Dr. Bob Beare Profile picture
May 19 16 tweets 5 min read Read on X
Trauma isn’t just in your head—it’s in your body.

Science shows trauma can alter gene expression, shape stress responses, and even be passed down to future generations.

Here’s how to break the cycle and rewire your system for good (by a PhD psychologist):🧵 Image
U.S. National Academy of Science called trauma "An unrecognized epidemic".

• 75% of people worldwide are affected by it
• 70% of adults in U.S.A have experienced trauma in some way
• 66% of kids have experienced 1 traumatic event by the age of 16
Generational trauma isn’t just a buzzword—it’s a biological reality.

Your nervous system is shaped by the stress responses of your parents and grandparents.

But here’s the good news: You can rewire it.

Here's what inherited trauma can look like:
First, let’s define the problem:

Generational trauma is the unconscious transmission of fear and stress from one generation to the next.

It happens through:
• Parenting styles
• Stress and trauma
• Unprocessed emotions
• Epigenetics (yes, trauma can alter your genes) Image
The traditional view:

“Just talk about it. Go to therapy. Heal through understanding.”

But here’s the truth:

Awareness alone won’t heal you.

Because trauma isn’t just psychological—it’s physiological.
You don’t just “think” about trauma.

You feel it in:
• Chronic stress and anxiety
• Gut issues and autoimmune diseases
• Tension in your body
• Uncontrollable emotional triggers

This isn’t just mindset work. It’s nervous system work. Image
The science backs this up:

• Trauma changes the brain’s amygdala (fear center)
• It alters cortisol (stress hormone) levels
• It’s even passed down through DNA (epigenetics)

Meaning? You inherit your ancestors’ unresolved stress.

But you don’t have to keep it.
Just because you inherited trauma through DNA it doesn't mean you can't heal it.

Healing your trauma doesn't just transform your life—it changes future generations.

The best part? It can be healed at any time.

The best 2 solutions I've seen (from 25 years of experience): Image
1) Become Aware Of Inherited Mindsets

• "People are evil"
• "Love only leads to pain"
• "Everyone is looking out for themselves"

These phrases show unhealed trauma passed down from generations.

Become aware of your family's unhealed patterns of trauma. Image
2) Talk Therapy alone takes too long

Trauma doesn't only live in your head. It also lives in your nervous system.

You can try to think or talk your way out of it, but the problem will always stay.

To solve it, you have to address the problem from its root cause—the body.
The real solution? Healing at the level of the nervous system.

Here’s what actually works:
1. Polyvagal Regulation – Teaching your nervous system safety
2. Inner Child Work – Reparenting yourself to break old patterns
3. Somatic Therapy – Releasing stored trauma through movement & breath
4. Daily Nervous System Resets – Small habits that rewire stress responsesImage
In my 25 years of experience:

Breaking generational trauma isn’t about “thinking positive.”

It’s about rewiring your body to feel safe for the first time in generations.

You don’t just heal for yourself—you heal for your children and their children.
If you're ready to change the patterns of inherited trauma and stress for good,

Check out the 7-day body-based course based on 25+ years of experience as a PhD psychologist.

Join here (available for a limited time): offers.drbobbeare.com/inner-work-mas…
Thanks for reading

For more psychology content like this,

Drop a like and follow me @DrBobBeare
👉Thanks for reading.
👉If you enjoyed this, please follow me and repost the first post (below).
👉Reply with your thoughts on body-focused healing.
Same old relationship struggles?

Same carreer blockades?

Inner Work Mastery is a 7-day, body-based system to help you finally break the cycle.

Check it out here: offers.drbobbeare.com/inner-work-mas…

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Dr. Bob Beare

Dr. Bob Beare Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @DrBobBeare

May 16
You’re not “easygoing.” You’re not "too nice".

You’re stuck in a trauma loop of people-pleasing and overthinking.

You learned to stay safe by staying small.
Now you can’t tell what you really want.

Here’s the truth—(most therapists won't tell you): 🧵 Image
In my 25+ years as a psychologist, I've learned:

People-pleasing is the compulsive need to prioritize others' comfort over your own needs.

