Somatic Therapy Training For Trauma Survivors
Somatic therapy training is an effective tool to assist trauma survivors in recovering from past events. This gentle yet non-invasive therapy emphasizes the body-mind connection and teaches clients how to identify and release emotional pain stored within their bodies.
Finding a licensed mental health professional who has undergone somatic therapy training is essential. This type of counseling can assist you in working through issues that are causing distress in your life and keeping you from living an abundant, joyful, and healthy existence.
Studies have demonstrated that cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can have beneficial results when treating mental health conditions like PTSD, anxiety and depression. Additionally, CBT may be effective at dealing with trauma in children, adolescents and adults alike.
At the outset, a therapist will create safe spaces for you to express any bodily feelings and sensations that arise during bodywork. They may ask you to express anything that might be triggering or difficult for you to express, such as changes in temperature or feeling numb in certain parts of your body.
After identifying safe spaces, the therapist can introduce some techniques to relax you and make you more present in your session. These may include grounding and resourcing – tools which help access your inherent resilience and strength.
Resourcing is similar to grounding, but involves drawing upon positive memories of a place, person or something you cherish when facing distressing physical sensations. It is an invaluable tool for somatic psychotherapists as it can be especially beneficial when clients are feeling uneasy during bodywork sessions.
Titration is an integral component of somatic therapy training. Your therapist will guide and support you as you gradually revisit and integrate all the sensations associated with a particular trauma, when you feel ready.
As the body reacts to a traumatic event, it triggers either the fight or flight response. As such, energy stored within is called “charge,” and this stored power can become trapped within the nervous system.
This charge can cause severe dysregulation and dissociation, especially during times of stress or when the body isn’t aware that it’s under threat. This explains why many people experience anxiety or panic even when not thinking about it.
The purpose of SE is to teach the body how to regulate itself, reduce fight or flight energy and turn off its threat alarm so that severe disregulation and dysregulation no longer take place.
It’s a gentle and non-invasive therapy that combines skillful mindfulness with specific body-oriented techniques. It offers powerful healing from trauma that can easily be integrated into other forms of therapy.