Somatic Psychotherapy
Do you ever notice that when you feel an emotion, there is a physical response associated with it?
The feeling of anxiety can cause your palms to sweet, your heart to race, similar to the feeling of excitement. Our mind and our bodies are connected and as a therapist that has this holistic understanding allows an integrated therapeutic experience.
Somatic psychotherapy is a therapeutic approach that integrates the body and mind, recognizing the profound connection between physical sensations, emotional states, and psychology. Unlike traditional talk therapies that primarily focus on cognitive processes, somatic psychotherapy takes a holistic approach, acknowledging that emotions, stress, and unresolved experiences are not only processed mentally but are also processed through the body. By exploring this mind-body connection, somatic psychotherapy can help individuals access, understand, and release emotional and physical dynamics, promoting holistic healing.
The Concept of Somatic Psychotherapy
The term “somatic” is derived from the Greek word "soma," meaning body. In somatic psychotherapy, this body-centered approach is central. It’s based on the understanding that our physical bodies hold a wealth of information about how we experience and process emotions. When we go through stressful or difficult experiences, emotional tension often becomes stored in the body. Somatic psychotherapy is designed to tap into this connection and help you understand the physical manifestations of your emotional landscape.
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How Somatic Psychotherapy Works
Somatic psychotherapy employs several techniques to bring the mind-body connection into awareness and facilitate healing. These methods can help individuals engage with their body, emotions, and energy, with the potential to allow deep emotional processing. Some examples are:
Tracking Bodily Sensations and Mindfulness
In somatic psychotherapy, one of the foundational techniques is tracking bodily sensations. Somatic counseling operates with a focus on the present moment, often referred to as the “here-and-now.” The therapist guides the client to become aware of what’s happening physically as they explore their emotions. For example, while discussing a stressful event, you may begin to notice tightness in your chest or tension in your jaw. In session I may ask, “Where in your body do you feel that emotion?” or “What happens in your body when you talk about this situation?” By tracking these sensations, you can become more aware of how your body responds to different emotional states creating a more connected and holistic understanding of your system processes information.
Somatic psychotherapy recognizes that the mind and body are interconnected. What we think and feel on an emotional level can manifests physically. By the client becoming aware of their physical sensations, they can uncover emotional insights and by becoming aware of their emotional experience, they can become aware of how they hold those emotions in their body.
Breathwork and Grounding
Breathing techniques are used in somatic psychotherapy to help regulate the nervous system and return the body to a state of calm. For example, breathing deeply into the diaphragm activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps relax the body. Similarly, grounding techniques, such as feeling the weight of your body connected to the ground or noticing the contact between your feet and the floor, can help you stay connected to the present moment. Grounding practices can help you feel more anchored.
Posture and Movement Awareness
Movement and posture can be helpful aspects of somatic psychotherapy. Emotions often have physical manifestations, such as tense muscles or a stiff posture. Through gentle movement or postural awareness, clients can become more attuned to how their body holds or expresses emotions.
Potential Benefits of Somatic Psychotherapy
Somatic psychotherapy can offer a range of benefits for individuals seeking healing from emotional distress, anxiety, stress, or difficult life experiences. Some key benefits may include:
Enhanced Self Awareness: By cultivating body awareness and tracking physical sensations, somatic psychotherapy can help individuals understand how emotions manifest in the body.
Better Self-Regulation: Through techniques such as breath work and grounding, clients can learn how to better regulate their nervous system.
Holistic Healing: Somatic psychotherapy works with both the emotional and the awareness of physical aspects of distress, and can support in integrating the body, mind, and emotions.
Improved Coping Strategies: Somatic therapy can help individuals develop physical awareness and somatic tools for managing emotional triggers and stress.
Somatic Therapy
I use somatic psychotherapy to offer a holistic and integrative approach to help clients better understand their inner experience across multiple perspectives — mental, physical, emotional, and, if relevant to your process, spiritual. Through the somatic process, we focus on the “here-and-now,” tracking your physical, emotional, and energetic experience as it unfolds in the present moment. This method allows you to gain deeper insight into how your body’s responses are connected to your feelings, thoughts, and behaviors. We’ll explore your emotions and physical sensations together to find healing pathways that resonate with your unique experience.
Please note: Somatic Psychotherapy is different than Body Work, massage or other physical/touch interventions. There may be practitioners that practice both, however I do not, as I am psychotherapist and my scope of practice is only psychotherapy. My work as a somatic psychotherapist is to help client’s understand their relationship to their somatic experience (mind-body connection) and to offer tools to help them regulate.
“Neuroscience research shows that the only way we can change the way we feel is by becoming aware of our inner experience and learning to befriend what is going inside ourselves.”
