How Somatic Experiencing® Therapy Heals Your Trauma

If trauma is ignored and unresolved, you may feel that you can’t escape painful patterns and difficult emotions. With proper support from a somatic therapist, you will find that your body has the wisdom to naturally let go of long-held stress and emotions like grief, anger, and fear.

When you’re trapped in a never-ending cycle of intrusive thoughts and distressing feelings, it is common to try to avoid feeling your emotions and to become disconnected from your body in order to avoid feeling discomfort. But as your somatic therapist, I aim to help you examine and even embrace these parts of yourself in a safe, gentle way.

True transformation lies in the “felt” experience of somatic therapy. In order to tailor treatment to best fit your needs, I typically incorporate a wide range of therapeutic approaches. 

In somatic therapy, I will draw from methods that are body-based and compatible with SE™. Dynamic Attachment Re-patterning experience® (DARe™) is an offshoot of SE™ that focuses on early attachment patterns and the ways that they impact our relationships. Brainspotting® (BSp™), is a method of therapy that uses specific directional patterns in your visual field, while encouraging you to pay attention to your internal sensations to help process stored trauma in your emotional brain. I will likely utilize the gentle bodywork elements of Craniosacral Therapy (CST) as well, which is an osteopathic treatment that helps ease the nervous system by releasing tension and creating more internal flexibility.

I’m also happy to collaborate with you and other talk therapists or medical practitioners to help best coordinate your care and treatment plan. While I incorporate talking in our work together, my specialty aligns more with bringing your body into the conversation. 

This method of treatment works on a completely different level, that goes beyond the rational, thinking brain. Experiencing somatic therapy allows you to make sense of and resolve problematic feelings, painful physical sensations, and habitual life patterns that are ultimately holding you back or keeping you stuck. With the freedom and insights that you gain, you can heal your wounds so that you can move forward and feel more joy and fulfillment in your life.

My Approach With Somatic Therapy

I started my career as a physical therapist in the 1980s, and over many years became specially trained in CST, attachment, trauma and psychotherapy, in order to be able to address the whole person in a more holistic, integrative way. I have seen the transformative power of Somatic Experiencing®, both in my own personal life as well as with my patients.

I will use a combination of skills to address both the psychological and physical impact of trauma. Many of my clients report feeling a sense of ease or shift in their perspective relatively shortly after beginning Somatic Experiencing® therapy sessions. While everyone heals at their own pace, I am confident that my holistic approach to healing can help you find the path that will point you toward a greater sense of safety, peace, and self-assurance in your life.