What if the brain fog you're experiencing isn't just tiredness—but your nervous system's way of disconnecting you from an unbearable reality?

In this mini episode, Dr. Aimie Apigian answers a question from Rachel, a therapist in Seattle, about why the freeze response is associated with brain fog. Many people think of the freeze response as simply paralysis, not understanding the sophisticated biological mechanisms happening at the cellular level.

This episode dives deep into the freeze response—when it happens, why it happens, and the brain inflammation that creates the disconnection and fog we experience. Understanding this biology helps us recognize when we or someone we're working with has a chronic functional freeze, so we know where to start with healing.

In this episode you'll hear more about:

• The five steps the body takes to go into a trauma response—starting with activation and crossing the critical line of overwhelm

• The two reasons we cross that critical line: "too much too fast" (excessive activation) and "too little for too long" (prolonged stress without recovery)

• Why your nervous system decides certain situations are life threats—even when logically they're not (like being berated in residency or hearing hurtful words from someone you care about)

• The cellular biology of brain fog: How immune cells in your brain (microglia) unleash inflammation, cytokines, and chemokines that create the mental disconnection and fog

• The surreal feeling of freeze: Why voices sound distant, why you feel like you're in a daze, and why people around you seem far away even though they're right there

• Chronic functional freeze: The state where you're still functioning and going through life, but secretly wanting to hide, using substances like caffeine or food (especially histamine-producing foods) to push through

• Why anxiety is often your body fighting the freeze—using stress to stay out of shutdown, which is why relief from anxiety can sometimes make you fall into that heaviness

• The brain inflammation protocol: Specific nutrients and practices to keep your microglia in their resting state, including NAC, magnesium L-threonate, luteolin, GABA, resveratrol, and turmeric

• Ocular-cardiac reflex (eye support): A simple but powerful tool where gently pressing on closed eyes activates the vagus nerve for immediate calm

• Why starting with the freeze is essential—opening up the chronic functional freeze gives you more energy to dedicate to the healing journey

• Dr. Aimie's personal story of a biking accident and concussion—experiencing the freeze response firsthand as she regained consciousness on the sidewalk

The freeze response isn't weakness or paralysis—it's your nervous system's sophisticated survival strategy when it perceives a life threat. Brain fog is always part of the freeze response, created by immune cells in your brain that help you disconnect from unbearable reality. Understanding this biology helps you recognize the freeze in yourself or others, and know that working with it is where healing must start.

🎧 Want the full conversation? This mini episode expands on Episode 142: Why Stress Isn’t Trauma: How to Spot Overwhelm and Start Healing Your Nervous System with Dr. Aimie Apigian, where Dr. Aimie explores the difference between stress and trauma responses and how to recognize when you've crossed the critical line of overwhelm.

Why does brain inflammation happen during the freeze response? How do you explain the difference between stress and trauma to patients? What's the single most important starting point for nervous system regulation? This episode answers these critical questions while revealing why emotional eating isn't a willpower problem and introducing the simple three-day tracking tool that changes everything for healing.

You'll discover the critical line of overwhelm - that invisible threshold where stress becomes trauma - and learn practical strategies you can implement immediately to support your nervous system and begin the repair process.

In this episode you'll learn:

• [01:19] The Biggest Myth: Why confusing stress and trauma leads to minimizing experiences and self-shame 
• [02:11] Physician's Lens on Trauma: If it makes you sick 20 years later, it wasn't just stress 
• [06:04] Three Nervous System States: Understanding polyvagal theory and the critical line of overwhelm 
• [09:52] Brain Inflammation During Freeze: Why immune cells unleash inflammation as protective survival strategy 
• [13:25] Dysregulation Multiplied by Time: Why autoimmunity takes 20 years of nervous system dysregulation to appear 
• [14:40] Three-Day Nervous System Journal: Simple hourly tracking tool that reveals hidden patterns 
• [19:00] The Gut-Brain Connection: Why your gut is inseparable from brain health and trauma loops 
• [21:22] Emotional Eating and Functional Freeze: Understanding food's hidden functions beyond willpower 
• [24:40] The #1 Starting Point: Why quality sleep has greatest impact on nervous system regulation 
• [25:44] Aligning with Circadian Rhythm: Morning sunlight, red light therapy, and working with your body's healing strategies

Main Takeaways:

• Stress vs. Trauma Requires Different Repair: If it makes you sick 20 years later, it was trauma requiring fundamentally different approaches than stress management
• The Critical Line of Overwhelm: Personal capacity threshold where activation becomes trauma and the body automatically hits emergency brake
• Brain Inflammation Serves Protection: Immune cells unleash inflammation during freeze to facilitate disconnection and energy conservation for survival
• Time Compounds Dysregulation: Autoimmunity requires approximately 20 years of nervous system dysregulation to manifest as diagnosable disease
• Three-Day Tracking Creates Awareness: Hourly nervous system tracking reveals patterns showing time spent in shutdown, stress, or calm aliveness
• Innate Healing Requires Right Conditions: Surgical incisions prove the body heals itself when blocks are removed and proper support provided
• Gut-Brain Creates Stuck Points: Imbalanced gut causes neurochemical problems feeding back to worsen gut issues, limiting therapy progress
• Food Function Reveals Need: Emotional eating serves specific purposes - staying awake, avoiding feelings, managing energy - not willpower failure
• Sleep Impacts Everything: Quality sleep has greatest single effect on nervous system regulation and reduces sugar cravings

Notable Quotes:

"If it makes you sick 20 years later, that was not just stress. That was trauma your body was experiencing in childhood. You're looking at it through the lens of your adult self now, but that's not how you were experiencing it back then."

