Have you ever noticed how your body reacts to stress, anxiety, or past trauma?

Whether it’s a racing heart, brain fog or an upset stomach, everyone’s bodies deal with these issues in different ways. 

Somatic therapy directly explores this mind-body connection, recognising that our emotions and past experiences can manifest physically, often in uncomfortable ways. 

Unlike traditional talk therapy, which primarily focuses on thoughts and emotions, somatic therapy delves into the body's wisdom, helping you become aware of the physical sensations you experience. 

The somatic healing approach acknowledges that trauma, stress, and difficult emotions can become trapped in the body, leading to various challenges like anxiety, depression, and even chronic pain. 

Somatic therapy gently guides you to release these trapped energies, allowing your nervous system to regulate and restore balance.

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What is the somatic approach in therapy?

At its core, somatic therapy recognises the deep connection between your mind and body. 

An example of this could be that when feeling anxious, you may notice your heart pounding, your muscles tightening or your stomach churning. These physical sensations come directly from your body’s fight or flight response, and they’re your body’s way of communicating its distress. 

Talk therapy focuses primarily on discussing individuals’ thoughts and emotions, but somatic therapy aims to dive further into the bodily sensations that are linked to our emotions and experiences. 

It can help you to become more aware of these uncomfortable bodily sensations, understand their language, and ultimately release the pent-up tension they hold. 

Somatic therapy can be used to treat a wide range of issues including PTSD, anxiety, grief, depression, addiction and stress. 

Being more aware of your bodily sensations can be incredibly liberating, allowing you to access a deeper level of healing and self-awareness. 

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What theory is somatic therapy based on?

Throughout the years, human bodies have always had remarkable self-preservation tactics. When faced with overwhelming or dangerous experiences, our bodies go into “survival” mode, activating our fight-flight or freeze responses. 

Whilst this is a natural and helpful response when facing actual danger such as an animal attack, our bodies don’t know the difference between real danger and situations where we’re simply feeling anxious. This means that sometimes those survival energies get stuck, leading to chronic pain, anxiety or even illnesses. 

Somatic therapy works to help individuals gently and safely release these trapped energies, allowing their nervous systems to regulate and return to a state of balance. 

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3 Types of somatic therapy

As with any healing journey, somatic therapy isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. It encompasses various modalities, each with its own unique focus and techniques. 

Somatic Experiencing (SE), originally developed by Peter Levine, gently guides individuals through processing traumatic experiences through tracking bodily sensations and promoting a sense of safety. 

Another approach, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, blends talk therapy with body-centred interventions, helping individuals to connect with and heal from past traumas by exploring how they show up in your physical movements and posture.

Stephen Porges’ Polyvagal Theory is another way to reduce stress. This theory revolutionises our understanding of the autonomic nervous system and its profound impact on our emotional and physical well-being. It explains how our nervous system, particularly the vagus nerve, responds to stress and how we can utilise specific exercises to feel more relaxed and improve our emotional resilience.

Through polyvagal exercises such as deep, slow breathing, gargling, humming, brief cold exposure, and positive social engagement, we can stimulate our vagus nerve and soothe our nervous system. This can help reduce stress hormones and promote a sense of calm and wellbeing. 

Each of these approaches offers a unique pathway to explore the mind-body connection and facilitate deep healing. When beginning your somatic healing journey, you should consider which one will work best for your unique situation and preferences. 

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What are the benefits of somatic experiencing?

From lingering effects of trauma and PTSD, to anxiety and depression, somatic experiencing offers a wide range of benefits for individuals facing various mental health challenges.

For those who suffer with anxiety, somatic therapy can provide a powerful pathway to understanding the links between anxious thoughts and physical sensations such as sweating, stomach ache and rapid breathing. 

By learning to regulate your nervous system through somatic techniques like grounding and breathwork, you can reduce your anxiety symptoms and cultivate a sense of calm. This will help you navigate stressful situations with greater ease.

Somatic therapy can also be a profound support for those dealing with depression. By releasing tension held in the body and cultivating a deeper connection to your physical self, you can begin to address the underlying emotional and physical patterns that contribute to your depression. This can lead to more energy, a renewed feeling of being alive, and a reconnection to joy and pleasure in the everyday.

Stress is another common experience that takes a toll on many individuals’ day-to-day wellbeing. Somatic therapy equips you with tools to manage stress by increasing body awareness and developing self-regulation skills. You'll learn to recognise the early signs of stress in your body and develop healthy coping mechanisms to navigate challenging situations in the future.

For those struggling with addiction issues, somatic therapy can be a valuable complement to traditional addiction treatment. By addressing the underlying emotional and physical factors that contribute to addictive behaviours, you can gain a deeper understanding of your relationship with addiction and, in time, develop healthier coping strategies.

Somatic therapy can also offer support to those navigating grief and loss. Grief can manifest deeply in the body, leaving suffering individuals feeling heavy, exhausted, disconnected and flat. Somatic healing is safe and compassionate, allowing individuals to process the intense physical and emotional pain of loss.

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How long does somatic therapy take to work?

As with any therapy journey, the duration of somatic therapy varies depending on the individual’s needs and goals. Some may experience significant shifts within a few sessions, whilst others may benefit from longer-term therapy. 

It’s important to remember that healing is a journey, not a destination, and you should work on your own timeline. Somatic therapy aims to connect you with your inner wisdom and develop the skills to navigate life’s challenges with greater ease and resilience. 

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Somatic Therapy Near You

If you're curious about exploring somatic therapy, I encourage you to reach out to me. I offer both in-person sessions at my clinic near Warrington, Cheshire, and online sessions via Zoom. Together, we can embark on a journey of healing and self-discovery, guided by the wisdom of your body.

Start your therapy journey or get in touch with me today to find out more.