←back to thread

Criticisms of “The Body Keeps the Score”

(josepheverettwil.substack.com)
250 points adityaathalye | 2 comments | 22 Oct 25 18:49 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
Show context
amyamyamy2 ◴[22 Oct 25 19:41 UTC] No.45674155[source]▶
I really disliked The Body Keeps the Score. But at the same time, I think it's probably useful for people who have been traumatized to make sense of their experiences.

I also think that for a traumatized person, it probably doesn't make that much of a difference whether or not their body is different because of the trauma, or they're traumatized because of their body - they are experiencing these reactions and trauma responses, and they're looking for a solution. Somatic experiences might help them.

To be honest, reading the book was more helpful than critiquing whether or not my testosterone levels were too low as a 11-year-old, or if I had elevated inflammation because of my diet. Perhaps I'm biased.

replies(5): >>45674439 #>>45674535 #>>45674616 #>>45675348 #>>45677114 #
1. phkahler ◴[22 Oct 25 20:10 UTC] No.45674535[source]▶
>> I also think that for a traumatized person, it probably doesn't make that much of a difference whether or not their body is different because of the trauma, or they're traumatized because of their body - they are experiencing these reactions and trauma responses, and they're looking for a solution.

I agree. Like diets, whatever works for you is the "right" answer. At lot of psychological theory can be thought of as just a model to help you make changes regardless of the physical validity of the model.

replies(1): >>45675295 #
2. wrs ◴[22 Oct 25 21:21 UTC] No.45675295[source]▶
Indeed, if it works for you, great. What’s at issue here is whether you put the book that worked for you in the “science” section or the “fiction” section of the bookstore.