Somatic Therapy for Trauma
“This is your body, your greatest gift, pregnant with wisdom you do not hear, grief you thought was forgotten, and joy you have never known.”
~ Marion Woodman
~ Marion Woodman
These days, we're all carrying around a lot more stress in our bodies than we need. We are more disconnected from our bodies than ever, and as a result, are cut off from the incredible wisdom of the thing that helps us get around each day. And it's not hard to see when we look out into the world how harsh our modern world is, how easy it is to fall into powerlessness and despair (freeze), how challenging it is to feel balanced from moment to moment. Our physical and mental health has suffered greatly from these conditions.
I rely on several psychobiological models to resolve trauma and unecessary contraction in the body and to restore a sense of well-being to the system and flow to the nervous system, including Somatic Experiencing® (SE) and Organic Intelligence® (OI). I have learned to utilize the wisdom of the body to resolve symptoms of anxiety, depression, PTSD, and the like through releasing deeply held stress from the body.
SE® was developed by Peter Levine, who studied stress physiology, psychology, biology, neuroscience, ethology, medical biophysics, and indigenous healing practices as he developed SE®.
What Peter realized was what animals understand and what ancient humans knew - that our human physiology has an innate ability to resolve trauma, and that we can harness that wisdom to heal ourselves. As it turns out, our heart/mind/body already knows how to heal. A good trauma therapist can create a safe and supportive container and provide direction to help you begin to hear the messages your body has been sending you, and begin to release the stress it's been holding.
As a somatic therapist, I encourage the opening up of stuck impulses, which for many westerners include: empowerment, general disinhibition, play, spontaneity, creativity, rest, healthy aggression, intuition, enjoyment of pleasure and the like. I encourage reconnection to nature and the natural, softening, and trusting what's underneath our intellect and beliefs more than we trust our intellect and beliefs. I have seen how reconnecting to a healthy aggressive impulse can restore a sense of wholeness and self-worth and make boundary-setting relatively effortless. I have seen how important it is to step outside of our patriarchal capitalistic paradigm and reestablish values such as resting, self-care, and pleasure.
I can help you support your system in learning, (or re-learning), how to regulate itself, and help you restore a sense of safety and aliveness to your experience in the world.
Life is rich, and so incredibly beautiful when we can embrace it in its suchness.
SE® has been shown to help provide relief from conditions such as:
I've also trained in several similar other models designed to support nervous system regulation: Steve Terrell's Transforming the Experience-Based Brain, and the Embodied Recovery model for the treatment of eating disorders.
I rely on several psychobiological models to resolve trauma and unecessary contraction in the body and to restore a sense of well-being to the system and flow to the nervous system, including Somatic Experiencing® (SE) and Organic Intelligence® (OI). I have learned to utilize the wisdom of the body to resolve symptoms of anxiety, depression, PTSD, and the like through releasing deeply held stress from the body.
SE® was developed by Peter Levine, who studied stress physiology, psychology, biology, neuroscience, ethology, medical biophysics, and indigenous healing practices as he developed SE®.
What Peter realized was what animals understand and what ancient humans knew - that our human physiology has an innate ability to resolve trauma, and that we can harness that wisdom to heal ourselves. As it turns out, our heart/mind/body already knows how to heal. A good trauma therapist can create a safe and supportive container and provide direction to help you begin to hear the messages your body has been sending you, and begin to release the stress it's been holding.
As a somatic therapist, I encourage the opening up of stuck impulses, which for many westerners include: empowerment, general disinhibition, play, spontaneity, creativity, rest, healthy aggression, intuition, enjoyment of pleasure and the like. I encourage reconnection to nature and the natural, softening, and trusting what's underneath our intellect and beliefs more than we trust our intellect and beliefs. I have seen how reconnecting to a healthy aggressive impulse can restore a sense of wholeness and self-worth and make boundary-setting relatively effortless. I have seen how important it is to step outside of our patriarchal capitalistic paradigm and reestablish values such as resting, self-care, and pleasure.
I can help you support your system in learning, (or re-learning), how to regulate itself, and help you restore a sense of safety and aliveness to your experience in the world.
Life is rich, and so incredibly beautiful when we can embrace it in its suchness.
SE® has been shown to help provide relief from conditions such as:
- Complex PTSD
- Chronic gastrointestinal issues
- Insomnia
- Fibromyalgia
- Pelvic pain
- Unexplained Chronic Pain
- Amputation Pain
- Bladder interstitial cystitis
I've also trained in several similar other models designed to support nervous system regulation: Steve Terrell's Transforming the Experience-Based Brain, and the Embodied Recovery model for the treatment of eating disorders.
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Book Recommendations:
Waking the Tiger, Healing Trauma, In an Unspoken Voice, Peter Levine Nurturing Resilience, Kathy Kain and Steve Terrell The Heart of Trauma, Bonnie Badenoch The Body Keeps the Score, Bessel van der Kolk When the Body Says No, Gabor Mate Healing Developmental Trauma, Lawrence Heller & Aline LaPierre Trauma-Informed Approaches to Eating Disorders, Andrew Seubert & Pam Virdi |
“Many people on the spiritual path believe that the physical body is less sacred than the spirit of the Self. Your body is crucial for your work on the planet. Honor her; treat her with the greatest respect and love. She is your responsibility. Great music requires a finely tuned instrument. Spirituality requires a finely tuned body and mind capable of aligning itself with the Self.” |
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You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves. Tell me about your despair, yours, and I will tell you mine. Meanwhile the world goes on. Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain are moving across the landscapes, over the prairies and the deep trees, the mountains and the rivers. Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air, are heading home again. Whoever you are, no matter how lonely, the world offers itself to your imagination, calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting -- over and over announcing your place in the family of things. ~ Mary Oliver, "Wild Geese" |
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