Book Reviews
The Body Keeps the Score Summary & Review: How Trauma Reshapes the Brain and Body
Bessel van der Kolk reveals how trauma physically reshapes the brain and body — and maps evidence-based paths to recovery through EMDR,…
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Bessel van der Kolk
"The greatest sources of our suffering are the lies we tell ourselves."
Dr. Bessel van der Kolk is a Boston-based psychiatrist and one of the world's foremost researchers on trauma. A professor at Boston University Medical School and founder of the Trauma Research Foundation, he has spent more than four decades studying how traumatic experience reshapes the brain and body — research that reshaped modern trauma treatment.
Author of The Body Keeps the Score·Founder, Trauma Research Foundation·Key themes: trauma, the body, recovery
Books by Bessel van der Kolk
Our in-depth summaries and reviews of his work
Key Ideas & Recurring Themes
Trauma Is Stored in the Body
Traumatic memory isn't just a mental record — it's a physical one. Survivors carry trauma as visceral sensations and chronic nervous-system activation, which is why talk therapy alone often isn't enough.
Befriending the Body
Recovery starts with noticing bodily sensations without fear or judgment — learning to feel safe inside your own skin again is a prerequisite for healing, not a side effect of it.
Safe Connection as Medicine
Feeling safe with other people is one of the strongest predictors of recovery from trauma. Relational safety, not just individual coping skills, is central to healing.
Notable Quotes
"As long as you keep secrets and suppress information, you are fundamentally at war with yourself. The critical issue is allowing yourself to know what you know. That takes an enormous amount of courage."— The Body Keeps the Score
"Being able to feel safe with other people is probably the single most important aspect of mental health; safe connections are fundamental to meaningful and satisfying lives."— The Body Keeps the Score
"As I often tell my students, the two most important phrases in therapy, as in yoga, are 'Notice that' and 'What happens next?' Once you start approaching your body with curiosity rather than with fear, everything shifts."— The Body Keeps the Score
"It takes enormous trust and courage to allow yourself to remember."— The Body Keeps the Score
Related Authors
Book Author Bessel van der Kolk
The Body Keeps the Score Summary & Review: How Trauma Reshapes the Brain and Body
Bessel van der Kolk reveals how trauma physically reshapes the brain and body — and maps evidence-based paths to recovery through EMDR, yoga, neurofeedback, and community-based therapies.