Disconnected; Treating Mind-Body Trauma in Survivors of Sexual Violence

ABSTRACT: The authors explore the impact of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in women who have suffered sexual violence. Incident rates are high, while treatment and support are scarce, often leaving women fearful of asking for help. When women do seek therapeutic assistance, the response is often inadequate. Trauma has an impact on the mind and body that can lead not only to mental health disorders but can also create biological conditions in which physical disease develops. The stress response, triggered by trauma and activated by the autonomic nervous system (ANS), creates a dissociation between the mind and body that affects victims in their everyday lives. The body remains hypervigilant to re-experiencing trauma and is sensitive to external and internal triggers. These factors combine to produce a climate where survivors feel unsafe in their own bodies and their environment, which is antithetical to recovery and reintegration. This research emphasizes the impact of sexual violence on the mind-body connection and describes practices that can strengthen post-trauma mind-body re-integration. Some practices discussed include grounding techniques rooted in mindfulness, safe spaces to heal mind-body dissociation, feeling comfortable in the environment where survivors heal, and intentional physical movement, which has been empirically proven as crucial to restoring the mind’s connection to the physical body. The authors analyze how mind-body re-integration leads to improving victim selfawareness and enhancing positive feelings toward their bodies after experiencing the physical and emotional trauma of sexual assault. Emphasis is placed on the impact of trauma to the mind-body connection, as well as on somatic practices that can strengthen mind-body integration.