PTSD & C-PTSD: How Trauma Lives in the Body

Trauma is not defined solely by what happened to you — it is defined by what happened inside you. As Bessel van der Kolk describes in The Body Keeps the Score, trauma overwhelms the body and brain’s ability to cope, leaving the nervous system in a persistent state of alertness, fear, or shutdown. Even long after the event has passed, the body may continue to respond as if the danger is still present.

At Soma House Counselling & Wellness, we honour the reality that trauma is held not just in memory, but in the body, emotions, relationships, and sense of self. Understanding how different forms of trauma develop — and how they show up — is an essential part of healing.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) often develops following a single traumatic or life-threatening experience, such as:

• Car accidents or severe injuries 
• Sexual assault or interpersonal violence 
• Combat exposure 
• Natural disasters 
• Sudden loss or medical emergencies
   

People living with PTSD may experience:

• Flashbacks or intrusive memories 
• Nightmares 
• Hypervigilance and exaggerated startle responses 
• Avoidance of reminders of the trauma 
• Difficulty sleeping or regulating emotions
   

Van der Kolk’s work highlights that trauma reorganizes the brain. The amygdala — the fear center — becomes overactive, while areas responsible for reasoning and emotional regulation can become less accessible. This is why someone may logically know they are safe, but their body still reacts as though danger is present.

Complex PTSD (C-PTSD) develops from chronic, repeated, or relational trauma, often occurring during childhood or across long periods of vulnerability. This can include:

• Emotional, physical, or sexual abuse 
• Neglect or unstable caregiving 
• Growing up in unsafe environments 
• Domestic violence 
• Living in war zones or displacement 
• Human trafficking or captivity
   

Along with symptoms of PTSD, C-PTSD often includes:

• Chronic shame, guilt, or self-blame 
• Emotional dysregulation (anger, numbness, overwhelm) 
• Persistent difficulties in relationships 
• Deep wounds to identity and self-worth 
• Somatic symptoms such as chronic tension, pain, gastrointestinal issues, and fatigue
   

As van der Kolk notes, long-term trauma can disconnect individuals from their bodies, their emotions, and even their sense of who they are. This type of trauma changes not only how someone responds to life — but how they experience themselves.

Farnaz Farrokhi-Holmes, RCC, CCC, brings both professional expertise and lived experience. Growing up in an active war zone, she understands firsthand how trauma reshapes the body and mind — hypervigilance, scanning for danger, flashbacks, and the somatic toll of chronic threat.

This personal insight informs her grounded approach to EMDR and other trauma-informed modalities. She supports clients in understanding their body’s alarm systems, building internal safety, and moving through trauma at a pace that feels sustainable and empowering.

You don’t have to heal alone. At Soma House, we integrate EMDR, somatic therapy, nervous system regulation, attachment-focused approaches, and trauma-informed narrative work to support recovery from PTSD, Complex PTSD, childhood trauma, and relational wounds.