The Biology of Trauma® With Dr. Aimie

By Dr. Aimie Apigian

People are done dancing around the topic of trauma. They're ready to face this square-on. None

of the current systems are getting to the root of the issue in the current model. Their biology has

been ... more

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FAQs about The Biology of Trauma® With Dr. Aimie:

How many episodes does The Biology of Trauma® With Dr. Aimie have?

The podcast currently has 244 episodes available.

The Biology of Trauma® With Dr. Aimie episodes:

July 30, 2026Is Not Trying Laziness, or Survival? With Josh Trent (Part 2)
You know the thing that would help. You have known for a while. You still have not done it.

Dr. Aimie recognized herself in the research on learned helplessness. For a long stretch of her life she expected everything to be hard, expected to fail, and quietly stopped trying without ever deciding to. It is not laziness. It is a body that learned effort did not matter and powered the effort down.

In this Part 2 conversation, recorded in Josh Trent's Austin studio, they talk about what separates resting from escaping, why the drive built on your own wound eventually stops working, and how a little safety is enough to take the next step.
This is Part 2 of two. Part 1 is here: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/why-do-we-escape-instead-of-rest-josh-trent-on-emotional-epigenetics
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:
02:04 How to tell resting from escaping

04:25 The three questions behind your purpose

06:48 Why the fuel of your own wound stops working

07:58 Grieving the old identity

10:05 Why showing up takes borrowed energy

13:24 Conditioned happiness and the opposite he found

17:18 The Seabiscuit story and learned helplessness

21:45 Recognizing the pattern in someone else

26:49 What most people misunderstand about a leader

30:20 Freedom fuels flow, fear fuels force

31:27 Why curiosity needs safety first

RESOURCES:
Take the free 2-Minute Assessment for Stored Trauma. Discover your primary pattern of responding when life becomes too much, then see how the other four show up.

Get The Biology of Trauma book. Read Chapter 13, on why the body will not rest until it feels safe, and how to start building that safety.

Josh Trent hosts the Wellness + Wisdom Podcast

Full show notes: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/why-is-not-trying-a-survival-response-not-a-weakness-with-josh-trent-part-2
Grab your copy of The Biology of Trauma
...more
35min
July 28, 2026Josh Trent on Why We Escape Instead of Rest (Part 1)
You finally have an evening with nothing in it. Twenty minutes later you are on your phone.
Josh Trent spent most of his life in a body that did not know how to rest. A clench in his stomach. A breath that stayed high in his chest. His first memory is of being a boy watching the adults around him be angry, unable to change it and unable to leave. The bracing stayed for thirty years.
Dr. Aimie and Josh talk about why stillness can feel unsafe, what separates real rest from escape, and why so many practitioners hold grief in a diaphragm that will not drop.
This is Part 1 of two. Part 2 releases July 30.
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:
01:22 How one question from childhood shaped an entire life

05:11 What happens when you know something is missing

09:24 How patterns get passed down through a family

13:49 The moment feeling became the way back in

17:12 Feeling an emotion in your body for the first time

18:38 Why practitioners carry grief in their bodies

19:31 What worries a wellness leader most about his own industry

23:57 Why social media makes it harder to feel

26:20 The difference between rest and escape
RESOURCES:
Take the free 2-minute assessment for stored trauma. Find your primary pattern of responding when life becomes too much, then see how the other four show up.

Is it stress or is it trauma? The guide that walks through the difference.

Josh Trent hosts the Wellness + Wisdom Podcast.
Full show notes: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/why-do-we-escape-instead-of-rest-josh-trent-on-emotional-epigenetics
Grab your copy of The Biology of Trauma
...more
29min
July 21, 2026Why Do I Crash Every Time I Finally Slow Down?
Why do I crash every time I finally slow down? Maybe you feel fine all week, then crash on the weekend. Maybe an open Saturday fills you with a quiet dread. So you fill it. An early bike ride. A full list. Anything to keep moving. Many people call this high-functioning burnout. It has a name, and it has a cause.
➡️ Full show notes: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/episode-184-why-you-crash-when-you-slow-down-the-pattern-of-depletion
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:
01:34 — Why do I crash every time I finally slow down?

04:03 — What is the pattern of disconnection, and why do I feel numb or distant?

04:33 — What is the pattern of disruption, and why do I feel stuck and unable to move forward?

05:03 — What is the pattern of depletion, and why do I feel like I'm running on empty?

05:15 — What is the pattern of dysregulation, and why does my nervous system overreact or under-react?

05: 32 — What is the pattern of disease, and how does stored trauma become physical symptoms?

06:30 — Why is the pattern of depletion the one that hides?

08:52 — Why does the crash come with the rest, if the rest did not cause it?

11:22 — How are stress and burnout different to my biology?

12:53 — What is capacity, and why does low capacity turn stress into overwhelm?

16:33 — What does it mean to live at two speeds, fast and stopped?

