The Body Keep the Score
Brain, Mind, & Body in the Healing of Trauma
Written by Bessel van der Kolk
Originally published in 2014
~464 pages
Rate: 5/5
I saw this book on social media a lot for a couple of years so when I went to buy it at Barnes and Noble I looked inside and saw how small the words were and how textbook-like the book format was and shied away from reading it. However, my friend, Margaret and my sister-in-law, Derian recommended this book to me so I decided to try listening to it on audiobook and that helped me not feel so intimidated.
This book explains how childhood experiences shape us and how trauma changes us.
This was a very heavy book, however I really enjoyed it. The content in this book was incredibly insightful. It's one of those books that I think everyone should read at least once in their life. I would like to get a copy of it some day and annotate it.
While reading the book I felt an array of emotions, some people's stories were shocking, tragic, and slightly similar to my own. This book helped me gain a new perspective on life and how I view people in general.
When comparing The Body Keeps the Score to other books I have read thus far, I only have Come As You Are by Emily Nagoski to compare it to. I think she shares a good female perspective on some sex related topics that Bessel van der Kolk mentions. I do think that he goes into my depth about trauma, where as she goes into more depth about human anatomy, cultural views, attachment styles, as well as how to have good sex. I would recommend reading The Body Keeps the Score and then reading Come As You Are.
"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 greatest sources of our suffering are the lies we tell ourselves."