The Somatic Experiencing method is an additional “tool” in the skill set of a psychotherapist. It is a body-oriented psychobiological approach that emphasizes guiding the client’s attention to the bodily sensations of their experience in a very specific manner in order to help the nervous system to slowly, carefully and organically release traumatic shock at the emotional, and most important, at the physiological level.
High stress, or cumulative stress may lead to an injury of the nervous system, resulting in what is often called trauma. It is when the body continues to perceive itself as still under threat, even though there is no actual threat being present. It may be physical, emotional, or developmental trauma, or several types at the same time.
Unresolved trauma creates effects that people often do not realize are connected to their past traumatic experiences. It may include feelings and sensations such as: being anxious, exhausted, or indifferent; being trapped with a constant repeated loops of thinking, memories, or internal images; inability to sleep properly; not being able to focus, or take action toward that what is needed, or desired to be done; avoiding contact with other people; experiencing uncomfortable bodily sensations, such as breathlessness, surface breathing, or panic breathing, different types of aches, unpleasant stomach feelings, digestive upsets, blushing, muscle tension, fatigue, ear muffling, and many other possible manifestations of stress. It may feel as if those symptoms are coming out of nowhere, or they are always present at the background of one’s life, periodically coming into the foreground.
The Somatic Experiencing approach offers a framework to assess where a person’s nervous system is “stuck” in the self-protective and defensive biological responses, and provides clinical tools to resolve these fixated physiological states, transform old patterns, and strengthen resiliency. It works to turn off this threat alarm that at times causes severe dysregulation and dissociation. Ultimately, in the process of therapy clients gain more freedom and a sense of aliveness.