"The Body Keeps Score" Says It Right, Guest Beverly Armento

In this powerful episode, we welcome Beverly Armento, an inspiring author, motivational speaker, and advocate for children, teachers, and the power of resilience. Beverly's life story is one of profound hardship, courage, and eventual healing. From an early age, she was thrust into the role of caretaker for her blind, artistic, and mentally ill mother. Though Beverly excelled in school and in the world, she was privately suffocated by her mother's rage, delusions, and physical and emotional trauma. For seventeen years, Beverly endured unthinkable pain and suffering at the hands of her mother. At one point, she felt so overwhelmed by hopelessness that she even considered suicide.During what she describes as a literal "dark night of the soul," Beverly had a pivotal moment of reckoning. In the midst of this inner turmoil, she found herself mentally grappling with God, her angel teachers, and even her first-year teaching students. In this intense internal struggle, she was faced with the stark pros and cons of life itself. It was in that moment of desperation and confrontation with her own fears that Beverly experienced a profound shift. She emerged from the darkness with a renewed sense of hope and a deep understanding of the lessons her angel teachers had passed on to her: to love learning, to believe in herself, and to embrace resilience and hope.Despite this shift, Beverly’s journey of healing was not immediate. Even though she ran away from home to escape her toxic environment, she continued to carry the weight of untreated trauma into her adult life. It wasn't until 20 years later that Beverly sought psychological help and began to confront the lasting impact of her childhood experiences. She now recognizes that trauma, especially when left untreated, can manifest physically and emotionally throughout a person's life.Drawing on the insights of Dr. Bessel van der Kolk’s groundbreaking work, The Body Keeps the Score, which you can grab here. Beverly emphasizes how trauma isn't just a mental or emotional experience—it also has a profound effect on the body. The body, as Dr. van der Kolk suggests, keeps score of all our unresolved pain, and this manifests in various ways, including chronic illness, physical pain, and emotional dysfunction. Beverly shares how her own body bore the brunt of her untreated trauma for decades before she began her healing journey.In this episode, Beverly candidly discusses the lifelong consequences of living with untreated trauma and the journey toward healing. She reflects on her 50-year career as an educator, where she used her own story of resilience to inspire and uplift others. As a motivational speaker and advocate, Beverly now dedicates her life to helping others understand the transformative power of resilience, hope, and the belief that we all have the ability to choose happiness—even in the face of the most challenging circumstances.Listeners will come away from this conversation with a deeper understanding of trauma, its lasting impact, and the importance of seeking help in order to heal. Beverly’s story serves as a testament to the power of the human spirit and the strength we all have to overcome even the most devastating of experiences.To learn more about Beverly , you can visit her at : https://www.beverlyarmentoauthor.comhttps://www.youtube.com/@beverlyarmento8430https://www.instagram.com/beverlyarmento/