The Body Keeps Score by Bessel Van der Kolk

Ever wondered why it’s so challenging to find peace after experiencing something traumatic? While the answer isn’t straightforward, it’s evident that trauma can affect anyone. Whether we’ve faced it personally, know someone who has, or aren’t even aware of being affected, its impact is widespread. “The Body Keeps the Score” by Bessel van der Kolk explores the various ways trauma manifests and deeply impacts our brains and bodies. In this blog post, we’ll provide a detailed summary and review of the book to help you decide if it’s worth reading.

Summary of “The Body Keeps the Score”

Bessel van der Kolk, a Dutch-born psychiatrist and clinician, offers profound insights into how trauma affects both the mind and body. Drawing from over 30 years of research and clinical practice, his book reveals how trauma can lead to uncomfortable feelings in our bodies and trapped emotions we struggle to articulate. Here’s a comprehensive summary of “The Body Keeps the Score.”

Experiencing Stress Beyond the Traumatic Period

The Impact of Trauma on Daily Life

Experiencing trauma can alter how our brains function. During a traumatic event, the amygdala, responsible for our stress response, becomes hyperactive, flooding the body with stress hormones and intensifying memories of the event. Simultaneously, the prefrontal cortex, which helps in clear thinking and emotional control, becomes less effective. This increased sensitivity to trauma reminders can persist long after physical healing, causing prolonged anxiety.

Example: Consider someone who’s survived a car accident. Even after physical recovery, their brain might continually replay the accident, causing heightened alertness and anxiety every time they get into a car, fearing another crash despite knowing the likelihood is low.

How Trauma Affects the Brain

The Impact on Relationships

Trauma survivors often feel isolated and find it challenging to trust others due to their painful experiences. They struggle to interpret others’ feelings and actions accurately, perceiving most people as threats. This constant state of high alertness can lead to unfriendly behavior, further isolating them.

Helplessness After Trauma

Following traumatic events like a car crash or combat, survivors might feel helpless, believing they have no control over their situation. This learned helplessness can lead to a resigned acceptance of their circumstances.

Experiencing Flashbacks

Trauma survivors can experience flashbacks triggered by reminders such as pictures, sounds, smells, or words associated with the trauma. These flashbacks can vary in duration and intensity, making it difficult to predict or manage them.

Developing Risky Behavior

Van der Kolk demonstrates how trauma can lead to risky behaviors through patient stories. For instance, Tom, a combat veteran, avoided situations and felt emotionally detached, leading him to excessive drinking and dangerous activities like motorcycle riding. Similarly, Sherry, a child abuse survivor, displayed self-harming behavior by picking at her skin during therapy sessions. Trauma can cause individuals to feel disconnected from their bodies, making it hard for them to recognize self-harm.

Approaches to Healing from Trauma

Van der Kolk outlines three methods to regain control and recover from past trauma:

The Top-Down Approach

The top-down approach suggests that improving our thinking can alleviate emotional symptoms like anxiety, fear, and loneliness. Enhanced thinking and emotions can subsequently reduce physical symptoms such as insomnia, headaches, and stomach problems.

Medication

Medications like MDMA (ecstasy) can help PTSD patients become more self-aware and compassionate. However, these drugs can have severe side effects, such as cognitive impairment. While medications can help manage trauma symptoms, they do not address the root problem. Alternative treatments like mindfulness and yoga show promise in helping individuals heal without relying solely on medication.

Reconnecting with Body Sensations

Neuroscience teaches us that our bodies provide clues about our emotions. However, trauma can cause us to block out these feelings or seek intense experiences for relief, leading to a disconnect known as alexithymia. Yoga can help restore this connection by teaching us to focus on breathing and body sensations, helping us understand how emotions manifest physically. Other body-focused treatments include:

• Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR): A therapist-guided process where individuals recall distressing memories while using eye movements or taps to cope with these memories.
• Heart Rate Variability (HRV): Monitoring HRV helps individuals and therapists understand the autonomic nervous system’s state, which controls involuntary responses like the fight-or-flight mode. Trauma can disrupt this system, but HRV monitoring can guide appropriate treatment.
• Psychomotor Therapy: Uses physical movement and psychological processes to promote healing and well-being, focusing on the mind-body connection.

