Somatic Therapy Explained: My Personal Experience & the Real-Life Benefits
If you are a client or have spoken with me on a personal level in the past few years, you have most certainly heard the term somatic therapy. It is an important topic to me and an essential part of my health and wellness routine. This form of therapy provides a holistic approach to healing by focusing on the connection between the mind and body. Unlike traditional talk therapy, it incorporates body awareness, movement, breathwork, and nervous system regulation to help release trauma and stored emotional tension. The goal of each session is to practice “pendulating” your nervous system through feelings of panic/fear/anxiety back calm/clarity/in control. These practices allow you to process deep trauma and learn to soothe your nervous system in moments of disruption. In this post, I’ll share how somatic therapy transformed my life, what to expect from a session, and the powerful benefits it can offer anyone on a healing journey.
For most of my life, I carried a heavy weight of grief, trauma, and chronic stress—navigating the death of my brother, a painful divorce, and ongoing health challenges for both me and my children. By the time I found somatic therapy two years ago, I was clawing my way up from a place of debilitating anxiety and deeply rooted trauma. Traditional methods had only taken me so far and focused more on disguising my symptoms than actually helping me long-term. I was tired of fighting through my anxiety, struggling to manage my life and knew I needed to find a way to heal for good. I wanted to enjoy life and no longer simply exist. Through research of holistic practices for mental health/therapies focused on CPTSD - I found somatic therapy and the benefits it could provide. Just a few weeks later and I was in my first session and unsure of what to expect. Within 5 minutes of beginning my first session I knew I was in the right place and left feeling more of a calm and understanding of myself than ever before. Through somatic work, I began to reconnect with my body, process what words alone couldn’t touch, and regulate my overwhelmed nervous system. Today, I no longer rely on medication to manage anxiety. I can walk into grocery stores without panicking in the parking lot. I can face my abuser without anger, anxiety, or feeling out of control. My health, energy, and skin have drastically improved. I’ve learned to pendulate—gently shift—between fear and calm, helping me move through my life with clarity, steadiness, and more trust in myself than I’ve ever known.
A somatic therapy session is a gentle, body-centered experience focused on helping you feel safe, grounded, and present. Unlike traditional talk therapy, sessions often involve slowing down, noticing sensations in your body and where you feel them, and exploring how emotions and past experiences might be stored physically. Your therapist may guide you through breathwork, movement, or grounding exercises, all while tracking your nervous system’s responses.
One of my favorite parts of somatic therapy is that you don’t have to retell every detail of your trauma—instead, the focus is on helping your body process and release what it’s been holding. Sometimes, no words are even said out loud. Each session is paced with care, meeting you exactly where you are.
At times, sessions can be challenging because you are consciously feeling parts of your trauma. But through the movement and rhythm of the session, you learn to pendulate—gently shift—back into a safe space within your body. This is how you begin to regulate your nervous system. It’s generally a beautiful and enlightening experience that brings peace, understanding, and clarity to situations that have deeply impacted your life and consciousness.
The truth is somatic therapy didn’t erase my past, but it did give me the tools to live fully in the present—and for that, I am endlessly grateful and will continue sharing its benefits with anyone who will listen. Healing isn’t linear, and it’s certainly not easy, but reconnecting with my body changed everything and set me on a path to truly enjoying my life. If you’ve been carrying your own weight of trauma, feeling stuck, or searching for something grounding and healing, I encourage you to explore this work. You don’t have to stay in survival mode, and it can get better. There is a way to feel safe again—in your body, in your mind, and in your life.
If you're curious about getting started, here are a few helpful resources:
🧠 The Somatic Experiencing Institute – Learn more about this method and search for certified practitioners near you.
📚 “The Body Keeps the Score” by Dr. Bessel van der Kolk – A foundational read on how trauma lives in the body.
📚 “Waking the Tiger” by Dr. Peter Levine – Introduces somatic experiencing in an accessible, hopeful way.
🎧 The Holistic Psychologist Podcast – Conversations around nervous system healing, trauma, and body-based therapy.
🌐 PsychologyToday.com – Use the filter “somatic therapy” to find a local or virtual practitioner.
If this post resonated with you or you're on a similar healing journey, I’d love to hear from you. You can always reach out, share your story, or ask questions. You’re not alone, and you deserve to feel at home in your body.
With care,
Amie
Ascend Training & Wellness
2021 - before somatic therapy and deeply struggling
2024 - 2 years after therapy and happier/healthier than I’ve ever been
