Current military activities continue to create waves of seriously traumatized men and women for our families and workplaces to welcome home. Thousands come flooding back from their time in active duty and attempt to create a new life, burdened with severe dissociation and psychological injury. This is but one of many reminders in our troubled world of the scope and effects of traumatic stress. 

 If a combat veteran goes to the VA psychiatrist specialized in PTSD, he or she may be in constant physical pain from a war injury, unable to keep a love relationship going because of violent or sorrowful outbursts, avoiding social contact, having overwhelming flashbacks every day, and is often struck with terror at the sight of ordinary things. The VA psychiatrist of past generations would have him or her tell the story of traumatic incidents week after week, on the theory that the problem would eventually subside via supportive witnessing by the doctor. Unfortunately, this "prolonged exposure" approach is proven to make things worse as often as it makes them better. In this scenario, the patient is led to re-experience the worst parts of the incident -- consolidating the experience rather than releasing it. 

A newer technique is gaining support in the field of traumatology that offers hope for more complete recovery for greater numbers of people. Instead of re-traumatizing the patient through the methodology of the past, Somatic Experiencing,™ created by Peter Levine, works very gently and gradually through access to the body's intelligence, tactile input, and support and assurances about normal responses to trauma. Simple methods are used to re-attune the patient's entire nervous system to safety and wellness. 

We know that the body "stores" shocking or neglectful experiences in its physiology -- in the neural system and musculature, in the fascia and bones, and in every cell and system in the body. It's the same set of neurological responses, whether the trauma is due to childhood abuse and neglect, combat incidents, or medical surgeries. As SE teaches: "Trauma is in the nervous system, not the event." 

 In SE, the patient revisits painful memory in a new way, in micro-installments, with special focus on the body's experience of safety in the present moment. This is often combined with gentle, safe touch from the trained practitioner. The patient is further encouraged to attune to safety with verbal statements such as "I lived through a terrible thing, and I'm safe now." 

 Gradually - and often much more quickly than with traditional treatments - the person gains the ability to self-regulate and can even experience a reduction in physical symptoms. Flashbacks are relieved as well: They become transformed into ordinary unpleasant memories, without the accompanying debilitating terror. This kind of result is one reason that doing yoga daily -- or any form of gentle stretching and deep breathing -- does such great things for the body and mind. It sends new, calm, rhythmic energy through the entire body, allowing stored trauma from long ago to release in a safe way. Occasionally during this kind of practice, people experience a strong emotional release of anger, sadness, or joy; this, in part, is the kind of release that can happen with SE. 

One patient of a prominent SE therapist commented about her process with SE: "The precise, focused and gentle way of...accessing tissue intelligence is a beautiful dance of listening deeply, observing intently and facilitating exquisitely... an artistic dance with the cells." (See here for more about his SE work.) 

According to SE founder, Peter Levine: "SE facilitates the completion of self-protective motor responses and the release of thwarted survival energy bound in the body, thus addressing the root cause of trauma symptoms. This is approached by gently guiding clients to develop increasing tolerance for difficult bodily sensations and suppressed emotions." (www.traumahealing.com) 

 The SE method is based, in part, in "helping people have experiences in the body that contradict those of the overwhelming helplessness" encountered in earlier traumatic episodes. SE facilitates a process of self-empowerment based in the body. Please consider attending our June 27 teleseminar on Using Somatic Experiencing in Clinical Practice (for more information and registration, click here).

If you haven't been introduced to Somatic Experiencing before, the following references may be of help to you:

http://www.traumahealing.com/somatic-experiencing/resources-articles.html 

http://www.psychotherapy.net/interview/interview-peter-levine 

And, if you're ready for the first level of SE training, please consider the Beginning I training with Dr. Abi  Blakeslee September 5-8 in Dana Point, CA (near San Diego). For more information, visit here.

Thanks for reading this newsletter. 

Please send any questions to Peggy@maggiephillipsphd.com. 

Enjoy your transition into summer, 

Maggie 

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