Healing from Childhood Trauma: What You Need to Know

Healing from childhood trauma is a journey that unfolds in layers. Just when you think we’ve processed it all, new insights and emotions can surface, asking for your attention. This is a natural part of the healing process—each time you revisit your experiences, you gain a deeper understanding and the ability to move forward with greater clarity.

Healing is Not Linear

You will have periods where you feel light and steady. Other days, emotions rise like a storm—unexpected tears, a heavy heart, or a sense of overwhelm. This isn’t a setback; it’s part of how the nervous system releases and integrates past experiences. Trust the process. 

An Integrative Approach is Best

Trauma isn’t just stored in the mind; it lives in the body, shaping how we respond to stress, relationships, and daily life.

Healing requires more than just thinking through your past—it requires reconnecting with the body, regulating the nervous system, and creating space for emotional processing. Yoga, breathwork, and somatic healing techniques help support this process by allowing emotions to move through rather than remain stuck.

If you find yourself navigating old wounds resurfacing, here are 5 key practices to support your healing:

5 Ways to Support Your Healing Journey

✅ Trust Yourself
Healing takes courage, and you are capable of doing hard and meaningful work. It’s okay to ask for support along the way—whether from a therapist, a coach, or a trusted friend. You don’t have to go through it alone.

✅ Tame Shame
Shame often tells us we are broken or unworthy, but these feelings are not the truth. Shame is a protective response, and healing begins when we acknowledge it with kindness. Talking to someone who listens without judgment can help shift the narrative.

✅ Observe & Feel
Emotions need to be processed, not suppressed. Give yourself permission to acknowledge what happened, how it shaped you, and the impact it had. By witnessing your emotions rather than getting lost in them, you create space for healing.

✅ Regulate Your Nervous System
The nervous system needs care during and after emotional processing. Grounding techniques such as deep breathing, gentle movement, or simply bringing awareness to the present moment can help restore a sense of safety. Small practices—like a warm cup of tea, stretching, or stepping outside for fresh air—can make a significant difference in how you feel.

✅ Embody Your Body
Trauma lives in the body, and processing it isn’t just about talking—it’s about moving, feeling, and repatterning your nervous system. This is why yoga and somatic practices are so powerful. They help us process and balance what words alone can’t touch.  

Healing Is a Lifelong Journey

Trauma often teaches people to abandon their needs, mold themselves to fit others’ expectations, or tolerate unhealthy situations. But healing teaches the opposite—to honor your emotions, set boundaries, and reclaim your sense of self.

Wherever you are in your healing journey, know that progress isn’t about perfection—it’s about creating space for growth, self-compassion, and getting aligned support.

Looking for a guide? Here’s How We Can Work Together:


 1:1 Coaching & Yoga Therapy – Personalized guidance to help you navigate your growth & healing journey. I blend yoga therapy, somatics, nervous system and inner work to help you thrive. Learn more here.

The Nourished Woman Membership – On-demand bite-sized yoga & somatic healing to support your nervous system. Quietly, I’ve kept the doors open to this despite plans to close it and I’ve loved seeing some of you join each week. I’m not sure how much longer I’ll keep them open, but for now you can join anytime. Find out about the membership here. 

Nourished and Whole Retreats – A half-day immersive experience to counterbalance, reconnect to your body, mind and spirit, and be nourished hosted by my husband and I. First one is February 16th from 3-6pm at GIFT Counseling in Greenville.  Sign up while you can here.

About Keri 

​Keri Marino is a Certified Yoga Therapist and Somatic Inner Work Guide on a mission to help you feel more whole, confident and love yourself more.Over the past 15 years, she's worked with thousands and thousands of people across the US and guided them through yogic life transformation. Keri is the person you hire when you're ready to go deep and want an off the beaten path approach. ​​

While working with Keri, you'll feel embraced in warmth, calmness and a powerful intuitive approach that will help you find clarity in your life, heal through your body and soak in the love of her unequivocal mama energy.

Based in Greenville, SC serving people in-person and online. ​​​​​