“Call of the Wild” by Kimberly Ann Johnson is a fantastic book which speaks specifically to women, the nervous system, trauma, and rewilding our bodies. This is a fairly complex book with scientific jargon but it’s well worth the read, especially if you’d like to learn more about trauma. You can buy it here or listen to it via Audible.

“Waking the Tiger” by Peter Levine is a great place to start if you want to learn more about the felt sense and thwarted instincts. Peter Levine is the founder behind the Somatic Experiencing Movement and is an incredible man with an excellent body of work. You can buy it here but I encourage you to shop locally where possible. 

“The Wild Woman’s Way” by Michaela Boehm is a fantastic read all about feminism, the joy of embodied movement, embodiment, and intuition. I highly recommend this book. You can buy it here or listen to it on Audible.

“The Body Keeps the Score” by by Bessel Van Der Kolk is a incredible book that demonstrates clearly how trauma is stored in our body. Backed with tonnes of research and studies, this is a fantastic read for practitioners and lay people alike. You can buy it here, or listen on Audible.

“Somatic Internal Family Systems Therapy” by Susan McConnell takes the already transformative modality of IFS and adds the crucial pieces of embodiment and somatics to curate an even more powerful modality. If you’re interested in parts work, this book is an excellent place to start. Note it is more for practitioners, so it is heavy on the jargon. You can buy it here or listen for free with Spotify Premium.

“No Bad Parts” by Richard Schwartz is a fantastic book if you’re interested in learning more about parts work. He speaks to healing trauma and restoring wholeness through the lens of the Internal Family Systems model. There are practical exercises to help you build a relationship with your different parts. This book articulates well the idea that there truly are no bad parts. A must read. You can find it here or listen on Audible.

“Decolonising the Body” by Kelsey Blackwell speaks to the rich and intrinsic wisdom that lives in our bodies. Decolonising is a necessary practice, regardless of if you are a woman of colour or a white-bodied woman. We all live in systems that prioritise the values of colonisation; to shrink, to be perfect, to hurry, to accrue more and more. This book is a deep breath out and gives the reader deep permission to return home; allowing ourselves to trust what we have always known. You can buy it here.

“Come as You Are” by Emily Nagoski is a fantastic read for absolutely every woman. In this book, Emily speaks to what is ‘normal’ in the world of sexual function, anatomy, desire, and pleasure. What most resonated for me was the concept of a sexual break and sexual accelerator, that we all have stimuli that either help or hinder us to ‘get in the mood’. If you’re struggling with your relationship to sex or your body, I urge you to give this book a read. You can buy it here or listen to it for free with Spotify Premium.