"The critical line of overwhelm is where you've done your best. Your best wasn't good enough, and hitting the wall means there's no point in trying anymore."

"Brain inflammation is part of a trauma response. Sometimes it triggers it. Sometimes it's triggered by the freeze response, but they always happen together."

"Dysregulation multiplied by time becomes diagnoses. It's predictable."

"Track your nervous system, and you'll be amazed at how much you learn about yourself in a week."

 

Episode Takeaway:

The critical line of overwhelm represents your personal threshold where stress becomes trauma and your body automatically engages the emergency brake. Brain inflammation during freeze is part of the deliberate survival strategy - helping you disconnect, go numb, and conserve energy for survival. The insight: dysregulation multiplied by time becomes disease. Autoimmunity takes approximately 20 years of compounded nervous system dysregulation to manifest. This explains why short-term stress doesn't cause chronic illness but prolonged trauma patterns do.

The three-day nervous system journal - tracking your inner state hourly - reveals patterns invisible to both practitioners and clients. This tracking tool shows how much time you spend in each of the three states and guides targeted intervention.

Quality sleep stands as the single most powerful starting point for nervous system regulation. Better sleep reduces emotional eating, decreases sugar cravings, and increases your capacity to handle stress before crossing that critical line into trauma territory.

Resources/Guides:

• The Biology of Trauma book - Available now everywhere books are sold. Get your copy

• Foundational Journey - If you are ready to create your inner safety and shift your nervous system, join me and my team for this 6 week journey of practical somatic and mind-body inner child practices. Lay your foundation to do the deeper work safely and is the pre-requisite for becoming a Biology of Trauma® professional. 

Related Episodes:

• Episode 101: Brain Inflammation: Addressing The Overlooked Gatekeeper To Trauma Release with. Dr Austin Perlmutter

Your host: Dr. Aimie Apigian, double board-certified physician (Preventive/Addiction Medicine) with master's degrees in biochemistry and public health, and author of the national bestselling book "The Biology of Trauma" (foreword by Gabor Maté) that transforms our understanding of how the body experiences and holds trauma. After foster-adopting a child during medical school sparked her journey, she desperately sought for answers that would only continue as she developed chronic health issues. Through her practitioner training, podcast, YouTube channel, and international speaking, she bridges functional medicine, attachment and trauma therapy, facilitating accelerated repair of trauma's impact on the mind, body and biology.

Disclaimer: By listening to this podcast, you agree not to use this podcast as medical, psychological, or mental health advice to treat any medical or psychological condition in yourself or others. This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your own physician, therapist, psychiatrist, or other qualified health provider regarding any physical or mental health issues you may be experiencing.

Comment Etiquette: I would love to hear your thoughts on this episode. Please share and use your name or initials so that we can keep this space spam-free and the discussion positive😌

What if having the same gene as your sister doesn't mean you'll have the same outcome? What if trauma and nervous system dysregulation could be the difference between expressing a genetic disease—or not?

In this mini episode, Dr. Aimie Apigian answers a question from Rachel in Texas, who discovered she carries the BRCA gene mutation. Despite making the same lifestyle changes as her sister—who also has the mutation—Rachel developed breast cancer while her sister remained healthy. Why?

Dr. Aimie reveals the biological mechanism that connects nervous system dysregulation to genetic expression: oxidative stress. This episode offers a scientifically grounded yet hopeful perspective on why two people with identical genetics can have vastly different health outcomes—and what you can do about it.

In this episode you'll hear more about:

• Why BRCA mutation carriers have a 45-72% lifetime breast cancer risk (versus 12-13% in the general population)—but not everyone with the gene develops cancer

• The biological link between nervous system dysregulation and oxidative damage to DNA

• How BRCA genes interact with NRF2 antioxidant pathways, creating increased vulnerability to oxidative stress

• Why both sympathetic activation (stress/anxiety) and dorsal vagal shutdown (depression/numbness) decrease your body's ability to clear oxidative stress

• The "calm alive" state: when your body naturally engages its healing and antioxidant repair mechanisms

• Dana's story from The Biology of Trauma—a physician with childhood trauma who found a breast lump and learned to repair nervous system dysregulation

• Practical tools: why vitamin C and antioxidant-rich foods (broccoli, blueberries) matter for genetic conditions

• How somatic self-practices can quickly shift your nervous system state and support cellular repair

• Why having a genetic condition doesn't mean you're powerless—epigenetics shows us DNA expression can change

Genetics load the gun, but environment and nervous system state pull the trigger. This episode is a powerful reminder that even when you carry genetic risk, your nervous system regulation, oxidative stress levels, and daily practices can dramatically influence whether those genes are expressed. Your biology is not a life sentence.

