The year is 2022. I'm sitting in my therapist's office one morning that spring before heading to my stressful AF job as a TV news anchor. Once again, we're going over my week, my relationship, my overwhelm & burnout. As I talk about the things that feel important for me - my therapist nods and prompts me to share more about the things on my mind.
When I do, she congratulates me for being 'so good' at intellectualizing what's going on ... for being 'so in touch with how I'm feeling'.
In other sessions, my therapist has said similar things - even at times sharing that when I'm in our meetings it feels like 'she's talking to a peer."
Tell a millennial perfectionist, struggling over-achiever & eldest daughter that she's basically 'ace-ing' therapy... and WOW I really felt like I should be winning at life. So, why did I still feel like shit?
It turns out, simply TALKING about your trauma, anxiety, stress & overwhelm is NOT a very good recipe for healing it. Our society post-Covid has thankfully placed a renewed emphasis on talk-therapy and mental health. But over the last few decades a new - and much more helpful (at least for me) style of healing has emerged.
Enter body-based, somatic healing.
This body-based therapy emphasizes the connection between the mind and body, using physical practices to release stored trauma and promote healing. In this blog, I'll explore what somatic healing is, how it's helped me and how it can address and heal trauma.
First things first. WTF is Somatic Healing?
Somatic healing is a therapeutic approach that focuses on the body's sensations, movements, and experiences as a way to process and heal trauma. Unlike traditional therapies that primarily engage the mind, somatic healing recognizes that trauma is often stored in the body. This can manifest as chronic pain, tension, or other physical symptoms that traditional talk therapies may not address adequately.
The term "somatic" comes from the Greek word "soma," meaning the whole organism. I understand this to mean ALL of us - our mind, body, soul and spirit. In somatic healing, you're encouraged to listen to the body's signals and use physical interventions to release trauma. This approach is grounded in the understanding that the body and mind are interconnected, and healing one requires addressing the other.
How Somatic Healing Works
Somatic healing works by helping you become aware of your bodily sensations and using this awareness to process and release trauma. This can involve various techniques designed to reconnect you with your body, promote emotional regulation, and facilitate trauma recovery.
Key Techniques in Somatic Healing
Body Awareness and Mindfulness:
Practitioners guide individuals to focus on their physical sensations and become aware of areas of tension or discomfort. This awareness helps individuals recognize how their bodies hold trauma.
Mindfulness practices, such as deep breathing and progressive muscle relaxation, are used to increase present-moment awareness and reduce stress.
Somatic Experiencing:
Developed by Dr. Peter Levine, Somatic Experiencing is a trauma resolution method that focuses on releasing stored energy in the body. It involves tracking bodily sensations and allowing the body to complete the "fight or flight" response that was interrupted during the traumatic event.
This technique helps discharge the pent-up energy and promotes a sense of safety and relaxation.
Movement Therapy:
Movement-based therapies, such as dance/movement therapy, use expressive movement to help individuals process and release trauma. These therapies encourage spontaneous movement and self-expression, facilitating emotional release and bodily awareness.
Yoga and Tai Chi are also used in somatic healing to enhance body awareness, promote relaxation, and restore balance.
Touch and Bodywork:
Therapeutic touch and bodywork, such as massage or craniosacral therapy, are used to release physical tension and promote relaxation. These techniques can help individuals feel more connected to their bodies and facilitate the release of trauma stored in muscle tissue.
Benefits of Somatic Healing for Trauma Recovery
Somatic healing offers several benefits for people recovering from trauma:
Holistic Approach: By addressing both the mind and body, somatic healing provides a comprehensive approach to trauma recovery. It recognizes the interconnectedness of emotional and physical health.
Empowerment and Control: Somatic practices empower individuals to tune into their bodies and take an active role in their healing process. This sense of control can be particularly therapeutic for trauma survivors who may feel powerless.
Reduction of Physical Symptoms: By releasing stored trauma, somatic healing can alleviate chronic pain, tension, and other physical symptoms associated with trauma.
Emotional Regulation: Somatic techniques promote emotional regulation by helping individuals develop greater awareness and control over their bodily responses to stress.
Somatic healing is a powerful approach for trauma recovery that emphasizes the connection between the mind and body. By using body-based techniques such as mindfulness, somatic experiencing, movement therapy, and bodywork, individuals can effectively address and heal trauma stored in the body. This holistic approach not only alleviates physical symptoms but also promotes emotional regulation and overall well-being. For those seeking an alternative to traditional talk therapies, somatic healing offers a promising path to recovery.
Getting into the BODY to heal the MIND
A few months after that spring 2022 session with my therapist, I decided to QUIT therapy- something that was INCREDIBLY hard for my millennial self. The truth was - no matter how much 'work' I did in therapy - I still felt myself falling into anxiety or numbing out with alcohol whenever I felt stressed or triggered.
So, I did my research and began using somatic healing techniques like dance, meditation, tai chi and massage to become more in touch with my body and the sensations within it. As I explored psychedelic medicine for my continued healing (which you can read about in this blog) my coach introduced me to even more somatic techniques including breathwork and grounding practices I often turned to while using psilocybin.
My MAGICAL healing combo = somatic healing + microdosing psychedelics
The combination of somatic healing and microdosing seemed to finally help me live IN my body and not just in my head. The neuropathways between these two parts of myself seemed to come back online and I finally felt safe enough to explore the ways trauma had made me anxious, scared and 'unsafe' in my body for years.
I finally felt free of the spiraling thoughts, the triggers & the trauma. And I know somatic healing (and mushrooms) are to thank. Because not only did they help me heal ... they put me on the path to helping others heal too.
As I grow my online coaching practice, I've looked at the profound changes I experienced in my own healing and sought out intensive trainings in somatic trauma therapy (from the Embody Lab) and psychedelic facilitation (from DoubleBlind, Axis Mundi and the Embody Lab) in order to help other people just like me. People who feel stuck in their healing - and want to more fully embody their very BEST selves.
By integrating somatic healing into your therapeutic journey, you can unlock the body's potential to heal itself and experience profound transformation. If you are interested in exploring somatic healing, consider booking a complimentary discovery call with me to chat about how this powerful process could change your life.
Leslie Draffin is an internationally certified somatic psychedelic guide and trauma-informed coach who specializes in helping women heal their mental health, overcome trauma and create the life they desire. She does not condone the use of illicit substances and does not provide access to any illegal drugs. Her work aims to educate and reduce risk for those who choose to explore psychedelics for personal growth and healing.
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