Cellular Trauma Healing: How the Body Remembers & How It Can Heal
- Calmfidence Council
- Jul 26
- 4 min read
Written by Jatty Sohal-Heyn, Trauma-Informed Somatic Therapist & Calmfidence Council Contributor
We often think of trauma as something held in the mind: a psychological scar left behind by a painful or overwhelming experience.
But science and somatic practice both reveal a deeper truth: trauma is also embedded in the body, right down to the level of our cells.
As a trauma-informed yoga therapist I have seen firsthand how cellular memory holds imprints of past overwhelm. Healing, therefore, should be integrative and involve more than just talking. It must include the body.
What Happens in the Body During Trauma?
When a person experiences trauma—whether acute, chronic, or developmental—their nervous system activates one of its oldest defense mechanisms: fight, flight, freeze, or fawn. But when the body doesn’t get the opportunity to complete these responses, the energy of the experience remains stuck in the system.
Dr. Peter Levine, founder of Somatic Experiencing, refers to this as “incomplete survival responses.” Over time, these can manifest as chronic pain, anxiety, digestive issues, or immune dysfunction.
But now, molecular biology confirms that trauma leaves a physiological footprint far deeper than we once understood.
The Cellular Science of Trauma
Recent research in psychoneuroimmunology and epigenetics reveals that trauma not only dysregulates our nervous system but also impacts our immune cells, mitochondria, and gene expression.
A 2018 study published in Psychoneuroendocrinology found that individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) show shortened telomeres—the protective caps on our DNA—indicating accelerated cellular aging.
Another study in Molecular Psychiatry (Zannas et al., 2015) showed how trauma-related stress can trigger epigenetic changes that disrupt cortisol regulation, inflammation, and immune system function.
Moreover, research led by Dr. Rachel Yehuda at Mount Sinai revealed that trauma may even be transgenerational.
Children of trauma survivors exhibited biological markers—such as altered stress hormone levels—suggesting trauma can echo through genetic expression.
The bottom line? Trauma changes us at the cellular level. But here’s the empowering truth: healing can reach those levels, too.
Body-Based Healing: Beyond Talk Therapy
While traditional psychotherapy is invaluable, trauma often bypasses language. This is why somatic therapies, which engage body awareness, movement, breath, and sensation are gaining traction among clinicians, researchers, and integrative healers alike.
My method, the MSBC Organic Healing Method, integrates four key elements:
Mind: Awareness and reframing
Soul: Inner safety and energetic alignment
Body: Movement, breath, and embodied release
Cellular Memory: Working with imprints held in the fascia, nervous system, and tissues
We use tools such as trauma-informed breathwork, Sauna Yoga, and water-based bodywork to help the body process what words cannot. Through these sessions, clients often report not just emotional clarity but physical shifts—improved sleep, pain reduction, even stronger immunity.
And the research supports these outcomes. A 2020 review in Frontiers in Psychology showed that somatic interventions like yoga and breathwork significantly reduce cortisol levels, improve heart rate variability, and boost immune resilience.
Healing Down to the Cell
What gives me deep confidence is that healing isn’t only possible, it’s physiological.
A study published in PNAS (2020) found that psychotherapy can reverse DNA methylation changes associated with trauma and PTSD. After just a few months of therapy, markers of inflammation and cellular damage showed measurable improvement.
Even practices like mindfulness meditation, as shown by Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn (Nobel Laureate in Medicine), can lengthen telomeres, reduce inflammation, and slow cellular aging.
In other words: the body remembers, but it can also rewire, regenerate, and reclaim safety.
The New Paradigm: From Surviving to Embodied Resilience
As we build a more trauma-informed culture, from leadership to healthcare to retreats, it's essential to embrace what I call Embodied Resilience: the ability to feel, process, and respond to life from a place of internal regulation and calm.
At Calmfidence World, we know that wellbeing isn’t just mindset, but holistic approach that includes nervous system literacy, energetic hygiene, and cellular restoration.
My invitation to you: Begin listening to your body not as a battlefield, but as a wise record keeper.
Then—through conscious movement, breath, and therapeutic presence, you can begin to rewrite the script imprinted in your cells.
Sources:
Yehuda, R. et al. (2016). Biological studies of PTSD and epigenetic transmission. Nature Reviews Neuroscience.
Zannas, A.S., et al. (2015). Epigenetic regulation of stress response genes in PTSD. Molecular Psychiatry.
Hauer, D. et al. (2018). PTSD is associated with shortened telomeres and immune cell aging. Psychoneuroendocrinology.
Frontiers in Psychology (2020). Somatic approaches to trauma therapy: A review.
Blackburn, E. & Epel, E. (2017). The Telomere Effect.
About the Author
Jatty Sohal-Heyn is a trauma-informed somatic therapist and founder of the MSBC “Organic Healing” Method—a body-based approach that blends breathwork, movement, water therapy, and energetic alignment to release trauma stored in the body’s cellular memory.
She offers private sessions, spa collaborations, and international retreats focused on cellular resilience and embodied healing.
To experience the power of cellular healing connect with Jatty
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