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sponberry 's review for:
The Body Keeps the Score: Mind, Brain and Body in the Transformation of Trauma
by Bessel van der Kolk
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
I’ll be thinking and talking about this book for years to come. A few insights I don’t want to forget that this book gifted:
- Lack of agency is a key part of trauma, and leads to the body being unable to identify threat properly
- Alexithymics are more likely to describe the practical steps to be taken than their feelings. The way out of this can start by describing the physical sensations in the body rather than the emotions they signal
- It can be difficult to describe experiences because of our dual awareness system: one keeps track of the self across time and one registers the present moment. Describing the past as a story means coming out of your present experience
- Therapies discussed include yoga to connect with bodily sensation, bodywork and touch such as massage, writing to yourself, EMDR, self-leadership, creating structures to visualise inner maps (PBSP psychomotor therapy), neurofeedback and alpha-theta training for both traumatised individuals and those with ADHD, communal rhythms and theatre.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence