What is Somatic Therapy? A Neurobiological Approach to Healing Trauma and Stress
For many, traditional talk therapy can be transformative—but have you ever felt like something deeper is still holding you back? You might understand your challenges intellectually, yet notice your body remains tense, overwhelmed, or disconnected.
Somatic therapy offers a different path. By focusing on the body and the nervous system—a bottom-up approach—it helps you release stored trauma and stress, creating a felt sense of safety, calm, and connection.
In this post, we’ll explore somatic therapy, introduce Somatic Experiencing (SE)—a gentle, neurobiologically-informed approach—and discuss why SE has been life-changing for me as both a client and a practitioner.
What is Somatic Therapy? A Bottom-Up Approach to Healing
Somatic therapy is a body-centered, trauma-informed approach to healing that focuses on the nervous system’s role in processing and storing experiences.
While traditional “top-down” therapies like CBT focus on thoughts and emotions to drive healing, somatic therapy uses a bottom-up approach. It starts with the body—physical sensations, nervous system regulation, and completing unresolved stress responses—to create change that is deeply felt and long-lasting.
Somatic therapy includes a range of approaches, such as Somatic Experiencing (SE), Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, the Hakomi Method, and various body awareness practices like breathwork and grounding exercises. While these approaches vary, they all share the understanding that healing trauma requires engaging the body—not just the mind.
Why Bottom-Up Healing is Different (and Effective)
To understand the power of somatic therapy, it’s helpful to explore the difference between top-down and bottom-up approaches:
Top-Down Therapy (e.g., CBT, talk therapy) works primarily with thoughts, emotions, and behaviors to drive change.
“Why do I feel this way?” “What can I change?”
Bottom-Up Therapy (e.g., SE, EMDR) starts with the body, engaging physical sensations and nervous system patterns that often lie outside conscious awareness.
“What does my body need to release?” “How can I reconnect with safety and balance?”
Bottom-up approaches are particularly effective for trauma and chronic stress because trauma is stored in the body, not just the mind.
When we experience overwhelming events, the nervous system can get “stuck” in survival patterns like fight, flight, or freeze. Bottom-up therapies help the body complete these unresolved responses and restore regulation—creating relief that feels embodied, not just intellectual.
In my practice, I integrate both top-down and bottom-up approaches to therapy. By blending insight-oriented talk therapy with body-centered somatic work, I help clients build understanding and reconnect with their body’s innate capacity for healing. This balanced approach supports deeper, more holistic transformation.
The Origins of Somatic Experiencing
Somatic Experiencing (SE), developed by trauma expert Dr. Peter Levine, emerged from his groundbreaking study of trauma, neurobiology, and healing. SE is inspired by Levine’s observations across multiple disciplines:
Indigenous healing practices that emphasize the body’s innate ability to restore balance and release stress.
Biology and neurophysiology, particularly how animals naturally discharge survival energy after a life-threatening event (e.g., trembling or shaking).
Psychology and trauma theory, combining compassion with a gentle, structured approach to healing.
Levine’s observation of animals became a central insight for SE: while humans often suppress or freeze survival responses, animals naturally release them. SE works with this same principle, helping individuals reconnect with the body’s innate capacity to release stored energy and return to balance.
How Somatic Experiencing Works
Somatic Experiencing works by gently guiding you through small, manageable steps to reconnect with your body’s sensations—a process known as titration.
Rather than diving into overwhelming memories, SE focuses on building safety and slowly exploring physical sensations tied to stored survival energy. For example, sensations like tightness in the chest, trembling, or numbness often reflect unresolved patterns. SE helps you notice these signals, honor the body’s experience, and release tension at a safe and intentional pace.
This titrated, body-first approach makes SE particularly effective for healing trauma without retraumatization.
The Benefits of Somatic Experiencing
Research and clinical practice consistently highlight the benefits of Somatic Experiencing for trauma and chronic stress.
Benefits of SE include:
Nervous system regulation: Shifting from patterns of hypervigilance, shutdown, or overwhelm into states of calm and balance.
Reduction of PTSD symptoms: Studies, including one published in Traumatology (2017), show SE’s effectiveness in reducing symptoms of PTSD by helping the body complete its natural stress response.
Relief from chronic tension and physical symptoms: Addressing how unresolved emotional experiences manifest as pain, fatigue, or tightness.
Improved capacity for connection and safety: Restoring a felt sense of calm, resilience, and presence in daily life.
As Dr. Peter Levine explains:
“Trauma is a fact of life. It does not, however, have to be a life sentence.”
SE empowers the body to move from survival to safety—gently and without overwhelm.
My Personal Journey with Somatic Experiencing
During graduate school, I gained so much insight into my challenges through traditional talk therapy. I understood the why and what behind my struggles, but I still felt stuck. I longed for something deeper—a way to truly experience healing, not just analyze it.
Somatic Experiencing changed everything. SE helped me gently reconnect with my body, notice the subtle signals it was holding, and release tension in a way that felt safe and freeing. The titrated approach was key: it allowed me to move forward without retraumatization, honoring my nervous system’s natural rhythm. Through SE, I stopped feeling as though my body was betraying me and instead discovered a sense of returning home to myself—safe, grounded, and whole.
This experience was so transformative that I pursued the rigorous three-year SE training. This included:
In-depth coursework in neurobiology and nervous system regulation
Personal SE sessions to embody the work for myself
Consultation hours to practice this modality safely and effectively
Today, I bring both my personal and professional experience to my work with clients who are ready to reconnect with their bodies and find lasting relief.
Conclusion: A Path to Lasting, Felt Healing
Somatic therapy provides a compassionate, neurobiologically-informed approach to healing that works with the body’s natural wisdom. Through modalities like Somatic Experiencing, you can gently release stored tension, restore nervous system balance, and reconnect with a sense of safety, calm, and connection.
If you are a California resident & you’re curious about how somatic therapy can support your healing journey, I’d love to help.
