What Actually Happens in a Somatic Experiencing Session
In this article, I’ll walk you through:
what somatic work actually is and how it helps
why nervous system capacity matters
how Somatic Experiencing works
what a somatic experiencing session might actually look like
who this kind of work tends to be helpful for
what to look for in a somatic practitioner
If you’ve been curious about somatic experiencing but unsure what it would actually feel like, this will give you a clear picture.
What are somatics?
Most people come to somatic work because something isn’t shifting… even though they understand it.
Somatic work has become really popular lately, and you may have heard the term and wondered what it actually means.
At its core, “somatic” just refers to the body. So somatic practices are any approaches that involve working with the body, not just the mind.
That could include movement, breath, sensation, awareness, or anything that helps you connect with what’s happening in your body in the present moment.
How do somatics help?
A lot of people come to somatic work after trying to understand their patterns mentally. They’ve done therapy, reading all the books, mindset work, journaling… and they get it on an intellectual level.
Most people understand their patterns… but their body still reacts.
They still feel anxious, overwhelmed, shut down, or stuck in patterns they can’t quite shift.
Somatic work helps bridge that gap by working with the body directly, where those patterns are actually happening.
What actually happens in a somatic experiencing session?
This is one of the most common questions I get.
People are curious, but also a little unsure.
Do we talk?
Is it just body exercises?
Is it a lot of breathwork?
Do I have to do anything weird?… only if you want to! Just kidding. Sort of. Okay, please keep reading.
It can be a little tricky to explain, because it’s something you really feel more than understand. But I’ll walk you through what it can look like so you have a clearer sense of what to expect.
I’ll specifically be talking about Somatic Experiencing, which I blend with Movement for Trauma, Somatic Parts Work, and brain retraining concepts.
The foundation: building nervous system capacity
Why would we need or even want nervous system capacity?
Think of your nervous system capacity as a room full of items. Those items might represent stressors, life experiences, past events, goals, all of it. In a small room, it doesn’t take much before things start to feel cramped and overwhelming. But if the room gets bigger, the same items are still there, there is just more space for them. And if something new gets added, it doesn’t feel like too much. There’s room to breathe, and even room to reorganize and clean things up a bit.
Capacity works in a similar way. As it grows, stressors don’t hit quite as hard. We’re less afraid of what might come up, and we have more space to deal with things that once felt too big to feel or face. There can be a sense of feeling freer and lighter.
In Somatic Experiencing, this is why we don’t go straight into trauma or difficult experiences. We spend time with what already feels good, or even just neutral, so the body can start to feel more stable. From that place, it becomes much easier to begin doing some of that “clean up” over time.
For a lot of people, shifting attention toward what feels good can feel… wrong at first. Like you should be dealing with the pain instead. Which makes sense, especially when your system is activated and focused on resolving what feels like a problem.
Focusing on what feels good can feel… wrong at first
I really understand that pull. When I first started exploring trauma work, I gravitated toward things like breathwork and EMDR, which were actually too intense for my system at the time. But I wanted it all OUT OF MY BODY. Because it felt so cathartic, I thought it must be helping. What I actually needed was something simpler, I needed a bigger room, and to start with smaller pieces first.
Somatic work helped me build that capacity. Because I wasn’t constantly overwhelming myself, life started to feel easier. The “mess” in the room slowly began to get cleaned up, but in a way that felt manageable and didn’t take me out of my life.
I have seen profound and even life-changing shifts in people using this more gentle method.
One way to begin building capacity is by noticing what is already good or pleasant. You might try this now: look around your environment and notice what your eyes naturally land on. Take it in. Notice the colours, the light, the shapes, and let yourself really see it.
At the same time, notice what happens in your body as you look. Do you feel even a small sense of settling? Where do you notice it? Is there a slight openness somewhere, or a bit more presence? There’s no right answer here, just see what you notice.
Not all somatic practices are trauma-informed
Somatic work has become a bit of a buzzword in the wellness space, and there are a lot of different approaches out there.
But not all somatic practices are trauma-informed. As in they aren’t going to be gentle enough for a sensitive or traumatized nervous system.
You might have tried something that felt intense or even powerful in the moment, like a big emotional release or a strong breathwork session. And for a moment, it might have felt like something big just happened.
But then you find yourself back in the same patterns.
This can happen when the nervous system doesn’t yet have the capacity to stay present with that level of activation. So even though something big happened, the system didn’t actually learn how to process it in a way that creates lasting change.
Trauma-informed somatic work takes a different approach. Instead of pushing for big experiences, it works slowly and in smaller pieces.
In Somatic Experiencing, we use ideas like titration, working with small amounts at a time, and pendulation, moving between activation and a sense of safety. The goal isn’t to force release, but to help the body stay present with what arises in a way that feels manageable.
The nervous system doesn’t change through force. It changes through experience.
Over time, this helps the nervous system learn that it can experience activation and return to safety. That’s where more lasting shifts tend to come from and stick.
The somatic experiencing framework
Somatic Experiencing (SE) is a framework developed by Peter Levine. It’s a way of understanding how the body responds to overwhelm and how those responses can get stuck.
When something is overwhelming and the body doesn’t get to return to a sense of safety, that survival energy doesn’t just disappear. It can stay in the system.
