How Do You Release Trauma From Your Body?A Gentle, Somatic Approach to Healing

Trauma isn’t just something that lives in the mind — it lives in the body too. When overwhelming experiences happened too fast, too soon, or without enough resources to process them, the nervous system and tissues can hold that stress long after the event itself. This is why people often ask:

“How do you release trauma from your body?”

Let’s explore how trauma becomes embodied, why it matters, and the gentle, supportive ways you can help your body unwind and heal.

Trauma Isn’t Just in the Head — It’s in the Body

Research and clinical observation show that traumatic experiences become embedded in the nervous system, muscles, and connective tissues, influencing how we feel, move, and respond long after the original event. This embodied imprint of trauma is one of the key principles explored in The Body Keeps the Score, which highlights how the body retains physiological stress and somatic patterns related to overwhelming experiences.

When trauma is not fully processed in the moment, the autonomic nervous system — the part of the body that manages stress responses like fight, flight, freeze, or shutdown — can stay in alert mode. This chronic activation affects many systems and often shows up as:

• Chronic pain and muscle tension

• Insomnia or disrupted sleep

• Headaches or jaw tension

• Feeling “tired and wired” or unrelenting fatigue
  

  These physical symptoms are the body telling us that something unresolved is still present.

Somatic healing creates awareness, so the nervous system can unwind naturally. Here’s how that can look:

Craniosacral Therapy — A Subtle, Nervous System-Centered Path

One of the most gentle and profoundly supportive approaches is Craniosacral Therapy (CST). This therapy uses a light touch to support your body’s capacity to relax and regulate. Rather than forcing changes, CST encourages the nervous system and connective tissues to unwind their habitual tension patterns — helping trauma release in a non-overwhelming way.

In trauma healing, CST can:

• Shift the nervous system out of chronic stress

• Support emotional release without verbal retraumatization

• Improve sleep, calm chronic pain, and ease tension

• Encourage a felt sense of safety and embodiment
  

📍 Interested in gentle somatic support?
Explore how Craniosacral Therapy in Portland can help your body unwind trauma, regulate your nervous system, and support lasting relief:

👉 Learn more or schedule a consultation: https://www.tmj-chiro.com/craniosacral-therapy

Myofascial and Somatic Bodywork

Trauma doesn’t just affect muscles — it also influences fascia, the connective tissue web that envelops every part of the body. When we’re stressed or overwhelmed, fascia can tighten and restrict movement, contributing to chronic discomfort. Techniques like myofascial release help the body re-hydrate and relax connective tissues without force, inviting long-held tension to soften and release naturally.

Everyday Practices That Support Trauma Release

Trauma healing is both a professional process and a lifestyle journey. Alongside somatic sessions, gentle daily practices can help your body feel safer and more regulated:

🌿 Awake, diaphragmatic breathing
🌿 Slow, mindful movement
🌿 Restorative sleep routines
🌿 Grounding practices (gentle walks, mindful body awareness)

These are not quick fixes — but consistent practices that help your body learn new patterns of ease.

How Somatic Work Differs From Forceful Techniques

One reason somatic approaches like CST and fascial work are so effective for trauma is that they don’t push the body. Instead, they invite the body to let go at its own pace. This makes them radically different from deep tissue or forceful manipulation, which can sometimes trigger more tension or overwhelm the nervous system.

By working with the body, not on the body, these approaches help create a felt sense of safety, which is foundational to releasing trauma held deep in the nervous system and tissues.

A Gentle Invitation to Healing

Healing trauma in the body isn’t about getting rid of something — it’s about creating space for your nervous system and tissues to let go of what no longer serves you. For many people, combining somatic bodywork with lifestyle practices creates a profound shift — one that helps the body remember comfort, regulation, and safety in the present moment.

🌱 If you’re curious about a gentle, somatic path to trauma release and relief, Craniosacral Therapy in Portland may be the missing piece you’ve been looking for.

👉 Explore sessions and book a free consultation: https://www.tmj-chiro.com/craniosacral-therapy

References & Further Reading

• Van der Kolk, B. The Body Keeps the Score — trauma becomes deeply embodied in nervous system and somatic patterns. IP Trauma

• Somatic healing science shows trauma is stored in nervous and musculoskeletal systems and responds to body-based therapies. Natasha Fascia

• Fascia and trauma: connective tissues hold tension patterns that somatic approaches help unwind. associationforhannasomaticeducation.com

• Craniosacral Therapy supports nervous system regulation and somatoemotional release. Cranial Sacral Therapy

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