A Simplified Way to Understand the Brain — and Why Trauma Healing Often Needs More Than Talk Therapy
- Randi Camirand
- Feb 6
- 4 min read
Trauma-informed Therapy
When you’re healing from trauma, it can feel confusing—even frustrating—when insight alone doesn’t bring relief.
This isn’t because you’re stuck or resistant.
It’s because trauma doesn’t live in just one part of the brain.
This is where understanding the triune brain becomes deeply supportive.
Let’s explore what it is, where it came from, how it’s evolved, and how trauma experts use it — even though it’s not the full scientific picture.
🧠 What Is the Triune Brain?
The Triune Brain model was proposed in the 1960s by neuroscientist Paul D. MacLean.
The idea is that the human brain has three "layers":
Brainstem and basal ganglia (The Reptilian Brain or The Survival Brain) — survival instincts
Limbic System (The Emotional Brain) — emotions and memory
Neocortex (The Thinking Brain) — thinking, reasoning, language
This model gives a metaphor that feels intuitive: ➡️ survive → feel → think.
In trauma healing, it’s common to hear something like: “Your reptilian brain got scared, your limbic brain stored the memory, and your neocortex didn’t have a chance to make sense of it.”
The Triune Brain is more metaphor than literal anatomy. Yet… it still resonates with many learners because it simplifies a complex system into something we can understand.
💛 What Happens When I Get Triggered?
The part of the brain that first recognizes a threat and sets off the alarm is primarily the amygdala, which is part of the limbic system (emotional brain).
Here’s how it works in the context of trauma and the triune brain:
The amygdala acts like the brain’s “smoke detector.” It constantly scans for danger in your environment.
When it perceives a threat—real or even a memory of danger—it activates the brainstem to trigger the fight, flight, freeze or collapse response.Your heart may race, your muscles may tighten, or you may feel stuck or frozen. This is your body trying to keep you safe, even if your mind knows you’re not in danger. This is why your survival brain reacts before your thinking brain can assess the situation rationally.
The Emotional Brain (Limbic System), when triggered, may flood you with strong emotions—fear, grief, anger, or shame. Sometimes these feelings are linked to past experiences rather than the present moment. This is why triggers can feel overwhelming and out of proportion.
The thinking Brain (Prefrontal Cortex), the part responsible for reasoning, planning, and perspective, often shuts down during a trigger. You may feel scattered and unable to think clearly. Insight alone can’t calm the system because the thinking brain isn’t fully online yet.
The hippocampus (also in the limbic system) usually helps distinguish past from present, but in trauma, it can be less reliable, which is why old patterns or memories can trigger strong bodily responses even in safe situations. isn’t just a memory — it’s stored in the nervous system.
More About the Thinking Brain
When the Thinking Brain/prefrontal cortex shuts down, your ability to reason, plan, and make sense of what’s happening becomes limited. This often happens in trauma because the brain shifts into survival mode—the brainstem and limbic system take over to keep you safe.
Healing is about creating safety and regulation in the nervous system so that the Thinking Brain/prefrontal cortex can gradually reconnect, allowing insight, choice, and integration to follow naturally.
How This Shapes My Work
In my work with therapy clients and meditation students, we slow things down, we listen to the body, we attune to and support emotions. We learn how to stay present with sensation, emotion, and activation in ways that are tolerable and grounding.
This approach is especially supportive if:
You understand why something is happening, but your body still reacts
Traditional talk therapy hasn’t fully reached the places where the charge lives
Meditation sometimes feels destabilizing rather than calming
You want healing that includes both awareness and the nervous system
Healing happens by creating enough safety. Over time, reactions soften. Emotional charge unwinds. Choice returns — not because you made it happen, but because your system no longer has to stay on guard.
If you’re curious about working together, I offer trauma-informed therapy and somatic, meditation-based support for individuals navigating anxiety, trauma, and nervous system overwhelm.
Our work is collaborative, paced, and grounded in what your body is ready for — nothing more, nothing less.
You don’t have to understand everything to begin.Your system already knows the way forward.
You are not alone. I am available for individual sessions, when you are ready.
In the meantime, here are some Resources For Your Healing Journey:
Read blog posts from my series When the Spell Breaks: Healing from Narcissistic Abuse. https://www.randicamirand.com/blog/categories/healing-from-narcissistic-abuse
Follow my Women’s Wintering Well Series on Instagram for almost daily self-care reminders. https://www.instagram.com/randicamirand/
10 Grounding Practices for Women
Visit my Homepage www.randicamirand.com
Learn more About Me and My Approach https://www.randicamirand.com/about
Learn about my Women’s Online Meditation Classes and email sign up to receive notifications. https://www.randicamirand.com/womens-meditation-classes
Check out The Blog for t
herapy insights and self-help tips.
