24/11/2025
If there is ever a book to read about trauma and our bodies- this is the one!
Grandpa Bessel has done so much in the trauma space & that's where my style of yoga comes from!
There is a certain way some books just find you at the exact moment your mind is ready to understand them. That was my experience with The Body Keeps the Score. The title had floated around my space for a while, mentioned in small conversations, quoted in quiet corners of the internet, and praised by people who sounded like they had survived something. One day, I finally decided to listen. And from the very first chapter, Sean Pratt’s steady, compassionate narration carried Bessel van der Kolk’s profound insights straight into me. The combination felt like sitting with someone who understood human pain in a language my body somehow already knew. Every chapter felt like a gentle exposure, a revelation, and an invitation to heal. These are the seven lessons that stayed with me, long after the audio stopped playing.
1. Trauma is not just a memory, it becomes the body’s ongoing experience, shaping how we feel, react, and live: Listening to the book made me understand that trauma does not politely sit in the past the way we often imagine. Van der Kolk explains that traumatic experiences embed themselves into our nervous system, altering how the body interprets danger, how the mind organizes thoughts, and how emotions rise without warning. The narration made this feel deeply personal, almost as if someone was explaining why certain reactions in my life had felt bigger than the moment itself. Trauma reshapes biology, and until it is addressed, the body continues to behave like the danger is still present.
2. Healing requires more than talking about what happened, the body must also be involved in the recovery: The author describes how traditional talk therapy often misses a crucial part of trauma treatment. The body holds tension, fear, panic, and frozen energy, so healing must involve body-based practices like yoga, breathwork, movement, and sensory awareness. Hearing this in the audiobook strengthened the message for me. There was a calm, reassuring tone to the narration when this point came up, almost guiding me to understand why some breakthroughs only happen when the body is allowed to speak, release, and reconnect with safety.
3. The brain can reorganize after trauma, but it needs new experiences of safety, connection, and control: One of the most powerful themes in the book is neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to rewire itself. The author emphasizes that trauma wires the brain for survival rather than joy, making hypervigilance and emotional numbness feel normal. However, through the right therapeutic experiences, the brain can form new pathways. Listening to this section felt hopeful for me. The narration highlighted how healing is not only possible, it is the brain’s natural inclination once the body is given the chance to feel safe again.
4. Trauma isolates, and recovery grows within community, relationships, and supportive connections: Van der Kolk repeatedly stresses how trauma breaks the ability to feel connected to others. It traps people inside their own experience. But healing is often sparked by relationships that offer safety, consistency, and genuine presence. Hearing this in audio form had its own emotional weight. The tone of the narrator around these chapters made the message feel very human, as if he were reminding me that no one heals alone. Community, friendship, therapy, and empathy are part of the medicine.
5. Children carry trauma in ways that shape the adults they become, making early intervention a form of prevention, not just treatment: The book dives deeply into childhood trauma, explaining how a child’s developing brain absorbs experiences like a sponge. Neglect, violence, and instability can alter emotional regulation and even physical development. The narration made these chapters feel tender, almost protective. It helped me understand why many adult struggles have roots we often overlook. Van der Kolk’s explanation shows that helping children feel safe, valued, and seen is one of the strongest ways to build healthier societies and healthier futures.
6. The mind often disconnects from the body during trauma, so part of healing is learning to feel again without fear: The author explains a phenomenon called dissociation, where the mind separates from bodily sensations as a survival mechanism. At the time of listening, I found myself pausing the audiobook because the explanation felt so vivid. Pratt’s narration gives this section a gentle, grounded tone, making it clear that dissociation is not weakness, it is the body protecting itself. Healing means learning to slowly inhabit the body again, noticing sensations without panic, and welcoming back parts of ourselves that have long been shut out.
7. Telling one’s story is powerful, but the transformation comes from integrating the story into a lived sense of safety and self-awareness: Van der Kolk highlights that trauma survivors often tell their stories in a way that is disconnected from emotion, because the mind is trying to stay safe. True healing happens when the story becomes integrated, meaning the person can feel, process, and understand their experience without being overwhelmed. The audiobook narration made this lesson very clear. It is not the storytelling alone that heals, it is the reclaiming of control, the ability to stay present, and the restoration of wholeness.
Book/Audiobook: https://amzn.to/3XKzxtt
You can access the audiobook when you register on the Audible platform using the l!nk above.
