Does the Body keep the Financial Score?
Last time, we discussed the definition of trauma and PTSD. One of the most popular books on trauma is “The Body Keeps the Score” by Bressel Van der Kolk. In it, he asserts that trauma isn’t only stored in the memory and mind, but it is also stored in the body. He emphasized the body-mind connection and how trauma is remembered through physical sensations.
In 2014, when Van der Kolk shot to fame with his book, the word trauma hadn’t become quite as ubiquitous in society’s lexicon. In addition, (from my own anecdotal experience) he tapped into a physiological experience that was hard for the typical person to describe, and sometimes they hadn’t connected the traumatic negative experience to their physiological reactions.
The first time I heard of the book, it was with a friend of an extended family member’s party. This person really felt that the book unlocked understanding for him.
I have to admit, as I listened, I realized that he had misunderstood some of what Van der Kolk had intended to communicate but I was in a tricky position: he now had a very firm idea of what was real to him, he had some insight and - more importantly - hope, and any attempt of mine to alter or correct his view that trauma is stored in the body would be met with resistance. And maybe it wouldn't be helpful in the long run.
So, I just listened and nodded.
What Van Der Kolk actually says:
Trauma survivors often struggle with over-activation of the amygdala (the fear center), impairing their ability to feel safe and calm.
The body "remembers" trauma through sensations, tension, and physical discomfort. Van der Kolk explains that trauma survivors may not always consciously recall events but can feel the physical effects of trauma long after the experience.
Van der Kolk advocates for a range of treatments beyond talk therapy, including body-based therapies like yoga, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), and neurofeedback.
I believe that people most often resonate with Van Der Kolk’s physical description of their trauma response, and that they don’t always recall the event(s) that are causing that stress response.
This is understandable.
But the body and our cells don’t have the mechanism to save trauma in it. And hidden trauma hasn’t been shown in subsequent research. That is to say, research hasn’t found that trauma can be suppressed into the subconscious. However, sometimes people don’t associate the traumatic event with the physical or psychological responses that they’re experiencing in the here and now. Or they forget, aspects of the trauma. (This is most directly explained by neural pruning).
Does that mean it’s not real? That our body doesn’t experience psychological trauma?
No! As a professor of mine said, “Don’t hear what I ‘m not saying!”
Psychological trauma absolutely impacts us in our bodies as the cascade of brain chemicals (hormones) washes through us. We experience anxiety, tension, fear, racing heartbeat, sweating, crying, upset. Some people freeze. Others flee. Others fight – sometimes during a flashback. We absolutely have physiological responses to psychological trauma. Sometimes many, many years later.
But when we look at the mechanism of our brain experiencing and remembering traumatic stress - and always being on high alert - I believe this approach applies a little more accurately to our topic of financial trauma.
Our brain is always looking for threats, and when trauma occurs, we (and especially our brain) are more sensitive to the possibility of an additional traumatic event. And our brain is trying to figure out how to make sense of the world, now that this terrible thing has happened.
So let’s apply it:
Do finances feel threatening to you? Do you avoid reading certain email or even opening the mail because of the dread of what it might contain? Does your body respond? Maybe with an instant migraine. Or upset digestive track. Maybe your distress results in high blood pressure, rapid heart beat or sweating. Perhaps your response is to avoid the current financial situation and then soothe your disruption by numbing yourself by buying a treat, watching something, or even turning to alcohol or other substances to avoid the financial stress and pain.
But trauma is not only defined by how our body responds – if you remember from last time, there were a number of criteria in the DSM-5 that described the experience of trauma.
Let’s look at each of them one by one.
That’s next time, on The Climb.
