Researchers have shown that survivors of accidents, disaster, and childhood trauma often endure lifelong symptoms ranging from anxiety and depression to unexplained physical pain, fatigue, illness, and harmful “acting out” behaviors. Today, professionals and clients in both the bodywork and the psychotherapeutic fields nationwide are turning to Peter A. Levine’s breakthrough Somatic Experiencing® methods to actively overcome these challenges.
In Healing Trauma, Dr. Levine gives you the personal how-to guide for using the theory he first introduced in his highly acclaimed work Waking the Tiger. Join him to discover: how to develop body awareness to “renegotiate” and heal traumas by “revisiting” them rather than reliving them; emergency “first-aid” measures for times of distress; and nature’s lessons for uncovering the physiological roots of your emotions.
“Trauma is a fact of life,” teaches Peter Levine, “but it doesn’t have to be a life sentence.” Now, with one fully integrated self-healing tool, he shares his essential methods to address unexplained symptoms of trauma at their source―the body―to return us to the natural state in which we are meant to live.
My biggest problem is moving from my head into my body, however, I am slowly climbing mountains- and Dr. Levine's work is unique, unlike any other approach I've experienced. It's not easy and it's not supposed to be easy. Somatic Experiencing focuses directly on the work that needs to be done. To care about your body enough to go through mundane, extremely simple exercises and be dedicated.
In 3 years I had been to 13 different doctors in fields of psychology and neurology. I had only a few good experiences, and only in finding Somatic Experiencing have I discovered something radically different. It reminds me of what I learned in overcoming a visceral, biological anti-needle reaction. Your brain doesn't change until your body does.
It's not perfect, it's not easy, you may have the greatest doubts and least faith in the midst of these exercises. It might feel boring and uneventful, as if you are doing nothing and it doesn't feel traumatic or even real. But that is just part of how it is, when we are numb, stuck off, unaware, or stuck on, blind. There is no "wrong" way to do these exercises. At first I could feel that I was bad at them somehow, and I had to just keep doing it poorly to get through those bad parts and get better. Doing it poorly was freeing enough that it allowed me to get better. The difficulty of these exercises helped me realize that I don't have to have high standards or be so great at achieving this healing, I can take it much slower. For much of my life, I have been able to lean on my over-active mind as a crutch, a spontaneous creator. But to really learn, I have to struggle. It has to be uncomfortable.
I would recommend these exercises to anyone struggling to get out of repetitious habits, addictions, or struggling to gain autonomy & willpower.