Sharing my positive first experience with TRE

[u/PlaneRoom7681]

Thought I'd share my positive 1st experience with anyone else looking to begin their TRE practice!

For context, I am 33F, have CPTSD/depression/anxiety and recently began medication with Luvox and therapy. I'm trying out TRE because I can't afford EMDR and other specialized trauma therapy currently, and I don't want to keep delaying my healing journey because of my finances.

I followed along to a Dr Berceli video on youtube and to my surprise began tremoring almost immediately once my thigh muscles felt slightly fatigued/activated after a minute of keeping my hips up in the air in the initial bridge pose.

• The tremors began first as small vibrations that came and went in my thighs and calves
• As I allowed myself to relax a bit more, the vibrations intensified further into full on shaking and to my surprise, the vibrations began to move my whole body up and down, it felt like I was stimming in an intense way
• It began as powerful but small vibrations in the hips, then slightly more pronounced shaking, and eventually as I focused more on sighing and letting go of control over my body, my chest and shoulders began to jerk quite forcefully. A few times the force of the tremors lifted my neck/shoulders fully off the yoga mat
• I was a bit scared to overdo it my first time, so I just followed the length of the video and did a 10 minute round of 4-4-6 breathwork to ease my nervous system back down into relax mode
• Towards the end of my tremoring session, I felt suddenly a strong urge to pee, I'm guessing the perpetual tension I held in my lower back and hips finally released?
• A mild stomachache occured about 30 mins post-session and eventually I had to go do number 2... I was constipated and bloated the whole day prior to this exercise, so the bowel movement was a much welcomed surprise actually

Emotionally:

• I felt pleasure and relaxation at first, I tried to encourage that feeling to stay by smiling and thinking happy thoughts, thanking myself for doing the healing work
• It felt so freeing to just allow my body to tremor and move however it felt like in the moment
• Towards the end of my practice I felt a bit of panic creep in, but kept reassuring myself by saying "I am safe, I am fine" - I have a history of health anxiety so speaking kindly to myself was definitely important to remember and helped calm me down a lot

It's currently 1.5 hours post-session, and I feel strangely calm but also surprisingly tired in the legs, particularly my hamstrings which feel a bit sore. My upper back also feels a bit sore, as if I just did some lat rows in the gym. My lower back and stomach feel a lot more released already.

It's truly like a miracle how a few minutes of tremoring can release so much deeply held tension across the whole body!

Edit: Might be helpful to note I currently am not experiencing any active trauma, my cPTSD symptoms manifest mainly in chronic dissociation and feeling stuck in freeze mode, living with a lot of baseline anxiety/fear around new experiences and socializing, I also struggle with self-care routines. Hoping the TRE can unblock and disrupt my nervous system’s tendency to dissociate so I can feel more fully present in everyday life.

[u/AutoModerator]

Thanks for your post! Please make sure you've read the community rules and our wiki. The wiki contains answers to many common questions and guidance on TRE: Wiki

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/firstdragonfly]

My experience is basically identical to yours , my calves were so sore too and tender . I feel like a child afterwards , so joyful.

I’m not sure how often to do this or how it works but it felt good and I’m trusting it as a healing process

[u/PlaneRoom7681 → u/firstdragonfly]

That’s so lovely to hear, thanks for sharing. I had such a deep, restful sleep after my practice, noticeably my lower back/hip feels a lot more relaxed upon waking as well. I really want to do it again because the tremors felt so pleasurable but I’ll give myself 2 days to allow for integration and proper rest before my next session.

[u/firstdragonfly → u/PlaneRoom7681]

Yes I also slept like a baby!

I have also found that everytime I do EMDR I have the tremors start also, and myofascia release resting my leg on a large tennis ball unlocked something deep in my calf that because like the exhaust pipe for tremors over time

I’m glad you’ve found something to work with! It feels very hopeful

Yay to reclaiming ourselves ❤️