18:35 — How does depletion show up in my biology, from magnesium to ferritin?
Resources/Guides:
Stress or Trauma Guide — a free guide to tell a stress response from a trauma response, and see the sequence your nervous system needs next.
➡️ Full show notes with links and resources: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/episode-184-why-you-crash-when-you-slow-down-the-pattern-of-depletion
Grab your copy of The Biology of Trauma
...more
23min
July 16, 2026Grieving Is a Skill: HRV, Intention, and the Biology of Resilience with Dr. David Rabin (Part 2)
Most of us were told to grieve, to rest, to be present. Nobody taught us the skill. In Part 2, Dr. Aimie and neuroscientist Dr. David Rabin get into heart rate variability and resilience, why anxiety masks itself as focus, and why grieving is a skill your body has to learn. Feeling safe enough to feel is where the work begins.
➡️ Full show notes: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/why-grieving-is-a-skill-what-hrv-reveals-about-resilience-david-rabin
01:03 — Why is heart rate variability the key marker for resilience?

03:08 — What is intention, and what is it in the nervous system?

04:08 — Where does intention fit if you have lived in hypervigilance?

08:18 — What practices in therapy get in the way of healing?

11:28 — How do you apply these principles in a full, busy life?

16:33 — How do you grieve a loss, and why is grieving a skill?
Listen to Part 1 here.
Resources/Guides:
Get the "Is It Stress or Trauma" Guide. Know whether what your body is carrying is stress or something deeper.
➡️ Full show notes with links and resources: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/why-grieving-is-a-skill-what-hrv-reveals-about-resilience-david-rabin
Grab your copy of The Biology of Trauma
...more
24min
July 14, 2026Why Stress Was Never the Enemy, with Dr. David Rabin (Part 1)
Stress was never the enemy. Your body was built to use it. What wears the body down is chronic stress with no recovery on the other side. Translational neuroscientist Dr. David Rabin splits stress into two forms. Eustress builds capacity. Distress, carried over time, moves the body toward disease.
➡️ Full show notes: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/eustress-distress-difference-means-for-your-body-david-rabin
In This Episode You'll Learn:
01:25 — What does the equation eustress × time = ease actually mean?

06:19 — How does the meaning you carry from the past shape your stress response?

07:37 — Can a person experience post-traumatic growth decades later?

09:19 — What creates safety so the body can reorganize?

11:00 — Why is a soothing touch such a powerful signal of safety?

13:55 — Why is rest the key to resilience, and where do you start if you cannot rest?
Resources/Guides:
If you want to know whether what you are carrying is stress or something deeper, this free guide walks you through the difference. Get the Stress or Trauma? Guide
➡️ Full show notes with links and resources: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/eustress-distress-difference-means-for-your-body-david-rabin
Grab your copy of The Biology of Trauma
...more
19min
July 07, 2026EP 181: What Your Food Cravings Reveal About What You Survived | Dr. Tian Dayton
Cravings point to a need underneath. This episode covers the three unmet needs behind food. It looks at the childhood roots of reaching for it. And it helps you tell stress from something deeper.
➡️ Full show notes: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/what-your-food-cravings-mean-nervous-system
In This Episode You'll Learn:
01:11 — The difference between hunger and an unmet need

05:27 — When a craving is really about connection or a memory

08:03 — What states does a parent go into when food becomes survival?

09:49 — Why children learn a parent's relationship with food so early

12:27 — How do our parents shape our earliest relationship with food?

16:18 — What happens to a parent in survival mode for food

19:00 — Why do we crave sweets when we feel low or shut down?

24:14— Why does the fear of connection drive us to food?

29:41 — How to draw your own craving map
Resources/Guides:
If you want to know whether what drives your reaching is stress or something your body is still carrying, this free guide walks you through the difference. Get Stress or Trauma? guide
➡️ Full show notes with links and resources: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/what-your-food-cravings-mean-nervous-system
Grab your copy of The Biology of Trauma
...more
33min
June 30, 2026EP 180: Is Your Acid Reflux a Nervous System Problem? | Molly Pelletier
An early read on your nervous system explains why reflux holds on. This episode covers reflux hypersensitivity, lost hunger and fullness cues, and the somatic tools that calm the gut, including diaphragmatic breathing after meals.
➡️ Full show notes: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/nervoussystemandacidreflux-thegut-brainconnection
In This Episode You'll Learn:
01:10 — Why Molly Pelletier chose to focus on reflux and gut health

02:15 — How is acid reflux linked to the nervous system?

07:30 — Why is somatic work the missing link with reflux?

09:18 — What nutrition shifts actually help relieve reflux?

13:31 — What childhood patterns show up in stomach and reflux issues?

17:16 — Why can't some people feel when they are hungry or full?

22:12 — Which somatic tools help calm reflux?

26:52 — Which foods can trigger reflux during a healing phase?

30:32 — How do you know if reflux is affecting your sleep?

