Trauma profoundly impacts not just our emotions and mind, but also our physical body. Whether it results from a single catastrophic event, ongoing stress, or childhood adversity, trauma often disrupts the body’s natural ability to regulate itself.
Somatic Experiencing (SE), a body-based therapeutic approach developed by Dr. Peter Levine in the 1970s, seeks to address this disruption by helping individuals release stored energy in the body and help the body come back to a natural pendulation between times of more and less activation in the nervous system.
Unlike many trauma treatments that focus primarily on cognitive processing, SE emphasizes the body’s innate healing abilities, encouraging individuals to listen to and process their somatic (bodily) sensations.
This article will delve into the principles of Somatic Experiencing, explain how it differs from traditional talk therapies, and provide two short examples to illustrate its application and versatility.
Trauma occurs, when an individual experiences something so overwhelming, that it exceeds their ability to cope. The body’s autonomic nervous system (ANS) plays a critical role in managing our responses to stress. When faced with danger, the body activates the “fight,” “flight,” or “freeze” responses. These physiological reactions are meant to be temporary—once the threat is resolved, the body naturally discharges the excess energy and returns to a balanced state.
However, if the body cannot fully process these responses, such as when a person is immobilized by fear or helplessness, the unresolved energy can become trapped within the nervous system. This unprocessed survival energy manifests as a range of symptoms—chronic pain, anxiety, dissociation, hypervigilance, and other physical or emotional issues. These lingering symptoms are signs of trauma’s effect on the nervous system.
Unlike many animals in the wild, humans have a tendency to override or suppress their natural stress-release mechanisms. Animals instinctively discharge their survival energy through shaking, trembling, or other physical movements after a stressful event. Humans, on the other hand, often internalize the stress, leaving it unresolved in their bodies. Somatic Experiencing aims to address this by helping individuals release this trapped energy.
SE therapy is rooted in several key principles:
Unlike traditional talk therapy, SE does not require clients to verbally relive their traumatic experiences. Instead, the focus is on the body’s sensations and how the nervous system responds to certain triggers. Sessions typically involve:
Let’s take the example of John, a 40-year-old man who sought Somatic Experiencing therapy for unresolved childhood trauma. John had grown up in an abusive household, where he frequently felt trapped and helpless. After all these years he still experienced panic attacks, chronic back pain, and an overwhelming sense of fear in certain situations. He often felt “frozen” or paralyzed when confronted with conflict.
In his first SE session, John’s therapist asked him to notice any physical sensations in his body. John reported a tightness in his chest and a lump in his throat. Rather than pushing John to talk about his childhood experiences, the therapist encouraged him to stay with the physical sensations, observing them without judgment.
As John focused on the tightness in his chest, the therapist asked him to describe what it felt like. John noted that it felt like pressure, as though something heavy was pressing down on him. The therapist then guided John to explore other parts of his body to see if there were any areas of ease or comfort. John noticed that his legs felt more grounded.
The therapist worked with John to move between these sensations of tension and ease, using pendulation to help him find balance. Over time, John’s chest tightness began to loosen. In subsequent sessions, the therapist helped John explore his body’s natural impulses, such as the urge to push or run, which had been suppressed during his childhood.
By allowing these suppressed survival responses to surface and be completed through small, symbolic movements, John began to experience some relief from his physical symptoms. Over time, John felt more empowered and less paralysed by fear.
Anna, a 32-year-old woman, was involved in a severe car accident two years ago. Although she physically recovered, she continued to suffer from anxiety, nightmares, and an overwhelming fear of driving. She also experienced chronic neck and shoulder pain, despite no identifiable medical cause. She tried many different methods of relaxation and to deal with the situation, but Anna still felt trapped by her traumatic memories and bodily discomfort.
In her first SE session, the practitioner began by asking Anna to describe her current sensations. She mentioned a tightness in her chest and a heavy, sinking feeling in her stomach when she thought about the accident. Rather than diving directly into the memory of the event, the practitioner guided Anna to simply notice these sensations and stay with them. As Anna focused on the tightness in her chest, it gradually began to shift, and she noticed her breathing becoming more shallow.
At this point, the practitioner asked Anna if she could also find any areas of comfort in her body. Anna paused and said her legs felt somewhat grounded. The practitioner encouraged her to focus on this sense of grounding while also maintaining awareness of the discomfort in her chest. After a few minutes of moving between these sensations, Anna’s chest tightness began to release. She reported feeling a subtle but distinct sense of relief.
In subsequent sessions, the practitioner used pendulation to help Anna safely explore the trauma stored in her body. As they slowly worked through the sensations connected to the accident—such as the jolt of impact and the fear she felt when the car spun out of control—Anna’s body started to release the survival energy that had been trapped for two years. Over time, her anxiety lessened, her nightmares became less frequent, and her neck and shoulder pain diminished.
Please note: the aim behind SE is not to treat physical symptoms. It is just that stored shock energy often comes in the form of heightened tension and high activation, which have a wide variety of effects on the body and can produce a lot of different symptoms.
The therapy process also relies on factors such as: How much access to resources do I have in my life and how much capacity do I have for change?, or how early did the trauma happen and have I been exposed to multiple traumas? Depending on these factors, the treatment might take longer.
Although Somatic Experiencing has gained considerable popularity, research on its effectiveness is still developing. Studies have shown promising results, particularly for individuals dealing with trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). For example, a randomized controlled trial in 2017 found that SE significantly reduced PTSD symptoms in a group of individuals who had experienced trauma. Participants who received SE also reported improvements in their overall quality of life and mental health outcomes.