What are the benefits of somatic therapies?
A helpful starting point is to define somatic therapy. Put simply, it is a form of therapy designed to help clients with complex trauma process their experiences by staying connected to the emotions and sensations in their bodies while using specific techniques to prevent overwhelm. This is especially important for clients with complex trauma, who are often accustomed to living in chronic fight-or-flight or freeze/shutdown states and may struggle to shift into feelings of calm, ease, or openness to connection.
Clients who have lived in survival states for much of their lives typically have a low tolerance for distressing emotions. Their nervous systems become overwhelmed quickly, triggering another survival response. Many also grow so accustomed to this heightened state of arousal from early in life that both their brains and bodies adapt to it. As a result, they may find it difficult to take in healthy experiences—such as affection, safety, or even a sincere compliment. Healthy relationships can feel unfamiliar or threatening, while unhealthy relationships may feel more comfortable simply because chaos or danger has become their baseline.
Other factors besides trauma can contribute to nervous system dysregulation, including neglect, sensory sensitivities (common among neurodivergent clients), chronic pain, or severe medical conditions. Clients with complex trauma often develop health issues such as chronic pain or autoimmune disorders due to prolonged exposure to cortisol, which is a stress hormone that the brain releases during fight-or-flight and freeze/shutdown responses. When the nervous system remains stuck in survival mode for years—despite the absence of present danger—the long-term release of stress hormones can lead to physical complications.
Somatic therapies focus on bodily awareness as a primary mode of intervention, helping clients regulate the intensity of distress using various techniques while gradually increasing their capacity to tolerate emotions and sensations. This makes somatic approaches particularly well-suited for clients whose mental and physical health are deeply interconnected. As a client’s capacity and resilience grow, the underlying trauma driving their dysregulation can be processed—slowly at first, then with increasing momentum.
Therapy often unfolds through small, incremental shifts that accumulate into significant change over time. None of this progress is possible, however, without first addressing the nervous system dysregulation at the root of the complex trauma client’s difficulties.