32:22 — What's the most important first step to calm reflux?
Resources/Guides:
Stress or Trauma? Read What Your Body Is Running (free): a Biology of Trauma® guide to tell whether your nervous system is running a stress response or a trauma response, and the sequence it needs next.
➡️ Full show notes with links and resources: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/nervoussystemandacidreflux-thegut-brainconnection
Grab your copy of The Biology of Trauma
...more
36min
June 23, 2026EP 179: Why Do Adoptees Struggle With Addiction? | Lisa Coppola
This is where adoption, attachment, and addiction meet. An early attachment rupture leaves the nervous system braced and hypervigilant. A substance can feel like the first relief from that noise. Drawing on her own recovery, Lisa Coppola names the four hidden losses adoptees carry. She shares why recovery asks for more than abstinence. It asks for safe connection.
➡️ Full show notes: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/adoption-attachment-and-addiction-why-adoptees-struggle-and-what-recovery-really-ask
In This Episode You'll Learn:
01:27 — What is the connection between attachment rupture and addiction?

07:28 — What do adoptees describe when a substance finally quiets the noise?

09:51 — The first loss: what is the loss of history?

11:34 — The second loss: why does the loss of trust live in the body?

14:07 — The third loss: how does early separation affect physical health?

16:24 — Is adoption at birth really a "safe window" for the baby?

20:20 — The fourth loss: what is the loss of self through disenfranchised grief?

22:37— Why does healing in recovery come from connection?

29:55 — What can happen when an adoptee reunites with biological family?

33:42 — What safeguards an adoptee from relapse in the hardest moments?

37:00 — What final message matters most for adoptees and attachment trauma?
Resources/Guides:
Stress or Trauma? Read What Your Body Is Running (free): a Biology of Trauma® guide to recognize whether your nervous system is running a stress response or a trauma response, and the sequence it needs next.
➡️ Full show notes with links and resources: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/adoption-attachment-and-addiction-why-adoptees-struggle-and-what-recovery-really-ask
Grab your copy of The Biology of Trauma
...more
42min
June 16, 2026EP 178: What Your Eyes Reveal About Your Attachment & Stress | Dr. Bryce Appelbaum
Vision is one of the primary signals your nervous system reads for safety or danger. Under stress, peripheral vision collapses and the body locks into central focus. Dr. Bryce Appelbaum walks through three eye exercises that begin retraining the eye-brain connection and the felt sense of safety.
➡️ Full show notes: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/vagus-nerve-and-vision-how-your-eyes-signal-safety-to-your-nervous-system
In This Episode You'll Learn:
01:21 — What is neuro-optometry, and how is it different from a regular eye exam

03:46 — How do your eyes shape how you move through the world?

14:05 — Can an old concussion still be affecting you years later?

23:09 — How does early caregiving shape vision development?

33:31 — Eye exercise 1: How do you do peripheral pointing?

41:24 — Eye exercise 2: How do you do eye push-ups?

46:26 — Eye exercise 3: How do you do eye stretches and the 20-20-20 rule?

50:06 — What foods support eye and brain health?
Resources/Guides:
The Biology of Trauma® Professional Certificate Training trains health and helping practitioners in the same framework Lacey works from. If this episode resonated with how you want to work with clients, this is the path.
➡️ Full show notes with links and resources: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/vagus-nerve-and-vision-how-your-eyes-signal-safety-to-your-nervous-system
Grab your copy of The Biology of Trauma
...more
58min
June 09, 2026EP 177: Beyond Anxious and Avoidant: 6 Attachment Wounds Your Body Learned Before You Had Words
Attachment is a survival imprint that lives in the body, encoded before you had language. In this episode, Dr. Aimie Apigian walks through the 6 hidden attachment pains, the adult symptoms each one creates, and why inner work alone cannot reach where the pattern lives.
➡️ Full show notes: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/episode-177-6-attachment-wounds-chronic-symptoms
In This Episode You'll Learn:
02:54 — How did Dr. Aimie's adopted son become her wake-up call to attachment biology?

10:12 — How does attachment loss connect to chronic fatigue and autoimmunity?

12:27 — Why doesn't awareness or inner work change attachment patterns?

15:24 — What is autoimmunity at the level of attachment biology?

25:06 — What is Hold Me attachment pain and how does it form?

31:36 — How does Hold Me pain become IBS, autoimmunity, and fibromyalgia?

40:11 — What is Support Me attachment pain and how does it shape the brainstem?

46:58 — What is See Me attachment pain and how does it shape self-worth?

47:47 — What is Understand Me attachment pain and which chronic conditions does it create?

50:20 — What is Love Me attachment pain and how does it shape adult relationships?
Resources/Guides:
Attachment Pain Guide — A complete map of all 6 attachment pains, the adult symptoms linked to each, and entry points for repair.
➡️ Full show notes with links and resources: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/episode-177-6-attachment-wounds-chronic-symptoms
Grab your copy of The Biology of Trauma
...more
53min

FAQs about The Biology of Trauma® With Dr. Aimie:

How many episodes does The Biology of Trauma® With Dr. Aimie have?

The podcast currently has 244 episodes available.

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