evidence that our body can produce physical manifestations from our emotions. Emotional tears (also called psychic tears) occur when the body is overwhelmed with emotion… happy, sad, anger, rage, frustration, etc. Emotional tears contain higher levels of stress hormones & natural pain relievers than the tears you cry when cutting an onion, for example. It’s a way to release these emotions so they don’t cause us physical harm.
My first experience of recognizing the phenomenon of emotions/stress as physical symptoms was when I was an EMT. I worked full-time on the ambulance for 16 years, and another 2 years PRN as I started my business. During the 16 full-time years I had chronic back pain, chronic GI issues, chronic depression & anxiety, and more. It wasn’t until after I left that profession that I knew there was any other way to live. Over time, after being away from that job, all of these symptoms started to become intermittent, and eventually went away completely…
Except when I would go pick up a PRN shift. I would suddenly start experiencing severe back pain driving TO my shift. I also had GI issues for about a week after each shift. I also had insomnia & anxiety after I’d work as well.
It would take me weeks to feel like myself again.
I had always thought my back pain was from lifting heavy patients & equipment all day, everyday. I thought my GI issues were just bad luck, and I was doomed to suffer. My anxiety & depression were just my life.
As the expression goes “A fish doesn’t know it’s in water”… I didn’t know I was in a constant trauma loop.
Trauma isn’t an event. Trauma is how our system (mind/body) responds to an event. It’s when something happens, and we don’t have the resources or support to process it fully. It doesn’t have to be the “Big T” trauma like death, violence, war, abuse, rape, etc. to cause trauma to our bodies… the “Small T” trauma like the bully in the 3rd grade, or your parents letting you “cry it out” as an infant, or any other way your needs weren’t met as a child, or chronic poverty, or anything that overwhelms our systems and makes us feel like we’re unable to cope is trauma.
If you are a human being, you have trauma. Period.
Since leaving EMS, I have done several different trauma-specific therapies & healing modalities, like EMDR & Somatic healing, that have helped me work through a lot of my trauma history. I have also retired from EMS completely… and it’s really like the second half of my life began. A life full of health & vitality. A life of new experiences, and not just repeating my trauma experiences in different forms. A life full of joy & happiness.
I still have emotions & trauma show up as physical symptoms from time-to-time. Recently I was in conflict with someone, and instead of processing my emotions & speaking my truth, I avoided the conflict completely… within days my Lupus started flaring up, and an old injury caused my knee to completely give out from underneath me… while I was doing absolutely nothing. I literally couldn’t walk or bend my knee for days, but as soon as I had the courage to feel my emotions & speak my truth to the other person, literally within hours I was able to bend my knee & walk again… without any physical intervention at all. Since I no longer chronically live in fight or flight, I am able to feel the difference between calm & stress… and I’ve learned I’m very sensitive to stress/emotions/trauma these days. So, for me to live my healthy & vibrant life, I not only have treat my body well with nutrition & exercise… I have to feel & process my emotions too. I have to release trauma from my body. I view this as empowering, rather than a nuisance… I have the power to feel my best with the knowledge I have about how to best care for my mind and body. That’s awesome.
It is possible to heal physically & emotionally by tending to the body & the mind. You are worthy of healing… no matter what life has put you through. You are worthy of health & happiness. You are worthy. 💖
#trauma #somaticexperiencing #healthy #happy #thriving #yoga #healing #recovery #12steps #lifecoach #healthcoach