Trauma Rewired – The Emotional Block That No One Talks About

Podcast: Trauma Rewired
Hosts: Jennifer Wallace & Elisabeth Kristof
Guest: Matt Bush
Date: September 29, 2025

Overview of the Episode

This episode dives deep into alexithymia, a subclinical trait involving difficulty in identifying, describing, and connecting to emotions. The hosts and guest explore how alexithymia emerges from disruptions in brain-body communication, why it often remains undetected, and its profound impacts on trauma recovery, mental health, and even physical well-being. The conversation is geared towards making sense of this emotional “invisibility,” the nuance between related brain networks, and how targeted brain-based, body-centered tools (especially via Neurosomatic Intelligence – NSI) can help retrain these systems and support healing.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Understanding Alexithymia

• Not a Diagnosis, but a Trait:
  • Not considered a mental health disorder, alexithymia is a trait marked by persistent trouble identifying, describing, and connecting to emotional states ([00:31], Elizabeth Kristof).
  • “If that's you, you're not broken and you're definitely not alone.” – Elizabeth Kristof [00:31]
• Prevalence and Connection to Trauma:
  • Affects roughly 1 in 5 people; even more prevalent after trauma ([00:31], Elizabeth Kristof).
  • Heavily studied in relation to PTSD, autism spectrum, depression, psychosomatic disorders, and chronic pain ([05:58], Jennifer Wallace).

2. The Three Dimensions of Alexithymia

• Using the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS20):
  • Difficulty Identifying Feelings: Trouble recognizing emotions, distinguishing them from body sensations.
  • Difficulty Describing Feelings: Inability to put feelings into words or communicate them.
  • Externally Oriented Thinking: Focusing more on facts and external events than inner experience ([03:38], Elizabeth Kristof).

3. Neurobiological Roots

• Brain Regions Affected:
  • Insular Cortex, Anterior Cingulate Cortex, Salience Network, Amygdala ([08:31], Matt Bush).
• Unique Neural Signatures:
  • Difference between alexithymia and emotional numbing in PTSD:
    • PTSD numbing = salience network (signals are there, importance is missed).
    • Alexithymia = default mode network deficit (signals never arrive to awareness) ([08:31], Matt Bush).
  • “It’s not just an under-activation… but an under-connected network.” – Matt Bush [08:31]

4. Impact of Trauma on Emotional Awareness

• Trauma as a Driver:
  • Longer trauma exposure increases risk of alexithymia by 75% ([13:45], Elizabeth Kristof).
• Nuanced, Adaptive Origins:
  • Numbing or disconnecting are protective adaptations in response to persistent danger; these patterns may outlast the actual threat ([14:46], Jennifer Wallace).
  • “What looks like shutting down is the body creating distance from pain until it's safer to process.” – Jennifer Wallace [14:46]

5. Two Key Types: Cognitive & Affective

• Cognitive Dimension: Can’t identify/analyze/verbalize feelings even when emotions are present.
• Affective Dimension: Reduced emotional experience (signals not even there) ([15:47], Matt Bush).
  • “In the literature, there is this distinction between the loss of signaling versus the loss of understanding.” – Matt Bush [15:47]

6. The Freeze Response and Sensory Mismatch

• Alexithymia & Functional Freeze:
  • Not a fixed state; may intensify with rising stress ([25:18], Matt Bush).
  • Sensory mismatch (imprecise integration of signals) leads to flatness, anxiety, and confusion about emotional needs ([26:08], Jennifer Wallace).

7. Relational and Behavioral Effects

• Therapy & Recovery:
  • Alexithymia frequently blocks therapeutic progress, addiction recovery, and relationship intimacy ([21:47], Jennifer Wallace).
• Trans-Diagnostic Factor:
  • Amplifies risk for anxiety, depression, substance use – “Because they don't gain this traction to be able to actually move forward in how they're feeling.” – Matt Bush [22:26]

8. Healing is Possible: Neuroplasticity & Interoceptive Training

• Not a Fixed Trait:
  • Fluctuates with stress, can be retrained via practices that target interoceptive awareness and body-brain mapping ([31:04], Jennifer Wallace).
  • “Every skill is trainable, including that interceptive skill... this is something that is... at least partially reversible.” – Elizabeth Kristof [29:15]
• Evidence for Change:
  • Interoceptive training & body-based therapies measurably reduce alexithymia and improve emotion processing ([31:42], Elizabeth Kristof).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Understanding it from this neurological perspective really helps us recognize why traditional talk based strategies sometimes fall flat and why brain based tools and interoceptive training can really make such a big difference.” – Matt Bush [00:00], repeated at [03:00]
• “Once again, this is why we have these conversations because we know that healing is relational.” – Jennifer Wallace [05:58]
• “Alexithymia is not just a numbing issue… it's kind of a breakdown of this neural network.” – Matt Bush [08:31]
• “I could intellectualize all of it… but I couldn't really process it through.” – Elizabeth Kristof [11:03]
• “When therapists move into more body based, experiential and somatic tools, outcomes improve really dramatically.” – Jennifer Wallace [36:25]
• “People with alexithymia are more likely to develop chronic pain, irritable bowel syndrome, hypertension, even cardiac issues.” – Matt Bush [36:56]

Practical Strategies & Tools Discussed

1. Gentle Interoception Practices ([32:06], Matt Bush)

• Start with minimal effective doses
• Examples:
  • Breathing drills
  • Ab belt / scarf around the midsection
  • Weighted blanket or heating pad
  • Gentle movement (e.g., yin yoga, slow dynamic stretching)
  • Vagus nerve activation (vibration, humming, tapping)

2. Building Awareness in Daily Life ([33:38], Elizabeth Kristof)

• Noticing and responding to basic bodily needs (hunger, need to use restroom, thirst)
• “Consciously drop into my body… is there something that I need? And what does that feel like?” – Elizabeth Kristof [33:38]

3. Taking Action on Body Signals ([34:26], Jennifer Wallace)

• Feeling a sensation ➔ naming the need ➔ taking supportive action

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:31 – 02:21: What is alexithymia and who is affected?
• 03:38 – 05:58: Three key components (using TAS20) and personal experience
• 08:31 – 12:17: Brain regions involved, distinction with PTSD, neural networks
• 13:45 – 14:46: Trauma’s role and protective adaptation in alexithymia
• 15:47 – 19:17: Cognitive and affective dimensions, somatic vocabulary, “I don’t know” loop
• 21:47 – 23:41: Impact on therapy, addiction, relationships
• 25:18 – 26:08: Alexithymia, freeze response, and stress
• 29:15 – 31:42: Neuroplasticity, reversibility, research on interoceptive training
• 32:06 – 34:26: Specific practical interventions and daily practices
• 36:25 – 36:56: Impacts on relational health and therapy progress
• 36:56 – 38:04: Physical health consequences and call to rewire

Tone & Language

The discussion maintains an empathetic, validating, and scientific tone throughout. The hosts normalize the experience of alexithymia while also being actionable, hopeful, and precise about what neuroscience and practice can offer. The conversation blends experiential insights with hard data, always circling back to the reality that change is not only possible, but measurable and worth pursuing.

Bottom Line:
Alexithymia is a widespread, often unspoken barrier in emotional, relational, and physical health—especially after trauma. It’s driven by disrupted neural integrations but, crucially, these circuits can be retrained through gentle, body-focused, neuro-informed practices. Naming the challenge and learning new ways to map and express felt experience can transform both individual healing journeys and the capacity for deep connection with others.