Trauma is not physically held in the muscles or bones — instead, the need to protect oneself from perceived threats is stored in the memory and emotional centers of the brain, such as the hippocampus and amygdala. This activates the body whenever a situation reminds the person of the traumatic event(s).
Trauma can cause our memory processing system to malfunction: the declarative explicit memory system fails, so the traumatic memory isn't logged and stored properly. Instead, our supercomputer subverts to a simpler method of recording signals and encodes traumatic memories as pictures or body sensations.
Mindfulness and relaxation techniques
Techniques that promote mindfulness and relaxation can be powerful tools for releasing trauma. Meditation encourages relaxation and mindfulness, helping individuals process and release trauma.
Biology of trauma
These biological alterations are highly associated with PTSD, other mental illnesses, and substance use disorders. These include: Changes in limbic system functioning. Hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis activity changes with variable cortisol levels.
The Heart and Lungs: The Rhythm of Distress
People grappling with trauma often have increased heart rates and shallow, rapid breathing – classic signs of the fight-or-flight response. The body, mistaking trauma's echoes for immediate threats, kicks into survival mode, sending the heart and lungs into overdrive.
This can happen anywhere in the body, and for trauma survivors, it is most commonly held in the core of the body, the stomach, abdomen, and low back, as well as the upper torso, chest, shoulders, and spine.
Emotional blocks can have physical manifestations. Chronic stress or emotional suppression can lead to headaches, fatigue, and other physical ailments. For instance, a person dealing with unresolved grief may experience physical symptoms like body aches or digestive issues, further complicating their emotional health.
The amygdala sounds an alarm and the body is flooded with stress hormones as part of the fight-flight-or-freeze response. During the weeks that follow such traumatic events, it's normal to have intrusive thoughts, hyperarousal and mood disturbances. You may also feel irritable and sad or disconnected and numb.
The resulting body maps suggest that people often feel: anger in the head or chest. disgust in the mouth and stomach. sadness in the throat and chest.
Crying or Laughing: Unexpected bouts of crying or laughter can be a physical sign your body is releasing trauma. These emotional releases are natural and therapeutic. Mood Swings: Fluctuations in mood, such as feeling elated one moment and sad the next, can indicate that deep-seated emotions are being processed.
Suppressing our feelings can lead to exacerbated depression, anxiety, panic attacks and other mental health issues. Since so many of us have been taught to suppress our emotions, we're trying to cope with life while these feelings are wreaking havoc on our balance and peace.
The purpose of the matrix is for international standardization of the classification of trauma. Major trauma sometimes is classified by body area; injuries affecting 40% are polytrauma, 30% head injuries, 20% chest trauma, 10%, abdominal trauma, and 2%, extremity trauma.
Movement, breathwork, mindfulness, and meditation are amazing ways to heal, and EMDR allows the brain to reprocess the memories that are stuck in the system and causing distress. Most importantly, find a therapist who makes you feel safe and supported.
The psoas muscle, which is located in the lower back and connects to the hip joint, is particularly susceptible to holding onto tension and trauma. When you experience a traumatic event, your body may instinctively contract and tighten the psoas muscle as a way of protecting itself.
Where do we hold grief in our body? Grief affects the entire body, including the organs, skin, brain, and tissues. It can create issues with muscle tenion, sleeping difficulties, and affect how the brain and body process information and emotions.
Increased muscle tension: Excessive guilt can cause physical symptoms such as muscle tension, which can affect bladder function and lead to problems such as urinary frequency and urgency. Stress can also cause the muscles in the pelvic floor to become tense.
Indeed, in healthy subjects we found that both citalopram (Murphy et al. 2009) and the atypical antidepressant, mirtazapine (Rawlings et al. 2010), reduced amygdala responses to fear a few hours after administration of single therapeutic dose.
Besides the typical fight, flight, freeze, and fawn, there are a few more responses you may not be familiar with. Fright, flag, and faint are a few of the lesser-known trauma responses that are theorized by professionals of this field.
Similar to incessantly thinking about the person who caused you harm, you may be showing signs of trauma bonding if you're constantly trying to help the person despite a history of abuse from them. This could include things like: offering to shovel their driveway after a snow storm. helping with paying their bills.
Your root chakra may be blocked if you're feeling fearful or anxious. Your sacral chakra may be blocked if you lack creativity or feel emotional.