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Can trauma actually live in your body? In this powerful episode of Trauma Rock Stars™, host Tracy talks with Nikki Everett — author, mental health advocate, and former mental-health and prison-system professional — about how a series of violent events led to complex PTSD, and the long, raw journey she took to heal.
💗 A note before you listen: This episode includes discussion of workplace violence, PTSD, & the loss of a colleague to suicide. If you're struggling, please reach out — in the US call or text 988, and in Australia call Lifeline on 13 11 14. You are not alone.
Nikki shares how trauma settled physically into her body, the dissociation she experienced, and the practices that slowly brought her back: journaling by hand, leaning into her triggers instead of running from them, and the Japanese art of kintsugi — repairing broken pottery with gold — which became the metaphor for her whole recovery. The lesson at the heart of it: you are not less because of what you've survived. You are more.
Whether you live with PTSD, love someone who does, or are simply trying to make sense of your own healing, this conversation offers honesty, hope, and practical tools.
🧠 Questions We Explore in This Episode:
• Can trauma be stored in the body — and how do you release it?
• What is complex PTSD, and how is it different from PTSD?
• How can journaling by hand help you heal?
• Why are our triggers actually "clues" worth leaning into?
• What does it mean to go "from broken to gold"?
❓ Quick FAQ:
Q: Can trauma be stored in the body?
A: Nikki shares how her trauma settled physically into her body — including persistent pain in her arm — and how learning to recognize and "shake out" that stored stress became part of her healing. (She references the well-known idea behind "The Body Keeps the Score.")
Q: How does journaling help with PTSD?
A: Nikki describes how writing by hand — even just drawing at first — helped move the trauma out of her head and onto the page, easing her nightmares and helping her sleep. It eventually became the foundation of her book.
Q: What is the kintsugi metaphor?
A: Kintsugi is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with gold, making it more beautiful and valuable than before. Nikki applied it to her mental health: she's not "less than" for living with PTSD — she's the same person, and more.
Note: Nikki shares her personal healing journey and the approaches that worked for her — offered for support and hope, not as medical advice. Please work with a qualified professional about what's right for you.
🎸 Take the FREE Trauma Rock Stars™ Life Audit™:
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Find out exactly where you are on your healing journey in less than 5 minutes. Your personalized Rock Star 30™ guide is waiting for you on the other side.
📚 Connect with Nikki Everett:
🌐 Website: https://sheismental.com.au/
📝 Blog: https://sheismental.com.au/blog
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sheismental_ptsd/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nicoleeverettauthor
📖 Book: "Uncomfortably Comfortable" (available on Amazon, Kindle & audiobook)
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Trauma Rock Stars™ is a safe, real, and empowering space for anyone navigating trauma recovery. Hosted by Tracy — survivor, advocate, and your biggest cheerleader.
⏱️ Chapters:
0:00 — Meet Nikki Everett & her trauma journey
1:00 — 20 years in mental health & the prison system
2:26 — Five violent events & the stabbing that "broke" her mind
4:50 — Dissociation & losing the ability to speak
6:00 — Getting help, medication & years of recovery
8:00 — Where trauma lives in the body: the pain in her arm
12:00 — Kintsugi: repairing what's broken with gold
14:00 — "Trauma talk" & discovering journaling
17:00 — Why writing by hand helps you heal
19:00 — Coming off medication & exploring other therapies
22:00 — Triggers as clues: leaning in instead of pulling away
29:00 — Her book "Uncomfortably Comfortable"
31:00 — What other cultures teach about healing trauma together
38:00 — Finding your tribe & the semicolon tattoo
41:00 — Rewriting your story as the hero, not the victim
43:00 — Closing: you are more, not less, because of what you've survived
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