It's not kindness—it's a survival response developed in childhood when your authentic expression was unsafe. Image
The popular understanding frames people-pleasing as a bad habit..."Just say no."

This completely misses what's happening in your body and brain.

People-pleasing and overthinking are survival tactics developed to keep you safe.

They're not bad habits—they're trauma responses. Image
Read 16 tweets
May 15
Why has modern therapy failed so many people?

In the 1950s, Dr. Alexander Lowen made a radical discovery:

The root of emotional pain isn’t in your mind—it’s in your body.

His work flipped psychology upside down and changed how we understand trauma and healing forever 🧵 Image
Before becoming a psychiatrist, Lowen trained as a gymnast and dancer.

He didn’t just study movement—he felt its power.

This deep connection to the body gave him an intuitive understanding most psychologists lacked:

We are our bodies—not just minds with meat suits.
Lowen studied under Wilhelm Reich, a controversial student of Freud.

Reich believed repressed emotion = physical tension.

He called this “armoring.”

Lowen took this further—creating a new field called Bioenergetics, where the body becomes the doorway to emotional healing. Image
Read 19 tweets
May 14
If your nervous system is stuck in fight, flight, or freeze…
No amount of therapy, meditation, or journaling seems to help.

One small comment can still trigger panic, rage, or shut down.

Here’s how to rewire trauma patterns in 7 days—not years (by a PhD psychologist):🧵 Image
Most people think trauma healing takes years of talking about your past.

But what if that’s keeping you stuck in the very state you’re trying to heal?

Because trauma isn’t just stored in your memories.
It’s stored in your nervous system.
When your body perceives a threat—real or imagined—it triggers one of 4 responses:

- Fight
- Flight
- Freeze
- Fawn

This is your nervous system doing its job: keeping you alive.
The problem?

Most of us get stuck there daily, and these are called trauma patterns. Image
Read 13 tweets
May 9
Does the phrase “Inner Child” make you cringe a little?

You're not alone.

But that cringe is shame—born of trauma.

Neuroscience now confirms: 𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗟𝗬 𝗘𝗠𝗢𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗟 𝗪𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗦 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 𝗜𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗕𝗢𝗗𝗬.

Here’s why it matters — and how to heal: 🧵 Image
The ACE (Adverse Childhood Experiences) study found:

- 60%+ of adults have at least one ACE
- Higher ACE scores = higher risk for depression, addiction, and even cancer.

Until we heal, it stays alive in our nervous system.

And causes most of our problems.

Dr Amen explains:
We don’t grow out of childhood wounds.

We grow around them.

The pain goes underground and directs every move we make.

Dr. Tara Swart on the power of our unconscious wounds:
Read 17 tweets
May 7
I've been a trauma and addiction specialist for 25 years.

Trauma doesn’t cause addiction.

It’s comforting to think that if we just heal our wounds, the addiction will vanish.

Nope. The truth is complex and far more inconvenient. 🧵 Image
We reach for substances and other self-soothing to numb the pain of trauma.

But using a substance or behavior to cope is not the same as becoming addicted to it.

Most who endure trauma don't become addicts. And most people who use —even heavily—do not become addicts either.
Addiction is not only;
-a psychological disorder
-a chemical imbalance
-a behavioral issue.

It’s a spiritual illness—a profound loss of connection and meaning.

This is why meds and trauma therapy alone don’t heal it.
Read 18 tweets
May 5
Most parenting advice today is upside down.

We’re told not to pick up crying babies. Use timeouts. Be firm and detached.

But Dr. Gabor Maté says, "If you don’t get the first three years right, you’ll be doing damage control for decades."

Here’s why: 🧵 Image
60% of American children under age 5 are in non-parental care for much of the day

Children need attachment to survive.

A child’s brain can’t handle an attachment void.
In hunter-gatherer societies, children were constantly surrounded by caring adults.

But now?

Often, other kids become their emotional anchors.

Their models. Their guides for how to talk, act, and be.
Read 12 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

:(