Somatic Therapy
Trauma is held in the body. Somatic therapy helps trauma move out and through.
“Soma”
The word somatic comes from the Latin word soma, meaning “the body.” Somatic therapy is therapy that includes what is happening in the body, utilizing the reptilian and limbic areas of the brain, as opposed to just talking through our experience and using the pre-frontal cortex.
Trauma
Through neuroscience we know that the pre-frontal cortex, responsible for higher executive functioning, is “offline” when trauma is happening. An abundance of rigorous research has shown us that we must therefore include the body and the lower regions of the brain when healing trauma.
Experience
In therapy we may pay attention to the somatic experience (what is happening in the body) when speaking about a situation or recalling a memory. It’s amazing what insight we find and what healing can occur when we see what the body is telling us (it’s always speaking).
What it’s like…
First off, we never approach any aspect of therapy without your consent. For many trauma survivors, an unconscious survival strategy is to disconnect from the body, and so there may be a part of you that is highly resistant to the idea or experience. There is actually so much insight to be gleaned from that resistance!
All of the therapy styles I offer have some level of somatic orientation, to be approached when, if and how you are ready. I can share more about this during our initial 15 min call. Feel free to schedule that now to learn more.