Somatic therapy

 What is it

Somatic therapy is a form of psychotherapy that focuses on the connection between the mind and body. It recognizes that our bodies hold onto experiences, including trauma and stress, and that these experiences can manifest as physical symptoms. Unlike traditional talk therapy, which primarily focuses on cognitive processes, somatic therapy incorporates body-oriented techniques to release stored trauma, re-wire the body's neural pathway response to traumatic memories or life stressors and promote healing. 

Here's a breakdown of what somatic therapy techniques entail:

Core Principles:

• Mind-Body Connection: 
  • Somatic therapy emphasizes the interconnectedness of the mind and body. It acknowledges that emotions and experiences are not solely mental but also have physical manifestations. 
• Body Awareness: 
  • A key aspect of somatic therapy is cultivating awareness of bodily sensations. This involves paying attention to physical feelings, such as tension, tightness, or warmth. 
• Trauma Processing: 
  • Somatic therapy is particularly effective in addressing mild trauma, as it helps individuals release trapped energy and emotions that are stored in the body. 
• Self-Regulation: 
  • Somatic techniques aim to help clients develop the ability to regulate their nervous systems and manage emotional responses.

What to expect

 During the visit, I will use the following Sensorimotor techniques with you:

• Sensorimotor Hypnotherapy: 
  • This approach integrates body-oriented techniques with hypnotherapy to address trauma and emotional issues. 
• Therapeutic Touch: 
  • Gentle touch will be used to promote relaxation and release tension. Specific areas of the body generate calming and regulating endorphins and chemicals to help Re-Program the system and in essence, re-wire the body's neural pathway response to the traumatic memory or life stressor, and promote healing. I'll instruct you in self-touch on certain areas of upper body known to release those beneficial endorphins, or if you prefer, I can administer therapeutic touch for you.

The Process:

We'll typically follow these steps in a session:

• Identifying the Issue: 
  • I will work with you to identify the specific traumatic or stressful memory or emotion to be addressed.
• Activating the Memory: 
  • You'll be asked to briefly recall the distressing memory or emotion in order to activate the associated neural pathways.
•  Therapeutic Touch, Light Trance Hypnosis, and Distraction: 
  • While the you recall the memory, either you or I will apply Therapeutic Touch to those areas which generate those Re-Programming endorphins and chemicals within the body. At the same time, I will induce a light trance using hypnotherapy. This allows for distraction of the conscious mind so that the neural pathways can easily be re-wired. The following distraction or hypnotherapy techniques will be used:
    • Counting
    • Visualizing pleasant scenes
    • Humming or singing 
    • Eye movements 

Initial Somatic Treatment Session

This is a one-hour session where we'll address your pre-defined goals and facilitate healing so you can finally become unstuck. This session will allow for the reprogramming of your less-than-optimal nervous system responses, which are manifesting as stuckness, phobias or emotional pain. During the session, your brain will effortlessly build new, more optimal neural pathways. This transformational hour will enable you to achieve a more happy, healthy, fully abundant current and future state of being. Your stuck loops and phobias will become a thing of the past.

Follow-up Somatic Treatment (existing client)

During the session, we polish up any work we've done previously, or address any new issues which you may have unlocked. This is for existing clients only.