🎧 Want the full conversation? This mini episode expands on Episode 141: Can Trauma Make Genetic Disease Worse? The Role of the Nervous System, where Dr. Aimie explores hereditary conditions and why nervous system work matters even when genetics are involved.

Many people living with genetic conditions like MEN1, or hereditary autoimmune disorders feel trapped by their diagnosis. Practitioners often monitor and treat symptoms without addressing how trauma and nervous system dysregulation amplify those symptoms. But what if your nervous system still holds the key to how you experience your genetic condition?

In this conversation, Lizzie Dunn, diagnosed at 13 with MEN1, shares how she came to my work skeptical about trauma's role in genetic disease. She discovered that her body wasn't betraying her. It was protecting her. And through nervous system regulation and somatic work, she experienced shifts she never thought possible.

This episode bridges the gap between conventional medicine and trauma healing. Whether you're a practitioner working with genetic conditions or someone living with a hereditary diagnosis, you'll learn how the nervous system acts as the master conductor of your biology.

In this episode you'll hear more about:

• [00:00:09] How nervous system regulation influences genetic disease symptoms

• [00:03:00] Why the nervous system sees genetic mutations as vulnerabilities that trigger faster trauma responses

• [00:09:00] How stored trauma creates dysregulation that amplifies all symptoms

• [00:14:00] Why so many people with chronic conditions live disconnected from their bodies

• [00:22:00] How paradox and vulnerability are essential parts of healing

• [00:23:40] Why generational trauma gets passed down through mitochondrial DNA

• [00:30:00] How healing requires working on mind, body, and biology levels simultaneously

• [00:36:00] Why small interventions across three areas create bigger shifts than years of single-approach work

Main Takeaways:

• Nervous System as Master Conductor: Even with genetic conditions, the nervous system determines symptom severity by directing all physiological responses and biological adaptations

• Genetic Vulnerabilities Trigger Faster Trauma Responses: The nervous system sees genetic mutations as vulnerabilities, causing it to move into overwhelm and trauma biology more quickly than if no vulnerabilities existed

• Body Disconnection is Survival: Living in your head and disconnecting from your body is a protective mechanism to avoid overwhelming sensations of powerlessness, shame, and pain

• Generational Trauma Through DNA: Trauma passes down through mitochondrial DNA on the mother's side via epigenetic changes from oxidative stress, affecting gene expression in future generations

• Integration Creates Lasting Change: Single-approach healing (therapy alone, supplements alone, or diet alone) creates temporary shifts; addressing mind, body, and biology simultaneously creates sustainable transformation

• Small Hinges Move Big Doors: You don't need decades of intensive work; small interventions across three levels create remarkable shifts when done together

• Body Has Innate Healing Capacity: Like skin healing over surgical incisions, the body can reorganize and reset when blocks at mind, body, and biology levels are removed

Notable Quotes:

"Even if we have a truly genetic disease, the nervous system is still going to be influencing the degree of symptoms that we have from that."

"The nervous system is what drives all the other systems, because it's what changes them, allows them to adapt to our environment. And so the nervous system, when it becomes dysregulated in its responses, it's going to cause dysregulation of all the other symptoms and systems."

"Why would I want to be in my body? My body is in pain, emotional pain, physical pain. I don't like my body. My body is working against me. At least that's the thought that I have. Why would I want to be in my body?"

"That's not resilience. That's pushing through, that's surviving. So let's call it that. Let's call it, Hey, you're surviving, you're pushing through. But that kind of resilience is going to come at a cost."

"Epigenetics do get passed down to us, and it gets passed down, especially through the mother because of the mitochondrial DNA that gets passed on to the children."

"You actually don't have to do that much of each to start seeing shifts. But we do need to bring in all three because when you have all three, they're like small hinges. And when you've got small hinges and you've got three of these small, you just did baby steps, small hinges move big doors in our life."

Episode Takeaway:

Living with a genetic condition doesn't mean you're powerless over your symptoms. Your nervous system acts as the master conductor of your biology, determining how severely you experience your hereditary condition. When you have genetic vulnerabilities, your nervous system perceives them as threats and moves into trauma biology faster, creating dysregulation across all systems. The exhaustion many people feel isn't just from their disease—it's amplified by stored trauma, nervous system dysregulation, and the survival mechanism of disconnecting from their body. True healing requires removing blocks at three levels simultaneously: addressing self-limiting beliefs through parts work, completing interrupted protective responses through somatic work, and supporting cellular function through biology interventions. When you provide support across all three levels, small interventions create remarkable shifts. Your body has innate healing capacity—when blocks are removed, it can reorganize, reset, and return to its best possible state, regardless of genetic vulnerabilities.

