What Is Somatic Experiencing—and Why It Might Be the Therapy You’ve Been Looking For
If you’re someone who looks “fine” on the outside but feels overwhelmed, anxious, or shut down on the inside—you’re not alone. A lot of my clients come to therapy feeling like they’re falling apart behind the scenes, even if no one else can tell.
Maybe you’ve tried traditional talk therapy before. Maybe it helped a bit—but something still feels stuck. You have insight, but you don’t feel any different.
That’s where Somatic Experiencing (SE) comes in.
It’s a different way of approaching healing—one that doesn’t just live in your head, but involves your body, your nervous system, and the deeper patterns that shape how you move through the world.
So, What Is Somatic Experiencing?
Somatic Experiencing (SE) is a body-based approach to healing trauma and chronic stress. Developed by Dr. Peter Levine, it’s grounded in the understanding that trauma isn’t just something that happens to us—it’s something that gets stuck in us, especially in the nervous system.
Even if we’ve survived a difficult experience, our bodies can stay in a state of fight, flight, or freeze long after the event has passed. SE helps gently release those stuck patterns and restore a sense of safety and regulation.
It’s not about reliving traumatic memories or “fixing” yourself. It’s about creating the conditions your body and nervous system need to feel safe again.
How Do SE Sessions Work?
In sessions, we slow down—way down. We notice what’s happening in your body as you talk. You might start to recognize things like:
A tightness in your chest when you mention a specific person
A hollow feeling in your stomach that shows up when you feel alone
The way your jaw locks when you try to “stay strong”
Together, we follow these cues gently and with curiosity—not to analyze them, but to allow your body to move through them. We work at a pace that feels safe and manageable, so you’re never overwhelmed.
This process helps shift your nervous system out of survival mode and into connection. Over time, you feel more grounded, more at home in your body, and more able to respond to life instead of reacting to it.
Who Can Somatic Experiencing Help?
Somatic Experiencing can be especially helpful if:
You’ve experienced trauma (even if you don’t call it that)
You feel anxious, shut down, or emotionally exhausted
You’re navigating burnout or chronic overwhelm
You feel disconnected from your body or sense of self
You’ve tried talk therapy but still feel stuck
SE is particularly supportive for people who are highly sensitive, creative, or spiritual—those who’ve felt like traditional therapy didn’t fully reach them. If you’ve always been “the strong one,” “the helper,” or the one who keeps it all together, SE can help you reconnect to the parts of yourself you’ve had to quiet just to cope.
This Isn’t About Performance—It’s About Presence
So much of healing in today’s world can feel like another thing on your to-do list. Another way to “self-optimize.” But real healing isn’t a performance—it’s a process of returning to yourself.
In SE, you don’t have to explain everything perfectly or have the right words. We don’t need to rehash every detail of the past. We just need to notice what’s happening now, in your body, in the room, together.
That’s often where the healing begins.
Interested in Trying Somatic Experiencing?
If you're curious about SE and whether it's a fit for you, I’d love to connect. I offer in-person sessions in Port Moody and virtual therapy for folks across BC.
You don’t have to keep holding it all together alone.
Let’s gently reconnect—with your body, your emotions, and your life.
