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How to Release Trauma: Shake Like a Gazelle
This revolutionary technique can be life changing.
“Trauma is a fact of life. It does not, however, have to be a life sentence.”
Dr Peter Levine, PhD
Founder of Somatic Experiencing
Trauma can be debilitating, particularly if one has not had the tools to process and cope with the experience. Whether it’s a life-threatening situation, a minor accident, or an emotionally-distressing event, trauma has the capacity to stay with a person for years, affecting their response to life’s circumstances — that is, until it is released.
Below we look at a unique and revolutionary technique called Somatic Experiencing, and how turning inward to engage in similar physical processes as prey animals can heal trauma in even the most extreme cases.
What this technique highlights is the importance of listening to our bodies and how, with the right guidance, we have the power to heal ourselves.
*Note: I am by no means an expert on trauma therapy so I advise anyone going through this experience to seek professional help. My aim in sharing this article is to introduce Peter Levine’s extraordinary work on trauma in case it can help others.
Physiological Response to Traumatic Events
What many people don’t realise is that it’s often the physiological response to trauma that has us locked in fear and pain.
When people think of trauma, or post-traumatic stress, many only associate this with war veterans. However, trauma can actually take place in everyday occurrences. Physically, these include accidents, medical procedures, injury, illness, as well as emotional events such as abuse, rape, death of a loved one, neglect, or even witnessing something distressful.
Whatever the trigger might be, each person has their own way of responding to difficult events. What might cause a trauma response in one person, might be shrugged off by another.
