Somatic Experiencing Therapy for Stress and Trauma Relief

Somatic Experiencing (SE®) is a therapeutic modality that helps patients reconnect with their inner self. First developed by Pieter Levine, the therapy involves the therapist’s active observation of the patient’s body and nervous system responses after a trauma situation. The body’s reaction to a traumatic situation can affect the autonomic nervous system by keeping it stuck in the “fight or flight” mode (for example, I feel constantly angry or frustrated or anxious).

These responses can linger in the body and the mind even years after the trauma, causing complex thinking and generating mental and physical symptoms such as anxiety, flashbacks, depression, and pain as well as behavioral problems and addictions. Somatic Experience explains it is not the actual event that holds us back but the residual energy that creates the impact.

Unlike the traditional psychotherapy model, SE® techniques are body-oriented.

Various gentle body touch and movement techniques are used to re-regulate the patient’s nervous system response and guide the patient to increase awareness of their bodily sensations. By restoring the body’s awareness, patients can gradually eliminate unwanted patterns, allowing stress to gradually be released from the body.

Somatic Experiencing services are local to Edgecliff, Double Bay, Bondi, and most of Eastern Suburbs as well as Glebe, Newtown, Balmain, Annandale, and most of Inner West Sydney.

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