Somatic Psychotherapy

 
 
 

What is Somatic Psychotherapy?

Somatic therapies are body-centered therapies for depression, anxiety, trauma, and chronic pain and illness. Somatic therapies draw upon the natural wisdom of the body (posture, movement, and the nervous system) to tap into each individual’s innate wisdom we all have to heal, adapt, and adopt new ways of being. The effects of trauma, neglect, and stress from childhood are held in our nervous system, posture, movements, painful emotions, and limiting beliefs. In somatic therapy, focusing on the body and mind can accelerate healing and lead to lasting change. 

Somatic therapies are a comprehensive approach informed by physiology, neuroscience, psychology, and sociology. Like all trauma processing therapies, the three phases of treatment, safety and stabilization, trauma processing, and integration (put links to these pages) are essential to ensuring that clients are not overwhelmed by the process. Somatic therapies help by strengthening instinctual capacities for survival by helping clients develop resources that were unavailable or missing during the time the trauma or stress occurred. Once resources are developed, traumatic events and stressors can be reprocessed. Somatic therapy has a gentle yet powerful approach to healing.

The goal of somatic therapy is to help clients find agency and selfhood as they engage with their healing. Somatic therapies help us draw out the sensory information blocked and frozen by trauma and held in the body. We do this through developing a gentle curiosity about what is happening and to befriend, rather than suppressing, the energies released by our inner experiences. This approach allows clients to complete the self-preserving action that was thwarted when they were trapped, restrained, or immobilized by the trauma. Over time, this approach allows us to build internal resources that foster safe access to the sensations and emotions that overwhelmed them during the trauma. 

A somatic therapist will pay close attention to clients throughout the process to help explore where emotions are stored in the body. Somatic therapists also regularly request permission and provide choices before asking sensitive questions or doing a therapeutic technique to ensure client safety and comfort. For example, if an individual were experiencing anger, a somatic therapist might ask where in the body it is felt, “Where in your body are you noticing anger? Does it feel warm or cool? Sharp, tingly, or numb?” As the therapist and client develop an understanding of the client’s body’s language, the therapist can assist in the process of reintegration. The therapist will work with the client to complete any desired movement or action that may have been suppressed during the traumatic event(s). Through somatic therapy, clients develop a greater sense of self-control over their trauma responses by reducing overwhelm, developing insight into ways trauma affects their mind and body, and the ability to differentiate between past and present. 

What are the benefits and evidence-based of Somatic Psychotherapy?

Somatic therapies have been researched and developed for decades for developmental and complex trauma. Preliminary evidence suggests:

  • Reduction in PTSD symptoms

  • Reduction in dissociation

  • Reduction in depression

  • Reduction in anxiety

  • Reduction in interpersonal problems

  • Reduction in physical and psychological pain

  • Improvement in work functioning

  • Improvement in social functioning

  • Improvements in overall health

  • Improvement in body awareness

  • Improvements in self-regulation, receptivity, and soothing

Why is SP not considered evidence-based?

When it comes to funding scientific research, there needs to be specific measures to study. Somatic therapies are difficult to measure because it is not a cookie-cutter therapy and are modified to each individual’s unique nervous system, needs, and strengths. 

However, there are currently several studies being done on Sensorimotor Psychotherapy and Somatic Experience. Preliminary research shows that Somatic Experiencing may reduce physical symptoms in both traumatized and non-traumatized individuals. It may also reduce other trauma symptoms. There are currently studies being done on Sensorimotor Psychotherapy as well. 

To learn more about the research done and current studies, please visit https://sensorimotorpsychotherapy.org/resources/

https://traumahealing.org/se-research-and-articles/

How is Somatic Psychotherapy different from other therapies?

Somatic therapies take a “bottom-up” approach to process trauma, anxiety, and depression, which means working with the base of the brain. The base of the brain is responsible for reflexes, automatic survival, emotions, and memory. Bottom-up therapies incorporate dual awareness, thinking, and feeling, which are necessary for trauma healing. “Top-down” approaches, like traditional talk therapy or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, focus on your frontal “thinking” brain associated with thoughts, speaking, and emotional awareness and do not have the efficacy for trauma healing.

The limits of a top-down approach in therapy are that it focuses on changing thoughts from a logical point of view first, which is less effective in treating trauma. That said, somatic therapy does not ignore the top-down approach but takes a holistic approach to your mind and body. Establishing safety and learning to regulate body and mind responses require a whole-brain approach where all bodily systems are integrated.

Who is a good candidate for Somatic Psychotherapy?

Somatic therapies works especially well with those who have experienced complex developmental trauma, chronic dysregulation, and dissociation–but are also effective for those struggling with anxiety, depression, and chronic pain.

Somatic therapy has been beneficial for:

  • PTSD

  • Various forms of abuse

  • Dissociation

  • Depression

  • Anxiety

  • Anger and other emotional issues

  • Relationship issues

  • Attachment wounds

  • Domestic Violence/Intimate Partner Violence

  • Grief

  • Developmental issues

  • Chronic pain

  • Chronic stress

  • Burnout

  • First responders and other workers exposed to vicarious trauma

Who is not a good candidate for Somatic Psychotherapy?

Those who are not good candidates for somatic therapies:

  • Someone who is looking for a “quick fix” or a “magic pill” for healing

  • Someone who is not fully committed to therapy

  • Someone who might be wary of more mindfulness or body-based approaches to healing

  • Clients who are only looking for a “talk-therapy” approach