Body mapping Refugees and asylum seekers’ perspectives of embodied trauma: an innovative method for psychotraumatology research & practice

With the population of displaced individuals reaching over 25 million people worldwide, exacerbated by recent humanitarian emergencies there is an urgent need to rapidly assess manifestations of trauma, with a focus on providing culturally informed methods for those in distress. The novel concept of ‘embodied trauma’ is body mapped and explicated using a sample of 13 displaced individuals in the United Kingdom. This study operationalises a qualitative, semi-structured interview, incorporating the Trauma Screening Questionnaire, exploratory open questions, and body mapping exercises, utilising reflexive thematic analysis of the interview data. Results map how trauma and associated emotions are experienced in the body, generating key themes to elucidate the novel term ‘embodied trauma,’ encompassing its holistic bio-psycho-social-sexual-spiritual-existential presentations. The implications of this study make the case for the innovative use of body mapping in psychotraumatology research and practice, as part of a culturally informed approach.