Resources/Guides:

• The Biology of Trauma book - Available now everywhere books are sold. Get your copy

• Foundational Journey - If you are ready to create your inner safety and shift your nervous system, join me and my team for this 6 week journey of practical somatic and mind-body inner child practices. Lay your foundation to do the deeper work safely and is the pre-requisite for becoming a Biology of Trauma professional..

Related Episodes:

• Episode 118: How Practitioners Can Navigate Their Own Chronic Illness and Healing Journey

• Episode 128: How Attachment Trauma Drives Anxiety, Autoimmunity & Chronic Illness

Related YouTube videos:

• Trauma: Genetic vs. Epigenetic Insights with Dr. Bruce Lipton | Dr. Aimie Apigian

 

Your host: Dr. Aimie Apigian, double board-certified physician (Preventive/Addiction Medicine) with master's degrees in biochemistry and public health, revolutionizes trauma healing by revealing how our cells—not just our minds—store trauma. Her book "The Biology of Trauma" (foreword by Gabor Maté) transforms our understanding of how the body experiences and holds trauma. After adopting a child during medical school sparked her journey, she developed an integrative science-based sequence for the healing journey. Through her practitioner training, podcast, YouTube channel, and international speaking, she bridges functional medicine, attachment and trauma therapy, proving that repairing trauma's impact on the mind, body and biology is possible.

Disclaimer: By listening to this podcast, you agree not to use this podcast as medical, psychological, or mental health advice to treat any medical or psychological condition in yourself or others. This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your own physician, therapist, psychiatrist, or other qualified health provider regarding any physical or mental health issues you may be experiencing.

Comment Etiquette: I would love to hear your thoughts on this episode! Please share your constructive feedback by using personal name or initials so that we can keep this space spam-free, and let's keep the discussion positive!

You push through exhaustion, telling yourself it's just stress. Your body sends signals you can't ignore: chronic fatigue, unexplained pain, digestive issues, mood swings. What if these are messages about the emotional wounds that remain unresolved from your past?

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Partha Nandi for a conversation on chronic health issues, share five key insights that transform how we understand trauma's biological impact. This episode gives you the core concepts from the new book, The Biology of Trauma, about how trauma impacts your body, your own biology maintains the survival state and the repair tools needed for healing.

 

Key Topics & Timestamps:

• [00:50] Why I Wrote This Book: For the high-performing person who doesn't realize their body is accumulating trauma until a health crisis forces recognition
• [01:18] The 2014 Wake-Up Call: From marathon runner to unable to get out of bed during surgery residency - the moment everything changed
• [03:01] Trauma as Biology, Not Psychology: How adverse childhood experiences become measurable disease patterns decades later
• [04:29] The Biology of Being Stuck: Understanding functional freeze and why growth becomes impossible in trauma states
• [06:14] Science-Based Healing Pathways: Creating biology of safety through mitochondrial support, antioxidants, and repair tools
• [08:26] What Makes This Book Different: Bridging Western medicine with trauma healing using specific biomarkers and measurable changes
• [10:30] Beyond Trauma-Informed Awareness: Why awareness without actionable tools still fails patients and what to do instead
• [17:00] Insight #1 - Internal Response Matters: Trauma isn't the event - it's your body's five-step sequence during overwhelm
• [19:01] Insight #2 - The Critical Line: Your invisible boundary between experiences that grow you versus break you
• [21:23] Insight #3 - Cellular Trauma Reality: How mitochondria literally change shape and function during overwhelm
• [23:51] Insight #4 - Essential Sequence: Safety, support, then expansion - why most people skip the crucial first step
• [26:54] Insight #5 - Biology as Healing Ally: How the same systems holding trauma become your greatest recovery resource

 

Main Takeaways:

• Trauma Becomes Biology: Adverse experiences create measurable changes in cellular function, mitochondrial energy production, and nervous system regulation that can manifest decades later

• Cell Danger Response: When overwhelm crosses a critical threshold, mitochondria physically change shape and switch to survival energy systems, creating chronic symptoms

• Universal Trauma Response Pattern: All overwhelming experiences follow the same five-step sequence - startle, stress, powerlessness, freeze, shutdown - regardless of the trigger

• Biological Markers Matter: Heart rate variability, mitochondrial function, and inflammatory markers provide objective evidence of trauma's cellular impact

• Critical Line of Overwhelm: Everyone has an invisible threshold between experiences that grow us versus break us, which shifts daily based on current capacity

• Essential Sequence for Healing: Recovery requires three phases - safety, support, then expansion - with most approaches failing by skipping biological safety first

• Integration is Required: Trauma affects mind, body, and biology simultaneously, requiring coordinated intervention across all levels for lasting change

• Personalized Repair Approach: Effective healing identifies individual biological blocks rather than applying generic protocols to complex trauma presentations

• Cellular Recovery is Possible: The same mitochondria that hold trauma patterns can restore optimal function when given proper conditions and support

 

Notable Quotes

"I wrote it really for the person who I used to be. I used to be the person who, despite all of my education, despite even being a very, I would say, high performing person, I didn't realize how much trauma my body was holding and I didn't realize it until I got very sick."

