Somatic Experiencing®, created by Dr. Peter Levine, is a body-oriented approach for the healing of trauma and other stress disorders.
Somatic Experiencing (SE) is a trauma-focused therapy which helps to release trauma and regulate the nervous system by a very gentle approach. Trauma is essentially a dysregulation in the nervous system which could have been caused by single traumatic event or multiple events. This approach helps to release the dysregulation in the nervous system.
What does this treatment look like in the room?
Less talking and more observing of what is going on in your nervous system. You will become an expert in the way energy moves around your body. You will be able to tell when your system is highly activated or shutdown and together we will devise strategies for your nervous system to come back to a place of regulation and peace.
Somatic Experiencing is a very gentle trauma based treatment. It is a bottom-up approach which means that the therapy is concentrating on movements and sensations in the body and gradually letting the dysregulation flow out of the body releasing the feelings of trauma. And all this can be done without having to talk in-depth about the difficult details of your trauma.
Somatic Experiencing for children
Somatic Experiencing in younger children follows the same principles as SE in adults but with more games.
It involves the therapist tracking the child’s nervous system through directed games and play to increase their capacity for difficult feelings.