The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Besser van der Kolk is a popular book about the effects of psychological trauma on the body. With it being published in more than 30 languages, the book has touched thousands of readers around the world, shedding light on how traumatic events through one’s life can manifest physically, as well as how to heal. In the YouTube video “How the body keeps the score on trauma | Bessel van der Kolk for Big Think+”, the book’s author explores the themes he touched upon in his writing.

van der Kolk is a psychiatrist and neurologist who has been studying trauma for decades. Within the video, he explains how trauma can exist in the body in several ways. He also explains how he has seen trauma manifest in different populations in several countries around the world. One experience he mentions is when he started to work for the VA, meeting veterans from the Vietnam War. van der Kolk goes into detail about the veterans’ behaviour, which included constant references to their deceased comrades, difficulty with relationships, and frequent outbursts of extreme anger. After research and discussion, van der Kolk and his colleagues began refining their definition of what is now known as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); they argued that because those veterans have been exposed to an extraordinary event, their bodies continue to re-experience it, with memories coming back in terms of images, behaviours, and sensations.

Trauma, van der Kolk asserts, is a physical experience that the entire body gives in to. He explains that an event becomes traumatic when there is nothing one can do, therefore launching the body into an automatic state of fight, flight, or collapse. After this traumatic event, lingering effects remain: one will continue to react to mild stressors and become hyperreactive to various kinds of stimuli in the environment. Despite the event being over, one will continue to react to things as if they are still in danger. This heightened, maladaptive fight-or-flight response is at the core of mental disorders like PTSD, where one will experience an acute stress response in situations where it is not necessary.

So then how do we treat trauma? van der Kolk asserts that a big challenge of treating trauma in patients is determining how to help people live in bodies that feel “fundamentally safe”. This has to go beyond medication or treatment modalities such as cognitive-behavioural therapy. Instead, van der Kolk emphasizes the importance of being in a relationship where one can be heard and talk freely about how badly they feel. This ability to open up about the experience of an event can be helpful. Furthermore, the ability to show self-compassion and understanding that one’s maladaptive reactions are rooted in past events are also very important when it comes to recovering from trauma.

van der Kolk’s work surrounding trauma cannot be understated. Through his diligent research, he has opened thousands of minds to the relationship between trauma and the physical form. Through his best-selling book, and videos such as this one, he continues to contribute to a legacy of educating, pushing for awareness, and spreading hope.

Watch the video here.

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Feature Image: Adam Custer on Unsplash