The Body Keeps the Score

this book was great. I think it's extremely important for everyone to read. If you have had a traumatic experience/childhood, then this book will help you understand yourself and your trauma responses. If you have never really had any traumatic experiences, then this book will help you become more sympathetic and understanding of other people.

Kolk deals with the ‘what' and the ‘why' of trauma really well. What exactly does trauma do to your brain, and why your body reacts the way it does. Without going into my own personal trauma, I can say that it's helped me become kinder to myself and my body because I now understand that all the things I might dislike about myself is simply the way my body has adapted to trauma. My body has worked its hardest to keep me alive and survive through trauma.

It has helped explain certain things about myself such as my adhd, why I find it difficult to put into words exactly what I'm feeling (alexithymia), my social anxiety, and even my sexual experiences.

Kolk also addresses the ‘how' - how to deal with trauma and the trauma induced behaviours. He does so by going through the various forms of healing trauma, from meditation & yoga to neurofeedback to acting! Although I wish he went a bit deeper into the meditation/yoga I like that he doesn't try too hard to talk about the things that are out of the scope of his experience. That being said, because his experience is more in the medical field, there are no concrete suggestions on how you can deal with trauma when you can't really go to therapy.

This book is very extensive and science based, but told through lots of anecdotes. It's a little bit too anecdotal for my personal liking but nothing too extreme. Very accessible and easy to read.

This was a tough and thought provoking book - the beginning half covers trauma and PTSD experiences and how it effects the whole bodies response and ability to think. It was hard to read about child abuse and trauma, and all the lasting impacts it can have later into life on many fronts, including incarnation and substance abuse. The second half dives into possible treatments for trauma and is really fascinating exploring how important it is to feel safe, and feel comfortable in our bodies, to process experiences and think & feel clearly. With 2020 causing disruption to so many, and our existing support systems and routines - it was really interesting to read about therapies that help people process and cope.