"Your cells experience trauma too. You can't therapy or supplement your way out when your cells and body systems are stuck in survival mode."

"Your mitochondria literally change shape, becoming round and rigid instead of long and flexible, and they switch to a backup energy system that produces less energy but can function under threat."

"When you cross that critical line of overwhelm, your cells engage their own emergency break called the cell danger response. Just like your nervous system shuts down for protection, your cellular powerhouses, your mitochondria shift from efficient energy production to barely surviving."

"Most people skip the safety phase though and jump straight into deep processing, and this often retraumatizes them."

"Your symptoms are messengers, your reactions are information, and your healing journey becomes a collaboration with the incredible wisdom your body has been holding all along."

"It gives me a language to explain myself, my trauma, and my experience to others." - Early Reader

 

Episode Takeaway

The Biology of Trauma book reveals how adverse experiences rewire cellular function through the cell danger response, causing mitochondria to shift into survival mode and creating chronic health problems years later. Understanding trauma's biological reality at the cellular level provides both validation for mysterious symptoms and specific repair tools. When mitochondria are stuck in survival mode, psychological interventions alone cannot restore optimal cellular function - healing requires addressing biological dysfunction through targeted mitochondrial support, reducing cellular inflammation, and following the essential sequence of safety, support, and expansion at the cellular level. This integrated approach bridges the gap between understanding trauma's impact and having actionable tools to address it, offering hope for those whose symptoms have resisted conventional treatment by targeting the root biological mechanisms where trauma actually lives.

 

Resources Related To This Episode

Resources/Guides:

• The Biology of Trauma book - Available now everywhere books are sold. Get your copy

Related Episodes:

• Episode 122: Shutdown Before Stress: The Misstep in Trauma Healing That Often Gets Missed

• Episode 129: Why You're Still in Survival Mode (Even After Years of Therapy and Healing Work)

Related YouTube videos:

• Why Your Body Is Wired for Danger: Understanding Trauma's Impact on Your Nervous System

• Mitochondria’s Role in Trauma Work with Gabor Maté 

Your host: Dr. Aimie Apigian, double board-certified physician (Preventive/Addiction Medicine) with master's degrees in biochemistry and public health, revolutionizes trauma healing by revealing how our cells—not just our minds—store trauma. Her book "The Biology of Trauma" (foreword by Gabor Maté) transforms our understanding of how the body experiences and holds trauma. After adopting a child during medical school sparked her journey, she developed an integrative science-based sequence for the healing journey. Through her practitioner training, podcast, YouTube channel, and international speaking, she bridges functional medicine, attachment and trauma therapy, proving that repairing trauma's impact on the mind, body and biology is possible.

 

Disclaimer: By listening to this podcast, you agree not to use this podcast as medical, psychological, or mental health advice to treat any medical or psychological condition in yourself or others. This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your own physician, therapist, psychiatrist, or other qualified health provider regarding any physical or mental health issues you may be experiencing.

Comment Etiquette: I would love to hear your thoughts on this episode! Please share your constructive feedback by using personal name or initials so that we can keep this space spam-free, and let's keep the discussion positive!

 

What if healing from trauma wasn’t just about your nervous system, but also your immune system? What if science could show us that your body is capable of renewal—faster than you think?

In this mini episode, Dr. Aimie Apigian is joined by Dr. Jeffrey Bland, founder of the Institute for Functional Medicine and one of the leading voices in integrative health. Together, they discuss why trauma isn’t just psychological—it’s biological, affecting the nervous, immune, and metabolic systems in ways that can keep people stuck in cycles of fatigue, pain, and emotional struggle.

Dr. Bland shares groundbreaking research on immune rejuvenation, including how certain ancient foods like tart buckwheat can reverse signs of immune aging in as little as 90 days. Paired with Dr. Aimie’s insights on trauma biology, this conversation offers hope that no matter your past, your biology is not a life sentence.

In this episode you’ll hear more about:

• Why trauma acts like a “dimmer switch” on joy and vitality

• The powerful crosstalk between the immune and nervous systems

• How trauma biology accelerates immune system aging—and how to reverse it

• Clinical trial results showing a 47% reduction in immune age in 90 days

• Why the immune system renews every 90–120 days and what that means for healing

• The three pillars of immune rejuvenation: polyphenols, microbiome integrity, and Omega-3s

• Why trauma healing is about applying the right tools at the right leverage points

Trauma doesn’t just live in your past—it can live in your cells. But the science shows us that your immune system and nervous system can both be renewed. This episode is a reminder that healing is possible, and your body knows the way forward.

🎧 Want the deeper dive? This conversation builds on the foundational concepts from Episode 139: Breaking the Body Trauma Loop: Why Healing Takes More Than Willpower (And How to Actually Transform) where Dr. Aimie explores why trauma healing requires biological repair, not just mindset shifts.

Traditional healing approaches often focus on managing symptoms or returning to who you were before. But what if healing could take you beyond recovery to discovering capacities you never knew you had? What if your patterns of responding to stress  getting stronger over time isn't a sign of failure, but your nervous system following predictable patterns that can be redirected?

