inviting your body into the healing process
You may have a deep understanding of yourself, know where your patterns come from, or why certain situations are difficult for you. Maybe you've spent years in therapy learning about your childhood, relationships, attachment, or trauma.
And still, your body responds before you have a chance to think. Your heart starts racing or your stomach is in knots. You feel the urge to leave or shut down. You find yourself feeling overwhelmed, numb, restless, or exhausted.
Somatic Experiencing® therapy I’ll help you slow down and become curious about what your body is communicating, so that you can start reconnecting with yourself and meeting your needs. Bringing your body into therapy can deepen your relationship with yourself and your own inner wisdom.
what is somatic experiencing® therapy?
Somatic Experiencing® (SE) is a body-based approach developed by Peter Levine to help people work through the effects of trauma and overwhelming experiences. It’s now used to support people with anxiety, depression, chronic pain, grief, and more!
The basic idea is that difficult and overwhelming experiences can affect both our minds and our bodies, sometimes long after the experience itself has passed. This may look like:
- Constantly scanning for what could go wrong
- Having trouble relaxing or feeling guilty when you take time for yourself
- Feeling disconnected from your body
- Difficulty recognizing or knowing what you need
- Cycles of burnout
- Intense emotional responses
- Tension or pain in your body
In SE, we pay attention to these responses without trying to force them away. Sessions might involve noticing your breathing, muscle tension, body temperature, movement, or other physical sensations. We may gently explore what happens when you bring your attention to a sensation and then shift your focus somewhere that feels more comfortable or neutral for a few moments before returning.
The goal isn't to overwhelm you or make you relive what happened. We work gradually, giving your nervous system the chance to experience stress and strong emotions without getting stuck there, and to learn that you can return to a sense of calm. Over time, you become more familiar with your body’s signals and more confident in responding to them.
Your nervous system is constantly taking in information about whether you feel safe, threatened, connected, or overwhelmed. Sometimes your reactions fit what’s happening now. Other times, something in the present triggers a response shaped by what you've experienced before.
A change in your partner’s tone that puts you on edge.
A disagreement makes you shut down.
You feel restless or anxious when you try to rest.
Someone else's disappointment creates an intense need to make things okay.
These aren't signs that you're failing at regulating yourself. They're ways your body has learned to respond. In SE, we can slow these reactions down enough to understand them and notice what helps you feel more settled.
your body remembers what you’ve been through
Somatic Experiencing® therapy can be particularly helpful if you've already done therapy or have a lot of insight. You may know exactly why you have certain patterns, but still have the same triggers and reactions. Understanding something doesn’t always change how your body responds to it. You can know that you don't have to please everyone and still feel anxious when someone is upset with you. Or, you may know that you're no longer in an unsafe home environment, but still constantly track your family member’s moods.
Instead of searching for another explanation, somatic practices invite you to notice what's happening in your body right now.
What happens when you think about saying no?
Where do you feel that in your body?
What happens when you imagine giving yourself permission to rest?
What feels different when you remember a person or place where you genuinely feel safe?
knowing why doesn’t always change how
knowing why doesn’t always change how
you feel
therapy for women who’ve put themselves on the back burner
You may be used to pushing through; working when you're tired, taking care of everyone else, and ignoring your own limits because there’s always something that needs to get done. When being capable and dependable has become part of who you are, it can be hard to know what you need until you're already depleted.
For Women of Color, there’s even more to navigate. Family and cultural expectations, racism, sexism, ableism, and other forms of oppression shape how we move through the world and how safe it feels to listen to our own needs. Somatic therapy doesn't ask you to ignore those realities or convince yourself that the world is safe when it isn't. We can get curious about what your body is telling you and what you need in response.
You might start noticing sooner when you're reaching your limit or when you're holding tension in your body without realizing it. The goal isn't to become less caring or less aware; it's to stay connected to yourself while moving through a world that demands so much of you.
attuning to your body
Many of us have been taught to judge, control, or ignore our bodies. Somatic therapy offers a different way of relating to yourself by paying attention to what your body is telling you.
You might notice that you're exhausted, tense around someone, wanting connection, needing to move your body, or that a situation doesn't feel right. Over time, you can become more familiar with these signals and learn to tell the difference between an old protective response and what feels true for you now.
This isn't about analyzing every sensation or becoming hyper-focused on your body. It's about staying connected to yourself—your needs, intuition, and inner wisdom—while moving through a world that demands so much from you.
Somatic Experiencing® therapy can be a meaningful place to begin if you're looking for a more body-centered approach to healing. I offer somatic therapy for women in Fresno, California, with virtual therapy available throughout California.
If you're curious about whether this approach might be right for you, I invite you to schedule a consultation.
