You and Your Body Go Together
photo by cottonbro-studio
Alicia was drawn to somatic practices after trying yoga asana. Now she brings these mindfulness techniques into her work with clients. She is a transpersonal psychodynamic psychotherapist who places an emphasis on attachment relational theory. A multi-modal practitioner, she uses CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy), DBT (dialectical behavioral therapy), motivational interviewing, nidra (conscious sleep) and breathwork as wonderful additions to her work with clients. She will be leading a 9-week virtual Somatic Workshop for Beginners (more information here).
Prior to developing a yoga and mindfulness practice, I ran cross country but I didn’t actually enjoy it. At first I did it because my mother ran cross country when she was a child and I thought it would help me become closer to her. Then over time, I continued because I liked how it made me feel in my body and mind.
Running was grueling, demanding but also rewarding. Running required me to be mentally and physically strong. It was the one thing that helped me to shut off my mind and I believed this was a good thing; perhaps even a skill I had acquired. But as I look back on this experience now, I’ve come to recognize that I was, quite literally, running away from myself, my internal feelings and problems. Somatic practices gave me permission to stop running, to slow down and experience myself and my emotions in a safe space.
Somatic therapy is a form of body-oriented therapy that explores the relationship between the body, brain and behavior. It is a process of discovery through feeling and discovering the innermost parts of ourselves. The goal of somatic therapy is to release trauma and stress which has been stored in our bodies, by shifting away from our survival instincts and toward a sense of ease in the body. Somatic exercises come in many forms and you may even implement some into your daily routines. This may include: breathing techniques, mindfulness practices, meditation, movement and physical exercise (such as dance, yoga, etc.) and bodily/sensation awareness. When any one of these practices is done with intention and awareness you begin a gentle process of learning about yourself in a way that is vulnerable and non-judgemental.
Take a moment now - are there ways that you might respond to stressful situations that have been helpful in your past but are no longer helpful today? Take a deep breath and think about it. If it helps, close your eyes for a moment. As you zero in on that stressful situation, is a feeling holding in your body? Are there blockages or a sense of heaviness in certain areas of your body? Sometimes, this might feel like a weight being placed on your chest or difficulty breathing. Just take a moment and notice it.
This is the beginning process of uncovering. Once you begin to uncover, then you can unlearn and awaken something new. The idea is once we can learn about how we are managing our emotions within our physical body, we can begin to change it toward something more nutritious. We can help ourselves quiet the mind and the feeling. This requires a huge amount of vulnerability, attention and practice because we are releasing powerful energy that is trapped in the body. Crying, shaking and even the feeling of being scared can come up. These feelings might be uncomfortable but doing the exercises can bring relief by helping our body shift from automatic responses.
Discovering somatic work was an invitation for me to stop running from myself. Now that I am sharing this kind of work with my clients, I see how courageously they are becoming in deeper harmony between their bodies, minds and spirits. When we can do this work for ourselves, we learn to co-regulate with the people in our lives and the world around us. Healing does take place in community, not in isolation. We do need each other.
References:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8276649/
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapy-types/somatic-therapy
https://thesomatictherapycenter.com/what-is-somatic-therapy/