In this episode, I share excerpts from my book, The Biology of Trauma. I share a section from Chapter 8 on the "Body trauma loop" - explaining how the body holds on to trauma from our past. 

More importantly, we discover how the same neuroplasticity that automated these survival patterns can create new ones - through specific neuroscience principles. 

 

Key Topics & Timestamps:

[04:31] The Body Trauma Loop: Understanding why incomplete trauma responses compound over time like collecting rocks while hiking

[06:56] Danger-Colored Glasses: How neuroception gets programmed to see threats everywhere, even in safety

[09:03] Neuroplasticity and Trauma: Why "neurons that fire together, wire together" applies to both harmful and healing patterns

[10:56] Book Community Insights: Early readers share experiences with the first three chapters - difficulty putting it down, compelling writing style, and wishing they had this resource decades ago

[14:21] Consistency Over Intensity: The key principle for rewiring neural pathways and creating lasting change

[19:02] The Seabiscuit Story: Finding hope in the journey from broken to magnificent

[21:27] True Expansion: Moving beyond healing symptoms to discovering who you can become

[25:41] From Healing to Living: The shift from "what needs fixing" to "how can I be more alive"

[29:35] Community Transformations: Real stories of cellular-level changes and newfound aliveness

[34:32] Four-Year Journey Wisdom: Taking healing one step at a time and trusting the process

[36:47] Reader Feedback: Deeper understanding even after taking multiple courses

 

Main Takeaways:

• The Body Trauma Loop: Incomplete trauma responses compound over time, making reactions stronger through accumulated cellular danger and nervous system dysregulation

• Neuroplasticity Works Both Ways: The same mechanism that automates trauma patterns can create healing patterns through consistent daily practices

• Consistency Changes Everything: Small daily actions rewire neural pathways more effectively than big one-time efforts - it's about what you can do today that you can also do tomorrow

• Danger-Colored Glasses: Neuroception can get stuck viewing everything as a threat, even normal cues of safety, keeping you trapped in activation or overwhelm

• True Expansion Has No End: Healing is like a spiral staircase where each step takes you higher and deeper, with no limit to how far you can go

• Safety Must Come First: Your nervous system needs felt safety before it can release stored trauma - forcing expansion crushes growth

• From Fixing to Living: The ultimate shift is from asking "what's wrong with me?" to "how can I be more alive?"

 

Notable Quotes

"Whatever is repeated will be habituated to save us energy from having to think about how to do the same process in the future."

"Small hinges move big doors. The small choices made consistently change the big doors in our life."

"How can I be more alive? How can I be more present? As we identify what is holding us back from being more alive in the ways we want, we discover the next layer of the spiral staircase."

"I believe not only that trauma is curable, but that the healing process can be a catalyst for profound awakening, a portal opening to emotional and genuine spiritual transformation." - Peter Levine

 

Episode Takeaway

The healing journey doesn't have to be a lifelong struggle. When you understand that trauma responses are automated through neuroplasticity - the same process that helps you learn to drive or brush your teeth - you can harness this same mechanism for healing. 

The key is consistency over intensity, following the right sequence of safety-support-expansion, and recognizing that your body has an innate capacity to heal when given the proper conditions and understanding. 

True expansion moves beyond just pushing through or managing symptoms to discovering who you can become when no longer held back by the past.

 

Resources Related To This Episode

Resources/Guides:

• Biology of Trauma book - Bonuses are available with Pre-order only.

• Go Deeper With Dr. Aimie with The Biology of Trauma Book (available only until September 22nd):

• • Guided Seeker: Get the Workbook + Mastercourse to go with the book - walking you through each chapter's key concepts

  • Accelerated Implementer: Everything above + live half-day online group intensive with Dr. Aimie for implementation support

  • Fast Track Professional: Everything above + one full day in-person with Dr. Aimie at her home to identify your biggest personal block to your next level of healing and regulation as a professional and guide for others 

• Foundational Journey - If you want to be guided through The Essential Sequence laid out in the Roadmap and the book, join me and my team for this 6 week journey into your inner world with practical somatic and parts self-practices to lay your foundation to do the deeper work safely. These are the daily practices I have found that change one’s biology and health symptoms the fastest.

Related Episodes:

• Episode 135: The Hidden Difference Between Stress and Trauma In How The Body Keeps Score 

• Episode 134: The Biology of Overwhelm: Why Small Demands Feel Impossible 

Related YouTube Episode:

• Why You're Still in Survival Mode (Even After Years of Therapy and Healing Work) | Dr. Aimie Apigian

  About Dr. Aimie Apigian

Dr. Aimie Apigian is a double board-certified physician in preventive and addiction medicine who bridges the gap between Western medicine and somatic healing practices. After her own health crisis in 2014 while in medical residency, she discovered how stored trauma was affecting her biology. She has since dedicated her career to helping others understand and heal the biological impacts of trauma through her courses, clinical practice, and her new book "The Biology of Trauma."

