The Body as a Storage System
The phrase “the body holds memory” remained a metaphor for a long time. Not anymore.
Bessel van der Kolk is one of the most influential figures in the field of psychiatry researching the connection between trauma and the body. In his book The Body Keeps the Score (2014), he brought together years of clinical observations and neuroimaging research. The key finding: traumatic and high-intensity experiences are encoded not only mentally but also physically. And this physical encoding does not require conscious recall.
This implicit memory system—which Daniel Siegel explores in depth in The Developing Mind (1999)—carries experiences through muscle tension, postural patterns, autonomic nervous system responses, and changes in breathing.
The Distinction Between Implicit and Explicit Memory
Memory is processed in two distinct systems. Explicit memory involves conscious recall: “I experienced this at that meeting.” This system operates through the hippocampus and is accessible via language.
Implicit memory, on the other hand, is unconscious and bodily. How do we know how to ride a bike—not by counting steps, but through the body. Shoulders tensing when a sound is heard, a feeling of constriction in a certain environment, anxiety arising for no apparent reason—these are the bodily language of implicit memory.
The key point: not consciously “remembering” an experience does not mean that the experience’s bodily trace does not exist. The two are processed in different systems.
The Autonomic Nervous System and Bodily Memory
Stephen Porges’ Polyvagal Theory (The Polyvagal Theory, 2011) explains the physiological basis of this mechanism. The autonomic nervous system assesses threats unconsciously—Porges calls this “neuroception.” The brain carries out this assessment without our awareness and positions the body accordingly.
This is why the statement “Why am I so stressed? There’s no logical reason” is so common. Because the trigger is processed by the body’s memory system rather than the conscious reasoning system.
How Bodily Memory Manifests in Daily Life
Concrete examples are supported by research:
Posture: Amy Cuddy’s research (Presence, 2015) shows that body posture directly affects cortisol and testosterone levels. How the body is held shapes both hormonal and psychological states.
Voice tone response: The body’s immediate reaction to a specific voice tone is a learned bodily response. The body reacts before logical evaluation even kicks in.
Tactile memory: Neuroscience research shows that the skin and muscles carry patterns of experience. Physical therapy and manual therapy practices are based on this mechanism.
Why Is This So Important
Understanding body memory makes one thing clear: working solely with thought and belief systems is sometimes not enough. When bodily patterns are stored in a layer inaccessible to the conscious language system, it is difficult to reach that layer through conversation alone.
This is one of the most significant contributions neuroscience has made to coaching and therapeutic approaches. Working directly with the body—through breath, movement, posture, and somatic awareness—provides scientifically grounded ways to access this layer.
“Even if the body doesn’t remember the event, it remembers the response.” > Bessel van der Kolk, The Body Keeps the Score, 2014
Cevvela’s Perspective
- Body memory is not a metaphor; it is a neurobiological mechanism that operates through the implicit memory system (van der Kolk, 2014).
- Explicit and implicit memory operate in different systems; “not remembering” an experience does not mean there is no bodily trace of it (Siegel, 1999).
- The autonomic nervous system assesses threats unconsciously; bodily responses are the outcome of this assessment (Porges, 2011).
- Cognitive work alone does not always reach the bodily level; somatic awareness bridges this gap.
- In this context, coaching can use somatic tools to incorporate bodily signals into decision-making and evaluation processes.
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