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Addressing the Emotional Roots of Physical Pain
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Meet TJ. He’s in pain and has been for seven years. No medications have helped. All tests are inconclusive. Acupuncture relieves some of his pain but that relief only lasts a day or two. Peter Levine reports noticing, almost immediately, two significant things about TJ. He moves stiffly without fluidity in the spine and he is shut down with little access to his feelings and no language to make sense of what’s going on with him. Peter, reading the “unspoken language” of his body, expresses curiosity about a slight movement of TJ’s hands and feet. From that unfolds an imaging exercise that ends with a release of stress, tears and TJ feeling lighter.
The session moves forward, fueled by Peter’s attention to the smallest details-a change in TJ’s skin color, quickening of his pulse, lengthening of his spine. Building on each step, TJ experiences stress release, has breakthrough moments of understanding, expresses a growing sense of “lightness” and reports an ongoing decrease in his physical pain-all without talking about the pain or any actual touch.
Peter Levine, PhD
Peter A. Levine, PhD, holds doctorates in both medical biophysics and psychology. The developer of Somatic Experiencing®, a body-awareness approach to healing trauma, and founder of the Somatic Experiencing Trauma Institute, which conducts trainings in this work throughout the world and in various indigenous cultures, with 26 faculty members and over five thousand students. Dr. Levine was a stress consultant for NASA on the development of the space shuttle project and was a member of the Institute of World Affairs Task Force of Psychologists for Social Responsibility in developing responses to large-scale disasters and ethno-political warfare. Levine’s international best seller, Waking the Tiger: Healing Trauma, has been translated into 22 languages. His recent interests include the prevention of trauma in children, and he has co-written two books, with Maggie Kline, in this area: Trauma Through a Child’s Eyes and Trauma-Proofing Your Kids. His most recent book: In an Unspoken Voice: How the Body Releases Trauma and Restores Goodness, was recently released to rave reviews. Levine’s original contribution to the field of Body-Psychotherapy was honored in 2010 when he received the LifeTime Achievement award from the United States Association for Body Psychotherapy (USABP).
Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Dr. Peter Levine is the founder and president of the Ergos Institute of Somatic Education, the president and editorial director of Ergos Institute Press, and receives a consulting fee from the Meadows Addiction Center. He receives royalties as a published author. Dr. Levine receives a speaking honorarium, recording, and book royalties from Psychotherapy Networker and PESI, Inc. He has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Dr. Peter Levine is a senior clinical fellow and advisor to the Meadows Addiction Treatment Center. He is a member of the American Psychological Association, the Humanistic Psychological Association, and the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies.
