Somatic Experiencing®: A Gentle Trauma Healing Modality

May 30, 2024

Many people go through traumatic events in their lives. These may include one-off, drastic incidents such as (sexual) violence, natural disasters, or severe (car) accidents. Long-term situations like repeated abuse, emotional or physical maltreatment, serious illness, chronic pain, living in a war zone, overwhelming stress, or neglect can also lead to trauma. Even more ‘everyday’ events, such as medical procedures, childbirth, the loss of a loved one, a fall, or a divorce, can result in trauma and its symptoms.

Trauma symptoms can surface years after the event and may include:

1. PTSD

2. Constantly feeling ‘on edge’ or hypervigilant, which can lead to sleep issues, concentration problems, excessive worry, anxiety, or a short temper.

3. Being overly sensitive to stimuli and stress.

4. Re-experiencing the traumatic event through flashbacks and nightmares.

5. Experiencing negative emotions and thoughts such as guilt, shame, or a lack of joy, making it seem like nothing interests you anymore.

6. Feeling disconnected from your body or others, making it difficult to recognize your own desires and boundaries.

7. Struggling to connect with your emotions, feeling numb, or experiencing dissociation.

8. Physical issues like chronic pain, fatigue, and digestive problems such as IBS.

Because unprocessed trauma affects both the body and the nervous system, traditional talk therapy often falls short. It helps you understand your reactions, but it doesn’t necessarily make you feel better. That’s why an approach involving your body, nervous system, and mind is crucial.
Somatic Experiencing® (SE) is designed to address this need.

What is Trauma

Not every impactful event result in unresolved trauma. Trauma occurs when an event happens too quickly, is too overwhelming, and/or is too much for your nervous system to process.

Here’s how it works: when there is a threat of danger, the body’s natural response is to activate one of the survival strategies: fight, flight, or freeze. This process is controlled by our autonomic nervous system and doesn’t involve our thinking brain. Once the threat has passed, our autonomous system discharges the activated survival energy, and the body returns to a state of “rest and recovery.”

However, sometimes it’s not possible to discharge the survival energy of ‘fight, flight, or freeze.’ When this happens, the body cannot return to a state of ”rest and recovery” after the incident. The body remains stuck in action mode, and the survival energy is stored.

A key factor in whether trauma is processed is whether there was room and support to discharge your survival energy. This process occurs at the level of your body and nervous system, not your thinking brain.

It’s important to understand that trauma is not about the event itself, but about your individual body and nervous system’s response to the event. This is why two people can experience the same event, but it is traumatizing for one and not the other.

What is Somatic Experiencing ® ?

Somatic Experiencing® helps you regulate your body and integrate trauma. Step by step, you learn to listen to your body and the ”language” it speaks by tuning into bodily sensations, known as the felt sense. Instead of only talking about the traumatic event, I help you bring forward the non-verbal story of the event, as it is embedded in your body and nervous system. This might involve making the defensive move that you couldn’t make at the time.

The focus is on the felt sense—bodily sensations in the here and now, such as heat, tingling, cold, or contraction. By becoming aware of where tension associated with unprocessed trauma exists in your body, you can work to discharge this tension, allowing the trauma to be processed.

Somatic Experiencing® is a gradual method. We proceed at the pace your nervous system allows. Therefore, if you are looking for a quick fix, this may not be the right approach for you.

What is the Purpose of Somatic Experiencing ® ?

Somatic Experiencing® aims to increase your capacity to handle life’s challenges. Traumas become scars—part of your past. You regain control; instead of instinctively entering survival mode, you can make conscious choices again.

This brings strength, relaxation, confidence, and joy in life. As you feel more connected to your body, you become more confident, clearer about your desires and boundaries, and your relationships with others improve. Physical complaints resulting from trauma can decrease or even disappear.

However, resolving trauma doesn’t make you immune to life’s normal ups and downs. It won’t prevent you from experiencing sadness, anger, disappointment, grief, or other emotions. But you will find that you are better equipped to handle these challenges.

What Does a Somatic Experiencing ® Session look like?

Somatic Experiencing® is not about recounting your story or reliving your traumatic event. Instead, Somatic Experiencing® helps you bring forward and process the non-verbal story of the event, as it has lodged itself in your body and nervous system.

In our sessions, we use several practical and effective exercises to help you reconnect with your body and tune into your bodily sensations, the felt sense. Many people with trauma symptoms have learned to stay in their heads, not their bodies. We teach your brain to feel safe in the present moment.

Once you reconnect with your body and the felt sense, you can start to resolve your trauma. A significant benefit of connecting with your body and sensations is that you will also connect with all the sensations of pleasure and joy in your body.

Would you like to discuss if Somatic Experiencing® might help you to improve your sexuality, sensuality and relationships? Please reach out for a free, no strings attached discovery call.

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