Nightmares: Treating with Polyvagal Theory & Felt Sense of the Body with Dr. Leslie Ellis

19/10/2025 54 min Episodio 5
Nightmares: Treating with Polyvagal Theory & Felt Sense of the Body with Dr. Leslie Ellis

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Episode Synopsis

Nightmares are robustly linked with trauma and many other forms of psychological injury, including a 4x greater risk of suicide. Yet they are vastly under-treated — which is a shame because nightmare treatment is simple, effective and evidence based. Guest Dr. Leslie Ellis shares:

how polyvagal theory helps us to understand why we or our clients have nightmares
how the body holds nightmares in the nervous system
how to use nightmares to diagnose and track clinical progress
how to help those who suffer from disturbed dreaming

Dr. Ellis is a leading expert in the use of experiential and somatic approaches in psychotherapy, in particular for working with dreams, nightmares and the effects of trauma. She is the author of A Clinician’s Guide to Dream Therapy. As adjunct faculty at Adler University, she taught clinical skills and trauma treatment. She is a Certifying Coordinator and past president of The International Focusing Institute, and former vice president of the International Association for the Study of Dreams. Website: https://drleslieellis.com/

Request her article she mentioned during the show here: https://drleslieellis.com/pre-pub-solving-the-nightmare-mystery/

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