Key Takeaways: 10 Big Ideas on Trauma and Treatments

1. Defining Trauma: Trauma refers to the long-lasting distress that impacts the brain and body following a stressful event, often leading to PTSD.
2. Mental-Emotional Scars: Trauma can occur in everyday life, not just in extreme situations like war zones, affecting individuals and communities.
3. Flashbacks and Memories: Involuntary memories of traumatic events can be triggered by various stimuli, causing strong emotional and physical reactions.
4. Trauma Affects the Brain: Traumatic stress alters brain chemistry and function, making traumatic memories more vivid and impairing cognitive functions.
5. Mind-Body Connection: Trauma affects physical cues and social interactions, leading to perceived threats and social withdrawal.
6. Stopping Automatic Responses: Numbing oneself or seeking intense experiences leads to a loss of bodily awareness, making emotional regulation difficult.
7. Resilience from Secure Attachments: Early caregiver interactions shape our ability to handle emotions and understand the world, emphasizing the need for secure attachments.
8. Treatment Approaches: Healing involves talking therapies, medication, and body-centered activities like exercise.
9. Cautious Use of Medication: While necessary in some cases, long-term medication use can lead to withdrawal symptoms and should be complemented with other treatments.
10. The Body’s Role in Healing: Engaging in body-centered activities helps reconnect with physical sensations and regulate physiological responses, promoting holistic healing.

Review of “The Body Keeps the Score”

Bessel van der Kolk emphasizes that trauma leaves lasting physical and mental changes, suggesting that simply talking about trauma isn’t enough for healing. His extensive research and patient stories highlight the importance of the body in healing trauma. The book is accessible, engaging, and inclusive, addressing various types of trauma and their unique impacts. Some readers might find the detailed narratives intense and emotionally challenging, but the book’s comprehensive approach makes it a valuable resource for understanding trauma.

Who Should Read “The Body Keeps the Score”?

Anyone interested in understanding trauma and its effects on the body and mind will benefit from this book. It is especially useful for trauma survivors, mental health professionals, caregivers, educators, and those seeking insight into trauma and its treatment.

Is “The Body Keeps the Score” a Good Book?

Despite its complexity, the book uses engaging narratives to explain trauma’s impact on the brain and body. Its inclusivity and detailed exploration of various trauma types make it a valuable resource. While some may find it lengthy, its in-depth approach provides a trustworthy source of information based on extensive research and real-life experiences.

Other Recommended Resources

“The Body Remembers”

This book explores how trauma affects the body and how individuals carry implicit memories, leading to symptoms like nightmares and dissociative behaviors. It offers principles and techniques to address the body’s role in trauma, making it valuable for those dealing with both typical stressors and severe trauma.

“The Brain that Changes Itself”

This book explains neuroplasticity and challenges the belief that the brain is fixed. It includes narratives of individuals who altered their brains to overcome various challenges. While not specifically about trauma, it provides insights into the brain-body connection and the potential for neuroplasticity in healing trauma.

“Emotional Intelligence”

Daniel Goleman’s book provides a comprehensive review of the biology and neurology of emotions, explaining how developing emotional intelligence can improve relationships, health, and performance. It helps build awareness of how emotions and rational thoughts are interlinked, aiding recovery from trauma.

“The Upside of Stress”

Kelly McGonigal’s book addresses how to manage stress positively to improve health and performance. Understanding the biology of stress can enhance resilience and coping mechanisms, making it valuable for those dealing with trauma.

Notable Quotes

1. “The greatest sources of our suffering are the lies we tell ourselves.”
2. “Being traumatized means continuing to organize your life as if the trauma were still going on – unchanged and immutable, as every new encounter or event is contaminated by the past.”
3. “Scared animals return home, regardless of whether home is safe or frightening.”
4. “In order to change, people need to become aware of their sensations and the way that their bodies interact with the world around them.”
5. “It takes enormous trust and courage to allow yourself to remember.”
6. “As long as we feel safely held in the hearts and minds of the people who love us, we will climb mountains and cross deserts and stay up all night to finish projects.”
7. “Feeling out of control, survivors of trauma often begin to fear that they are damaged to the core and beyond redemption.”

About the Author

Bessel van der Kolk is a Dutch-born psychiatrist and clinician. In 1984, he established a clinical/research center in the US focused on traumatic stress in civilian populations. He has dedicated his career to understanding how individuals adapt to traumatic experiences, sharing his findings through research papers and books. For more information, visit besselvanderkolk.com.

Understanding trauma and its profound effects on the brain and body is crucial for healing. “The Body Keeps the Score” provides valuable insights and practical approaches to help trauma survivors regain control and improve their lives. Whether you’re a trauma survivor, a mental health professional, or simply interested in understanding trauma, this book offers a comprehensive guide to the complexities of trauma and recovery.