That might show up as anxiety, shutdown, tension, fatigue, overthinking, emotional overwhelm, or unwanted behaviours.
In SE, we work with what is present in the body in real time. That might include sensations, images, impulses to move, or emotional responses. Sometimes these arise naturally, and sometimes they are gently guided.
One of the key pieces of this work is allowing the body to complete responses that didn’t feel safe to complete at the time. For example, someone might notice a strong impulse to push something away or move their body in a certain way. When this is done slowly and with support, it can help the system process that stored energy.
What’s unique about SE is that you don’t have to go digging into your past or fully relive events. We work with what the body brings up in the present, trusting that it will show what is ready to work with.
“You don’t have to dig into the past. We work with what the body shows in the present.”
Over time, this can restore a sense of safety, flexibility, and flow in the nervous system, which then translates into everyday life becoming much better and easier.
What a somatic experiencing session actually looks like
Every session is a bit different, but I’ll walk you through a few examples so you can get a feel for what it might look like.
Example 1: Building stabilization and resourcing
Beth comes onto the call already a bit activated. She’s talking quickly, her shoulders are slightly raised, and her eyes are moving around the room.
Before she even says much, her body is already telling us a lot.
We don’t rush, I check in with her, see how she’s doing, and ask if she’d be open to starting by settling a little.
We begin simply by having her look around her space and notice what her eyes naturally land on. Something neutral, or maybe even slightly pleasant. We take time here and notice what happens in her body as she does this. We want to anchor into pleasant experiences first.
We might also bring attention to the support of the chair, or her feet on the ground. Sometimes small movements can help, like gently shifting or rocking the feet.
As Beth starts to feel a bit more settled, it’s common for some activation to come up. When it does, we notice it and stay with it for a few moments. We notice it together, maybe as tightness, heat, or restless energy, and stay with it for a few moments and possibly emotion or movement can arise here. Then we gently shift back to something that feels more pleasant. We move back and forth and let the body speak and move naturally.
Over time, Beth begins to learn that she can feel activation and still be safe.
This may sound simple, but just this step can produce a massive change overtime in many sensitive nervous systems.
Example 2: Working with a difficult event
Melanie is having a hard time driving after a car accident.
Instead of going straight into the memory of the accident, we start with what happens in the present. Maybe just the idea of getting into the car brings something up.
We begin by helping her feel more settled and resourced. Then we slowly touch into the experience, noticing what arises in her body.
We might work with small pieces at a time, tracking sensations and gently moving between activation and a sense of safety. This allows the system to process without becoming overwhelmed.
Over time, her body can begin to recognize that the event is in the past, and her response can shift and driving isn’t an issue anymore.
Example 3: Working with an emotional pattern
Sometimes people come in with patterns they notice in their life, like shutting down in conflict or freezing when they want to speak up.
In a session, we might explore where that shows up in the body and what impulses are there. Maybe there’s an urge to push, turn away, or make a sound.
We work slowly with those responses, allowing them to unfold in a way that feels manageable. Over time, this can begin to shift patterns that have been there for years and people can experience a lot of freedom where they felt frozen, stuck, and held back.
Who is somatic experiencing good for?
Somatic Experiencing can be helpful for a lot of different experiences, but it often resonates most with people who feel stuck in patterns they can’t think their way out of.
A lot of people find that they have talked, learned and read and aren’t experienfce the results they want to, that’s were somatics fits in really beautifully.
You might notice that you understand your patterns, but they don’t seem to change. Or that you feel anxious, overwhelmed, or shut down without a clear reason.
It can also be helpful for people who have tried other approaches and feel like something is still unresolved.
And it’s not only for working through difficult experiences. It can also be for people who want to feel more grounded, empowered, connected and resilient.
What to look for in a somatic practitioner
As somatic work becomes more popular, there are a lot of different approaches and styles.
It can help to look for someone who works at your pace and doesn’t push you into intense experiences. The work should feel manageable, even when you’re exploring something challenging.
It’s also helpful to work with someone who can track what’s happening in your body and adjust accordingly, they should be able to track activation, settling, and overwhelm and change it up when needed.
Most importantly, you want to feel comfortable with the person you’re working with. You should feel like you can be yourself, without needing to perform or do it “right.”
This is also how I approach my work. Sessions are paced gently and adjusted to your nervous system, with a focus on building capacity and empowerment and then moving into processing stuck energy, movement, and stress.
Why this work is done slow
Maybe you’ve heard the phrase “slow is smooth and smooth is fast.”
The nervous system doesn’t change through force. It changes through experiences it can actually integrate.
While big emotional experiences can feel impactful, they don’t always lead to lasting change if the system doesn’t have the capacity to hold them.
Working slowly and consistently tends to be more effective over time.
Closing
Somatic work isn’t about forcing anything. It’s about creating the conditions where change can happen naturally and listening to the body and supporting it to do what it needs to do to process stuck energy and stress.
Over time, this can lead to more space, more ease, and more choice in how you respond to your life. It honestly just makes life better.
If you’ve been curious about somatic work, I hope this gives you a clearer sense of what a session can look like and if it’s something you want to try.
If you’d like to see if working with me is a fit… check that out here.
If you aren’t ready for 1:1 work you have a few options:
