Something feels familiar but unsure of why, the meaning behind implicit memories

Have you had the experience where you feel like something happened? However, you're not quite sure of any details, but somehow your body feels something, or smells bring back a weird feeling but you just don't have a full recollection of what happened or even why you feel this way? What you are experiencing in clinical terms is Implicit memories. These memories by definition are emotional, body, perceptual, and/or behaviors that are stored in our brain unconsciously. When these unconscious memories are triggered due to a traumatic event that occurred it can elicit a feeling of fear or an unsettling feeling. While one part of the brain stored the memory, the other part of the brain protected you from recalling or remembering the details of the traumatic event. Have you heard or perhaps read the book, The Body Keeps the Score? Well if you haven't just know this, the body keeps the score. You're body will hold trauma, stress, and store it there until you have been able to release your body from those crippling somatic sensations of tension, pain, and/or disturbance.

How?

There are various forms to release these somatic symptoms that our body holds as a result of grief, trauma, or psychological distress. Some somatic forms to consider are yoga, specifically Trauma Sensitive Yoga. There are postures that will allow you to let go of the pain of grief inside such as the camel pose.

While doing exercises like these be mindful to honor your body. If you have never tried this before, you can gently incorporate these movements as your body allows. Lions Breath or pretending that you are fogging up the mirror also allows you to release emotions that are held inside.

Emotional Freedom Techniques: 

Emotional Freedom Techniques or Tapping Is an evidence based practice that combines cognitive therapy, exposure, and stimulates acupressure. You use two fingers to tap on the pressure points below while verbalizing cognitive statements or somatic issues, i.e. "this lower back pain" with an emotional acceptance statement.

Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocess (EMDR)

Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing is your brain’s way of healing itself from various levels of trauma. Through EMDR the brain rewires the stinking thinking or negative beliefs to where you no longer believe “I’m unworthy, unlovable, stupid, or not enough” or any other negative beliefs. Whether you are dealing with flashbacks from combat, or disturbing childhood memories, or even relationship distress EMDR allows your brain to reprocess those negative negative thought processes and gives you a new perspective on the situation, where it no longer carries that sting anymore.

For more information on how any of these forms of therapy can help you find healing please contact us to schedule an appointment.