New Research – TRE® Significantly Reduces Trauma Symptoms in Refugees

Written by Hans Holter Solhjell
TRE® Global Certification Trainer
Read more about me here.

Many of the participants had experienced war, displacement, violence, and profound loss. They were living in the United States, and like many trauma survivors, they faced limited access to psychotherapy — whether due to language barriers, cultural differences, or systemic obstacles.

In this study, they were offered a simple, physical approach through TRE, learning to access neurogenic tremors — a natural shaking response in the body thought to support recovery from stress and trauma.

The women in the treatment group participated in weekly TRE group sessions for eight weeks and were encouraged to practice at home between sessions. Trauma symptoms were measured using the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ) before and after the intervention.

The results showed significant improvements:

• The treatment group showed a significant reduction in the severity of symptoms
• The severity of thirty-six out of forty items listed on the HTQ were reduced.
• 14 treatment participants endorsed the total elimination of eleven out of the forty symptoms on the HTQ.

The improvements extended beyond a general reduction in trauma symptoms and reached multiple areas of daily functioning. Participants reported fewer or no experiences of sleep disturbances, dissociation, and intrusive memories, thoughts, or bodily sensations related to past trauma.

Many also noted gains in their ability to feel and manage emotions, connect with others, and maintain a sense of competence and self-worth. Overall, participants described improvements in their quality of life, emotional regulation, concentration, relational capacity, and sense of personal agency — along with a reduction in distrust of others.

The number of symptoms that disappeared entirely suggests not only partial relief but a meaningful resolution of certain trauma-related difficulties. These included reductions in hypervigilance, irritability, and somatic tension, as well as improvements in concentration and daily engagement.

Such outcomes are noteworthy given the relatively short intervention period and the fact that TRE was delivered in a group format without individual psychotherapy. The findings indicate that a structured, body-based practice focusing on restoring physiological balance can lead to measurable psychological and emotional recovery, even among participants with extensive histories of trauma.

The authors note that TRE may be particularly well-suited for refugee populations and others who may have difficulty accessing or engaging in traditional psychotherapy.

“TRE is a self-directed method that can be practiced independently or in groups and does not require individuals to talk about or recall traumatic events.”

— Parker et al., 2024

The study also highlights that TRE appears to support increased internal safety, emotional connection, and trust in the group setting, even without verbal processing.

The findings are supported by similar outcomes in a 2016 evaluation (Download here) of a TRE group for refugees in Oslo, Norway. That group was led by Dr. Sarah Zorica Mitic (CV here) and included participants from several countries affected by war and displacement.

Participants in the Norwegian group reported feeling calmer, more emotionally stable, and better able to engage in daily activities. Teachers and support staff also observed improvements in learning, behavior, and social participation.

A more recent randomized controlled trial in Denmark (Skovgaard et al., 2025. Read here) showed that TRE had significant effects in a different context: reducing fatigue, spasticity, pain, and improving motor function in individuals diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS). These results support the hypothesis that TRE helps regulate the autonomic nervous system across different populations.

The method is designed to support physical and emotional regulation by discharging muscular tension and calming the nervous system. TRE does not require verbal expression related to past memories, making it especially relevant in cross-cultural or trauma-informed settings where talk-based approaches may be insufficient or inaccessible.

Its simplicity, scalability, and non-verbal nature make it a promising complement to other approaches in trauma recovery, stress regulation, humanitarian work, and community-based mental health support.

References

1. Parker, J., Shook, B., Washington, D., English, B., & Tatum, C. (2024). The Effect of Tension and Trauma Releasing Exercises (TRE) on Trauma Symptoms in East African Refugees. Psychology , 15 , 77-91.
   https://doi.org/10.4236/psych.2024.151006
2. Rapport om TRE- øvelser med deltakere i Introduksjonsprogram ved NAV Grünerløkka våren 2016 Av Dr. Sarah Zorica Mitic.
3. Lasse Skovgaard, PhD; Philipp Trénel, PhD; Kirsten Hanehøj, MSc; Marie Lynning, MSc. Tension and Trauma Releasing Exercises for People with Multiple Sclerosis: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Article in Advances in Mind-body Medicine · January 2025. 
   https://www.researchgate.net/publication/389716341_Tension_and_Trauma_Releasing_Exercises_for_People_with_Multiple_Sclerosis_A_Randomized_Controlled_Trial
   

You can read more about TRE on this page.

I’m Hans Holter Solhjell—TRE® Global Certification Trainer, practitioner of Somatic Experiencing®, the Feldenkrais Method, the Sounder Sleep System, Conflict Resolution Educator, and developer of The Response Funnel Model and the PLS Framework.

Through my courses and trainings, I bring together the insights and tools I’ve developed over decades to support your process—toward deeper release, greater integration, and a more intuitive connection with your body’s natural intelligence.

You can read more about me here.