"Flight Fight Freeze in a Polar Bear - Thawing of the Freeze Response. This is the video often referred to by Levine when he describes the importance of discharging traumatic pent-up energy: The key to understanding his 'Somatic Experience' treatment model is that these movements that the bear made are exhibiting his body’s natural ability to complete the motor action plan that was in place before he got attacked.

   The completion of his defensive responses of running away, as he lay on his back later as the anesthesia wore off, allowed his muscle system to reach the original peak in his arousal cycle that then would lead him to the deactivation of the remaining survival energy. He 'burnt up' all the remaining energy. His legs were moving and engaging all the muscles that are used for running, his breathing was increasing as if he was in the moment of his chase and his adrenaline was pumping.  

    Please notice the rapid eye motion during parts of the shaking discharge (not really a nerve based 'seizure', but a muscle based shaking). His eyes were looking in both lateral directions. All his responses reached a peak in their arousal cycle that allowed the energy to come back down. This 'discharge of energy' is what wild animals are able to do organically, that we have somehow forgotten how to do, thus we develop the 'frozen'  post-traumatic stress disorders."    

   Native American warriors did the same during their 'war dance' after returning from combat. They re-enacted out what they physically had done with their bodies during battle while they were dancing around the fire to the drum beat and the village was there singing with them. The Chiefs taught their young braves to shake off the ptsd and never bring it back to the village. This survival skill was a healthy part of the original  Native American Medicine.  

     I was also taught that some of the African deer, after the herd was chased by the lions, dropped into a freeze on the ground. The deer that did their shake dance when they got up survived. The deer that got up and did no shaking became the next meal- according to the African hunter/warriors.

   The deer who did not shake off the trauma lost their resilience just as the army warriors of Charlie company did, as documented by the Army, after each deployment. All the soldiers' measured resiliency scores keep dropping, tour after tour because they were never trained to shed their combat trauma as soon as they were exposed to it..