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Reclaiming Safety & Healing through the Body
Sree Meleth
October 14, 2025
🕊️ Reclaiming Safety and Healing Through the Body
by Dr. Sree Meleth | Founder, Freeing Ourselves
Hello everyone — this is Dr. Sree Meleth, back with a fresh edition of our community newsletter!
After a month in India (and an unexpected tech break — new phone, no laptop!), I’m back in the U.S. and eager to continue our exploration of trauma healing and embodied awareness.
This week, I want to share insights from Resmaa Menakem’s My Grandmother’s Hands and Dr. Peter Levine’s An Autobiography of Trauma: A Healing Journey.
📘 Healing Racialized Trauma — What “My Grandmother’s Hands” Teaches Us
Resmaa Menakem introduces the idea that white-body supremacy lives not in our minds, but in our bodies.
It cannot be undone through policies or conversations alone — it must be released through the body, using practices that help us feel and process safety.
He speaks of three groups carrying generations of trauma:
White-bodied people — whose ancestral violence and fear were passed down through colonization and oppression.
African Americans — who carry the pain and brutality of enslavement and its aftermath.
Law enforcement officers — often shaped by both oppressed and oppressive histories.
Insight of the Week: The Body’s Safety System
“Safety isn’t just an emotion — it’s a physiological state we can restore.” — Dr. Sree Meleth
The Polyvagal Theory, developed by Dr. Stephen Porges, explains how our vagus nerve shapes every human interaction. This powerful nerve acts like a built-in security scanner, constantly asking:
👉 “Am I safe?”
When trauma lives in the body, the answer is often “no.” The result? We move into defense mode — fight, flight, or freeze — cutting off true communication and connection.
The good news: we can retrain this system.
By learning to stay grounded in our bodies, we calm our nervous system and create space for safety and trust — both within ourselves and with others.
Dr. Dan Siegel calls this state integration — when the mind and body communicate in harmony, allowing others to feel safe in our presence too.
✨ Practices like EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) help release stored trauma, restore balance, and reconnect us to the peace that lives inside the body.💡 A Story of Healing: Johnny, the Incubator Baby
🌸 Story of Healing: Johnny, the Incubator Baby - Autobiography of Trauma - A healing Journey: Ch 9: page 129
“The body remembers what the mind cannot — and it will speak through trembling, tears, and release until it is finally heard.” — Dr. Sree Meleth
Dr. Peter Levine recounts the story of Johnny, one of the smallest premature babies ever to survive in the U.S.
Born weighing just one and a half pounds, Johnny seemed lost to the world — unable to speak, move, or connect.
His therapist, Mira, noticed his strange fascination with bright lights and realized it echoed the glaring bulbs of his neonatal incubator. Following her intuition, she recreated the incubator setting in her office.
When Johnny saw it, his body froze, then trembled and shook — a natural release of trauma long stored in his nervous system. In that moment, something profound shifted. For the first time, his eyes focused; emotion returned to his face. Soon after, he cried, said “Mama,” and began to laugh and love again.
Johnny’s transformation revealed a powerful truth:
Trauma lives in the body until it is acknowledged and released.
Once the body completes the unfinished cycle of fear and helplessness, healing unfolds naturally — restoring connection, trust, and vitality.
This story reminds us that true healing is not just a mental process but a deep embodied journey — one that frees us from the weight of our past and brings us home to ourselves.“From numbness to laughter, from isolation to love — his body finally felt safe.”
This reminds us that healing happens when the body completes the cycle of trauma rather than suppressing it.
🧘🏽♀️ Practicing Presence: Getting Fully Embodied
Menakem’s first invitation is simple yet profound: “Get into your body.”
We spend so much time in our heads — worrying about the past or the future — that we forget healing happens only in the present moment.
I’ve created a short “Getting Fully Embodied” Meditation to help you anchor into safety and presence.
🎧 Listen here →
💬 Join Our Community Conversation
I’d love to hear your reflections on:
How does your body hold tension or fear?
Where do you feel safe — and what helps you return there?
Would you like to join a Book Club to explore My Grandmother’s Hands together?
Would you like to join our “My Grandmother’s Hands” Book Club? |
🌿 Closing Thoughts
Healing trauma — whether personal, ancestral, or societal — starts with awareness, compassion, and the courage to feel.
Thank you for being here, for being open, and for choosing to do this deep work.
With love and blessings,
Dr. Sree Meleth
Founder, Freeing Ourselves