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Brain health is not only cognitive training.
The emotional state of the body influences how we think, focus, remember, and connect with others.
Learning to listen to the body with curiosity and compassion is also a form of brain fitness.
Somatic Response and the Brain
The body often reacts before the conscious mind fully understands what is happening.
Activity
“Body Mapping Emotional States”
“Body Mapping Emotional States”
close eyes briefly
scan shoulders, jaw, chest, stomach
observe without judgment
Where do you feel stress in your body?
Where do you feel calm?
What happens to your breathing when worried?
What changes when you feel safe?
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk is a seminal book that explains how trauma reshapes the brain, mind, and body, leading to lasting effects like anxiety, rage, and relationship problems. Drawing on neuroscience and clinical experience, van der Kolk explores how trauma gets "stuck" in the body and presents innovative treatments like neurofeedback, yoga, and EMDR that help survivors rewire their brains and reclaim their lives by integrating mind and body.
Key Concepts
Trauma's Impact: Traumatic stress changes the brain's structure, particularly the limbic system (emotional center) and frontal lobe (reasoning), leading to a state of hyperarousal or numbness where the body re-experiences the past as if it's happening now.
Mind-Body Connection: Trauma isn't just a memory; it's stored in the body as physical sensations, affecting everything from sleep and appetite to chronic pain and autoimmune disorders.
Healing Through Neuroplasticity: The book highlights that the brain can change. New therapies help activate the brain's natural ability to rewire itself (neuroplasticity) to move out of survival mode.
Treatment Approaches Explored
Body-Oriented Therapies: Yoga, mindfulness, and somatic experiencing help individuals reconnect with their bodies in a safe way.
Neurofeedback: Aims to help individuals gain control over their brainwave activity.
Creative & Relational Therapies: Sports, drama, and writing can help process trauma and build connection.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing): Helps process traumatic memories.
Core Message
Healing requires addressing the trauma stored in the body, not just talking about it.
It involves helping the body learn that the danger has passed and restoring a sense of safety and agency.
Try This Excersice for System Regulation
Life Story Writing Activity
Life Story Writing Activity
Write about a time in your life when you felt your body was reacting to emotions before your conscioius mind could fully understand what was happening. How did this embodiment affect your thinking, focus, memory, and connection with others at that time or afterward?
Write about a time in your life when you used mindfulness or somatic awareness techniques to restore your sense of safety and calm. How did this affect your thinking, focus, memory, and connection with others?
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