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What is Somatic Therapy and why you need it

There’s a new therapy in town but its ancient as heck. They are calling it Somatic healing and its is a type of mental health counseling that helps people identify and release physical sensations and energy that are connected to difficult feelings or traumatic events. According to an article on the Harvard blog by  , Executive Editor, Harvard Women’s Health Watch

“Somatic therapy explores how the body expresses deeply painful experiences, applying mind-body healing to aid with trauma recovery.”

Basically, your emotions are stored in your body and trauma has a nasty habit of becoming a house guest that never leaves. Somatic therapy is a new science backed modality to:
  • Help people understand how their bodies express painful experiences
  • Relieve pain and stress
  • Cultivate awareness of bodily sensations
  • Teach people to feel safe in their bodies 
Somatic healing techniques include: 
  • Body awareness
    Learning to recognize and identify areas of tension in the body 

  • Grounding
    Connecting to the body and the earth, such as by feeling your feet on the ground 

  • Breathwork
    Focusing on breathing into the throat, diaphragm, jaw, and shoulders, and out into the belly and chest 

  • Mindful movement
    Using gentle stretching, yoga-inspired poses, or other intentional movements to release tension 

  • Therapeutic touch
    Using touch therapies such as coregulating touch, craniosacral therapy, or Neuro Affective touch 

  • Pendulation
    A therapist guides you from a relaxed state to a state that feels similar to a traumatic experience 

  • Titration
    A therapist guides you through a traumatic memory, asking you to observe any changes in your body 

  • Sequencing
    Paying attention to the order in which sensations of tension leave your body 

  • Resourcing
    Recalling resources in your life that make you feel safe 

Some sensations you may notice when beginning somatic healing include:
  • Nausea
  • Dizziness
  • Feeling off-balance
  • Muscle twitching
  • Muscle soreness or pain
  • Headache
  • Emotional release
  • Lack of sensation or awareness of certain muscles