 

Disclaimer: By listening to this podcast, you agree not to use this podcast as medical, psychological, or mental health advice to treat any medical or psychological condition in yourself or others. This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your own physician, therapist, psychiatrist, or other qualified health provider regarding any physical or mental health issues you may be experiencing.

Comment Etiquette: I would love to hear your thoughts on this episode! Please share your constructive feedback by using personal name or initials so that we can keep this space spam-free, and let's keep the discussion positive!

Why does trauma therapy sometimes make you feel worse physically? What if the key to healing isn't just changing your mindset, but understanding your cellular capacity for stress? When you dive into trauma work without addressing your biology first, you might be opening Pandora's box in ways that overwhelm your body's ability to cope.

Dr. Aimie Apigian discovered this the hard way - developing multiple health conditions including autoimmunity and chronic fatigue while doing "cutting-edge" trauma therapy. Her physical reactions to emotional healing led to a groundbreaking understanding: trauma isn't just stored in your mind, it's living in your cells, and your body has a limited capacity for processing stress.

In this illuminating conversation with Dr. Tom O'Bryan, Dr. Aimie reveals why the popular focus on mindset and "being stronger" actually sabotages healing. She breaks down the three biological survival mechanisms that keep trauma locked in your body and explains why addressing toxic burden is essential for emotional recovery.

You'll hear more on:

• Why trauma therapy can trigger physical flare-ups including gut issues, chronic fatigue, and autoimmune symptoms

• The critical difference between emotional capacity and physical homeostatic capacity for healing

• How cellular capacity - not mindset - determines how much stress you can handle without breaking

• The three survival mechanisms your body uses during trauma: dissociation, immobilization, and energy conservation

• Why you crave specific foods like bread and sweets after emotional breakthroughs (and the biology behind it)

• How gluten affects your brain through opiate receptors and hypoperfusion, creating a "dumbed down" state

• The connection between trauma burden and toxic burden - why they're the same at the cellular level

• Dr. Tom's four-quadrant approach to chronic conditions: structure, biochemistry, emotional/spiritual, and electromagnetic

• Why all chronic health conditions are related to trauma biology, according to adverse childhood experiences research

• How to recognize if your body is holding trauma through specific biological patterns

• The "emergency brake" effect: why comprehensive medical care fails when trauma biology isn't addressed

• How to approach trauma healing while staying within your capacity and building resilience safely

Whether you've experienced physical reactions during emotional healing work, struggle with chronic health conditions that don't respond to treatment, or are supporting someone through trauma recovery, this episode reveals why befriending your body and honoring your biological limits is essential for lasting transformation.

Dr. Aimie's groundbreaking approach, validated by Dr. Tom's decades of clinical experience shows us that healing trauma isn't about pushing through or being stronger - it's about creating safety at the cellular level so your body can finally let go of what it's been holding to protect you.

🎧 Want the deeper dive? This conversation builds on the foundational concepts from Episode 138: "The Biology of Trauma: Why Your Body Holds On When Your Mind Has Healed with Dr. Aimie Apigian" where Dr. Aimie explore the cellular mechanisms of trauma storage and the critical importance of understanding your biological capacity for healing.

In this special reverse interview episode, my friend and colleague Steven Wright from Healthy Gut interviews me about the core concepts from my upcoming book, The Biology of Trauma. Steven understands the somatic work, the parts work, the biology, the capacity, and the overwhelm from his own healing journey, making this conversation uniquely insightful.

I share stories I haven't told anywhere else - including my keto diet disaster during surgery residency that became my first clue about the biology of trauma. We explore why I rewrote this book seven times, how I discovered I had all three major biochemical imbalances, and the painful decision to place my adopted son Miguel in a different home - the grief that ultimately led to my autoimmune diagnosis and this entire body of work.

Key Topics & Timestamps

• [00:00] The Eight Drafts of the book: Dr. Aimie's journey as an author
• [04:12] Beyond ACEs Scores: Why we can become obsessed with our score 
• [08:36] Capacity is Everything: Understanding your nervous system's dynamic capacity 
• [13:47] The Biology Block: How Dr. Aimie discovered her own biology was sabotaging her trauma healing
• [21:55] The Pain Equation: When humans decide to change 
• [25:44] Perception vs. Reality: How we create mountains from molehills 
• [28:19] The Healing Timeline: Why trauma work doesn't have to be a lifelong journey
• [34:04] Safety First: The critical sequence for healing trauma without retraumatization
• [37:18] Stress vs. Trauma: The crucial distinction that changes everything
• [38:18] Miguel's Story: The heartbreaking adoption journey that changed Dr. Aimie

Main Takeaways

• The Three-Legged Stool: True trauma healing requires addressing psychological, emotional, AND biological aspects simultaneously
• Biology Keeps You Stuck: Inflammation, oxidative stress, and biochemical imbalances create internal danger signals that perpetuate trauma responses
• Capacity Changes Moment to Moment: Your nervous system's capacity is dynamic and requires constant awareness, not just daily check-ins
• Perception Creates Your Reality: Your body responds to your perception of danger, not actual danger - making that molehill into a mountain
• The Right Sequence Matters: Creating safety must come before attempting to process trauma, or symptoms worsen
• Fast Healing is Possible: When addressing all three domains properly, healing happens faster than medication with only positive "side effects"

Notable Quotes

"If something makes you sick, that is not stress. Let's call it for what it is. That is your body having gone into a trauma response."

