In this 3-minute video, Dr. David Berceli gives a concise explanation of how the brain is involved in stress and trauma. He explains how trauma originates in the lower parts of the brain that then have a lasting effect on the limbic system–the mid-brain–and the emotions. The top part of the brain, the neo-cortex, then has to deal with the actions of the lower brains, trying to cope with the trauma and make sense of it.
His main assertion, which forms the basis of my own practice in treating stress and trauma, is that stress and trauma need to be treated with this dynamic in mind. In other words, the lower brain structures, the sources of the trauma that produce lingering effects in the body, need to be addressed first.
(There is an ad at the end of the video asking you to join an organization.)
Dr. David Berceli is the creator of Trauma Release Exercises.
