As a therapist, some of the most effective ways I can guide my clients toward healing and healthy coping is by guiding them through the seemingly simple steps of feeling their emotions.
As mammals who have complex nervous systems that are responsible for many crucial processes in our brains and bodies, it is important that we see emotion regulation as a process that happens not just in our brain, but in our bodies as well. This is where the somatic part comes in. If we only pay attention to the way we experience emotions in our brain, or our thoughts, we are missing out on where we are experiencing those emotions in our bodies. Trauma research has proven that emotions not only create sensations in our bodies, but that these sensations can and do get stored in our bodies if we are not able to be present in both our brain and body at the time these emotions occur. For the particularly negative experiences in life, having them stored in our bodies can have long-term consequences such as experiencing trauma responses that impair our functioning, inability to regulate ourselves in healthy ways, and a nervous system that is in a frequent state of dysregulation.
For many of us, finding an immediate “fix” to uncomfortable emotions or avoiding them is often what we try first. And while this approach is sometimes necessary or useful in instances where sitting with emotion is not safe or not appropriate, most of the time it keeps our nervous system in a dysregulated state. This dysregulation can impact our interactions, decisions, and general emotional state the rest of the day or longer. What I am encouraging here is not to forgo finding solutions and problem-solving situations that are causing us emotional pain, but to intentionally sit with those emotions and become a container for them before jumping into action.
An example that is often shared in somatic experience training is one that allows us to see somatic experiencing in its most primal form. When an animal is being hunted, one method of survival can be to quite literally shut down their body by slowing their breathing, “playing dead” and physically disconnecting from sensation and movement. Once they are safe and no longer need to “play dead” we see them make different movements and sounds such as shaking, grunting, running, twitching, etc to feel and release what they were not able to when they were in danger.
Somatic experience in humans is based on the same behaviors we see in animals with some added steps. These steps can be practiced during a time of heightened emotion (positive or negative), soon after an emotional experience when it is safe or more convenient to do so, or even when talking or thinking about an emotional experience that happened long ago. The steps I have created and will outline are based on somatic experiencing trainings I have taken and experiences I have had practicing somatic experiencing with myself, and my clients.
What sensations are you noticing in your body right now? (If struggling to be present in your body do some grounding with clenching/tensing different parts of your body)
What happens next? What thoughts, emotions, sensations do you notice after those first sensations you identified?
Do you need to make any adjustments physically or mentally? (stretching, walking, shaking, noises, asking yourself a question, saying something to yourself in response?)
What has shifted for you? What physical sensations, thoughts, and emotions do you notice now?
Take your time with each step.
We are so used to living in our brains, we often miss what our body is telling us. When we can get our brain and body online at the same time, more frequently and more intentionally, we can create positive ripple effects for how we move through our lives. I have found that the more attuned to our emotions we become, the better ability we have to regulate ourselves and those around us. Somatic experiencing can feel so basic yet be so transformative.
Below are some examples of physical sensation words for your use:
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If you are ready to start the journey of connecting your mind and body, reach out today!
