I first heard Bessel van der Kolk speak at a Meadows retreat, about a year after my in-patient stint at rehab. He gave a talk on his very famous treatments and theories about how the body traps trauma, all described in his book, The Body Keeps the Score.

I was mesmerized by the topic, and him, knowing right away he was talking about me. But he was such a small and soft spoken man, with a difficult Dutch accent to  understand, that I had to move to the front of the conference room to hear him clearly.

But even so, I knew in that moment, the words he spoke would be life-changing. He explained how trauma doesn't just live in our memories — it lives in our bodies. Until we process that trauma, we are destined to repeat it. Of course, he explains how to do that.

I recommend this book to anyone who has had trauma and feels stuck.