Somatic Experiencing
A body-oriented therapeutic model for nervous system regulation, stress relief, and trauma re-negotiation.
Traumas, both big "T" and little "t" can become written on and stored in the body. Societal expectations to "push thru" or push down can deepen the grooves of such hurts and result in chronic pain as well as mental anguish in the form of anxiety, depression, or a general feeling of stuckness in your life. In the absence of trauma, accumulated chronic stress can have similar effects. SE honors how our nervous systems have had to respond in the past to keep us safe. Then it serves to help the body untangle emotions associated with old wounds and finish incomplete defense responses, resourcing us with tools to better respond to stress or hardship in the future.
You may want just a few sessions to gain some tools for every day regulation. Or you may want more sessions to explore a more complex trauma history. Sometimes you just need to schedule a one-off to help you strategize thru a stressful time. You'll know once you try. I'm currently accepting online clients but in-person sessions are available, location depending--reach out!
What does a Somatic Experiencing (SE) session look like?
In SE curiosity rules! Sure, we'll talk, but we'll do a lot more "feeling into" things. We might move or vocalize. We may just be quiet and give it time. We may even laugh! Gentle hands on is possible but not necessary. It differs from traditional psychotherapy in many ways but most starkly, that you don't have to revisit the full narrative--just touching the edges of our past stories gives us a pathway to explore body sensations without the risk of retraumatization. More below...
Creative + Collaborative
SE taps into innate creativity by being present in the body and inviting curiosity. We work with the language of body sensation (think adjectives, textures, colors, temperatures, etc). Images, sounds, phrases, and movements may come forward from the subconscious to offer new meaning and understanding. I guide and support you the whole way.
Gentle + Gradual
Early SE sessions begin with resource building--locating positive, grounding, affirming past memories in the present body. For example: "At what age did you feel most confident and self-assured? How did you know? What was that like?" Sensations and images connected to these memories become anchors for your practice if the seas get rockier along the way when we explore more challenging topics.
Capacity Building
By learning to hold space for both affirming/grounding experiences AND hard or traumatic past experiences, the capacity of your nervous system expands. You will be able to hold both without getting overwhelmed. What once affected you deeply (perhaps paralyzingly so) or kept you stuck no longer has the same hold over you. You have freedom to move forward with new insight.
"The Somatic Experiencing work has been one of the most effective tools to help me through the compound grief of losing 4 people within 3 months, one of them a parent. After sessions I feel heard, lighter, calmer, able to breathe deeper. Focus and work are easier and I sleep better. I know the accumulative effect is helpful to my overall health, healing and resilience. Jen is a keen listener and has grounding energy. Whether on zoom or in person, she holds space for me and I feel safe to let go, listen inward, and be deeply honest with myself."
-C.W.
"SE invites me to be with my emotions observing, but without judgment. I have perfectionist tendencies so I can be incredibly hard on myself. SE frees me up to see my actions with less criticism and more curiosity. It let's me reconnect and gives voice to parts of myself that want to express creativity and joy. I've done therapy before and EMDR, but SE is unique in the ways that it gets me out of my past "stories" and has helped me see there is a lot more to write!"
-M.B.
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