"Our capacity is not being measured up against our reality, it's being measured up against our perceptions."

"The pain of staying the same has to become so bad that we're willing to undergo the pain of change."

"If their body had already felt safe, it would have already opened up all of this stuff and let all of these emotions and trauma go. It hasn't felt safe."

Episode Takeaway

Trauma healing doesn't have to be a lifelong journey. By understanding that trauma lives in your biology - not just your mind - and following the proper sequence of safety, support, then expansion, you can heal faster than traditional approaches suggest. The key is addressing all three aspects: psychological, emotional, and biological, rather than focusing on just one.

Resources Related To This Episode

Resources/Guides:

• Biology of Trauma book - Bonuses are available when you Pre-order now.
• Go Deeper With Dr. Aimie with The Biology of Trauma Book (available only until September 22nd):
  • Guided Seeker: Get the Workbook + Mastercourse to go with the book - walking you through each chapter's key concepts
  • Accelerated Implementer: Everything above + live half-day online group intensive with Dr. Aimie for implementation support
  • Fast Track Professional: Everything above + one full day in-person with Dr. Aimie at her home to identify your biggest personal block to your next level of healing and regulation as a professional and guide for others 
• Foundational Journey - If you want to be guided through The Essential Sequence laid out in the Roadmap and the book, join me and my team for this 6 week journey into your inner world with practical somatic and parts self-practices to lay your foundation to do the deeper work safely. These are the daily practices I have found that change one’s biology and health symptoms the fastest.
• Steven Wright - Healthy Gut - Learn more about Steven's gut-brain support products: HoloZyme™ digestive enzymes with dual-strain activation technology, Tributyrin-X™ for microbiome diversity and gut lining health, and HCL Guard™ for protein digestion support

Related Episode:

• Episode 122: Shutdown Before Stress: The Misstep in Trauma Healing That Often Gets Missed

Related YouTube Video:

Shutdown Before Stress: The Misstep in Trauma Healing That Often Gets Missed | Dr. Aimie Apigian

About Dr. Aimie Apigian

Dr. Aimie Apigian is a double board-certified physician in preventive and addiction medicine who bridges the gap between Western medicine and somatic healing practices. After her own health crisis in 2014 while in medical residency, she discovered how stored trauma was affecting her biology. She has since dedicated her career to helping others understand and heal the biological impacts of trauma through her courses, clinical practice, and her new book "The Biology of Trauma."

 

Disclaimer: By listening to this podcast, you agree not to use this podcast as medical, psychological, or mental health advice to treat any medical or psychological condition in yourself or others. This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your own physician, therapist, psychiatrist, or other qualified health provider regarding any physical or mental health issues you may be experiencing.

Comment Etiquette: I would love to hear your thoughts on this episode! Please share your constructive feedback by using personal name or initials so that we can keep this space spam-free, and let's keep the discussion positive!

Why do so many people suddenly start losing weight when they finally escape a toxic relationship or environment? What if your body's stubborn weight isn't about willpower, metabolism, or even food - but about stored trauma keeping you in survival mode?

When you're trapped in toxic relationships or environments, your body operates from what I call chronic functional freeze. This isn't just emotional - it's a complete biological shutdown that affects everything from your thyroid function to your detoxification pathways. Your metabolism hibernates, toxins accumulate, and your body holds onto weight as a survival strategy.

In this Biology Behind It mini episode, I answer practitioner Zay's excellent question about why clients lose weight effortlessly after leaving toxic situations, even without doing deep healing work yet. I break down the hidden biology keeping you stuck and why your nervous system won't let go of excess weight until it feels truly safe.

You'll hear more on:

• Why avoiding feelings creates a biology of energy conservation and metabolic shutdown
• How chronic functional freeze affects your thyroid hormones - including reverse T3 that doctors rarely test
• The connection between stored trauma and toxin accumulation that makes weight loss impossible
• Why detoxification pathways shut down when your nervous system is in survival mode
• How toxic relationships create the same biological effects as physical toxins
• Why your inner operating state drives all your body systems - not individual organ problems
• How creating inner safety naturally eliminates coping mechanisms like emotional eating
• The integrated approach to clearing both emotional and physical toxins safely

Whether you've struggled with stubborn weight that won't budge despite your efforts, or you're supporting someone who's finally ready to leave a toxic situation, this episode reveals why your body refuses to let go until your nervous system feels safe. I give you hope that when you address the real root - stored trauma - your body naturally returns to health.

🎧 Want the full story? Listen to Episode 137: "Does Somatic Healing Work: How Mind-Body Healing Can Change 30 Years of Chronic Illness In 6 Weeks" for Keisha's complete transformation story and the science behind rapid healing.