How Trauma Gets Stored In The Body And How To Release It

Have you ever noticed how certain situations trigger a physical reaction before you even process an emotion? Maybe your stomach clenches when you feel anxious, your shoulders tighten when you're stressed, or you get exhausted after an emotionally draining conversation. This isn’t just coincidence—your body holds onto trauma in ways you may not even realize.

Trauma isn’t just a memory in your mind; it’s an experience imprinted on your nervous system, muscles, and energy field. If unresolved, it can manifest as chronic pain, tension, fatigue, anxiety, and even illness.

But the good news? Your body also holds the key to healing. By understanding how trauma is stored and learning how to release it, you can reconnect with yourself, feel lighter, and regain control over your emotional and physical well-being.

How Trauma Gets Stored in the Body

1. The Nervous System: Fight, Flight, Freeze & Fawn

When faced with a threat—whether physical, emotional, spiritual—your body can respond in multiple ways...

• Fight: You become aggressive, defensive, or overly reactive.

• Flight: You avoid confrontation, feel restless, or constantly stay busy to escape feelings.

• Freeze: You shut down, feel numb, or dissociate from the situation.

• Fawn: You people-please, seek approval, and ignore your own needs to maintain peace.

If trauma isn’t processed, your body stays stuck in one of these states, leading to chronic tension, anxiety, or feeling emotionally disconnected.

🔹 Example: If you were frequently criticized as a child, you might stay in a fawn response, constantly seeking approval in adulthood, even at the expense of your own needs.

2. Muscle Memory: Holding Trauma in the Fascia

Your fascia is a web of connective tissue that surrounds your muscles and organs. It remembers everything—every fall, injury, and emotional wound.

• Trauma creates muscle tension and tightness, especially in areas like the jaw (suppressed anger), shoulders (burdens), and hips (emotional suppression).

• If not released, this tension can lead to chronic pain, migraines, digestive issues, and stiffness.

🔹 Example: If you experienced rejection, your body may instinctively hunch forward, creating poor posture as a subconscious attempt to protect yourself.

3. The Breath: A Reflection of Emotional State

Have you ever noticed how your breath changes when you’re scared or anxious?

• Shallow breathing is a common trauma response, signaling to your body that it’s not safe to relax.

• Over time, this limits oxygen flow, leading to fatigue, brain fog, and even digestive problems.

🔹 Example: If you grew up in an unpredictable home, you might unconsciously hold your breath when anticipating stress, keeping your body in survival mode.

4. Energy Imbalances: Stuck Emotional Patterns

Trauma also affects your energetic body, impacting your chakras (energy centers) and overall vitality.

• Root Chakra (Safety & Stability): Trauma in childhood can make you feel unsafe in your body, leading to anxiety and instability.

• Solar Plexus (Confidence & Power): Unresolved trauma can lead to self-doubt, imposter syndrome, and difficulty setting boundaries.

• Heart Chakra (Emotional Processing): Painful relationships can create energetic walls, making it hard to trust or receive love.

🔹 Example: If you were emotionally neglected, your heart chakra might be blocked, leading to difficulties in forming close relationships.

How to Release Trauma from the Body

1. Somatic Healing: Move to Release

Your body needs to physically process trauma to let it go.

✅ Try This:

• Shaking Therapy: Stand and shake your arms, legs, and body for 2–5 minutes. This helps release stored tension from the nervous system.

• Yoga & Stretching: Focus on hip-openers and heart-opening poses to release emotional blockages.

• Walking Barefoot: Reconnect with the earth to calm your nervous system.

🔹 Journaling Prompt: “Where do I feel tension in my body? What emotion might be stored there?”

2. Breathwork: Regulate the Nervous System

Breathwork helps reset your body’s response to stress and brings you back to a state of safety.

✅ Try This:

• 4-7-8 Breathing: Inhale for 4 seconds, hold for 7, exhale for 8. Repeat for 5 minutes to calm anxiety.

• Sighing Release: Take a deep inhale and exhale with a loud sigh. Repeat 3–5 times.

• Alternate Nostril Breathing: Helps balance emotional energy.

🔹 Daily Reminder: “My breath is my anchor. I am safe in my body.”

3. Emotional Expression: Let it Flow

Unspoken emotions stay trapped. Find ways to express and release them.

✅ Try This:

• Journaling: Write a letter to your younger self, acknowledging the emotions they weren’t allowed to express.

• Art & Dance Therapy: Paint, scribble, or dance intuitively to move stagnant energy.

• Screaming into a Pillow: It sounds wild, but it works—especially for suppressed anger.

🔹 Quote: “What you resist, persists. What you feel, you heal.”

4. Sound Healing & Vibrational Therapy

Sound waves help dislodge stuck energy and regulate your nervous system.

✅ Try This:

• Binaural Beats: Listen to 432 Hz or 528 Hz for emotional release.

• Humming & Chanting: Vibrations help move energy through the throat chakra.

• Singing Bowls or Drumming: Activates deep healing responses in the body.

🔹 Affirmation: “I allow sound to clear and realign my energy.”

5. Safe Connection & Nervous System Repair

Healing happens in safe, supportive environments.

✅ Try This:

• Hugs & Touch Therapy: Deep pressure calms the nervous system.

• Eye Gazing with a Trusted Friend or Partner: Helps rebuild emotional safety.

• Therapeutic Support: A somatic therapist can guide deeper releases.

🔹 Reminder: “I am worthy of healing and support.”

Final Thoughts

Trauma is not just in your mind—it lives in your body. The good news? You don’t have to stay stuck. By working with your body through movement, breath, sound, and safe connection, you can release the past and reclaim your peace, vitality, and joy.

💬 What’s one small way you can reconnect with your body today? Drop a comment below!

✨ Ready to go deeper? 

Explore my 1:1 healing sessions, workshops, and breathwork guides to begin your journey toward freedom.