Trauma Lives in the Body — and So Does Healing

In my work as a body therapist, I’ve learned something again and again: people don’t just remember trauma — they carry it.

It shows up in the way someone breathes, or doesn’t. In shoulders that never soften. In a chest that barely moves, or a body that stays braced even while resting.

Many clients arrive saying, “I know what happened. I’ve talked about it. But my body still reacts.”And that’s often the missing piece.

When trauma happens, the body adapts

Trauma is not just an event — it’s what happens inside us when the nervous system is overwhelmed. When fight or flight isn’t possible, the body freezes, collapses, or tightens to survive. These responses are intelligent and protective.

The problem is that the body doesn’t always realize the danger is over.

Long after the event, the breath stays shallow. Muscles remain tense. The nervous system stays on alert. People may feel disconnected from themselves, numb, anxious, or suddenly overwhelmed without knowing why.

Body psychotherapy starts by listening to these signals — not trying to override them.

Wilhelm Reich and muscular armor

One of the earliest pioneers to name this was Wilhelm Reich, who observed that emotional pain often becomes held as chronic muscular tension. He called this muscular armor.

I find this concept deeply compassionate. Armor isn’t resistance — it’s protection.

The jaw that clenches learned to stay silent. The chest that collapses learned to hide.The belly that tightens learned to brace.

In trauma work, we don’t try to tear this armor away. We meet it slowly, with curiosity and respect, allowing the body to soften only when it feels safe enough.

Jack Painter and the wisdom of structure

Jack Painter expanded on these ideas through Postural Integration, showing how trauma shapes not just muscles, but how we inhabit our bodies.

Posture tells a story:

• how much support we expect

• how visible we allow ourselves to be

• how grounded or guarded we feel

In sessions, gentle bodywork, awareness, movement, and dialogue help clients connect physical shifts with emotional meaning. When structure changes, something inside often changes too — a feeling of space, relief, or a new sense of “I can be here.”

What body psychotherapy offers

In body-oriented trauma work, healing doesn’t come from reliving the past. It comes from learning, in the present moment, that sensations can be felt safely.

Over time, clients often experience:

• more regulated nervous systems

• greater emotional range without overwhelm

• a deeper sense of safety in their bodies

• restored agency and choice

• a feeling of coming home to themselves

These changes are often subtle at first — a fuller breath, a softer spine, a moment of ease — but they are profound.

Healing is an embodied process

My Body psychotherapy practice is trauma-informed, consent-based, and paced by the client’s nervous system. There is no forcing, no pushing for catharsis. The body leads.

When I include the body, healing becomes more than insight. It becomes something felt, lived, and integrated.

And for many people, that’s where real change begins.