Somatic Solutions
@ The Village Integrative Health Center
930 Alhambra Blvd Suite 220 Sacramento, CA 95816
Somatic Experiencing® in Sacramento and Online
A body-centered approach to stress, overwhelm and trauma-related nervous system patterns
About The Session
Somatic Experiencing® is an approach developed by Peter Levine, PhD, that works with how experiences of stress, overwhelm and trauma show up in the body and nervous system.
Rather than focusing primarily on analyzing the story of what happened, Somatic Experiencing pays attention to what is happening now: sensation, emotion, movement impulses, breathing, orientation, imagery, attention and shifts in physiological state.
The work is collaborative. I may help direct your attention toward aspects of your experience that are easy to overlook and we work together with what emerges rather than trying to force a particular response.
What happens during a Somatic Experiencing appointment?
Do I have to talk about my trauma?
What does “working with the nervous system” mean?
What do people seek Somatic Experiencing® for?
Is Somatic Experiencing® psychotherapy?
Can Somatic Experiencing® involve touch?
How is Somatic Experiencing® different from Structural Integration?
How is this different from an Integrative Structural & Somatic Appointment?
Do I need to be in crisis or have a major trauma history?
About my Somatic Experiencing® training
There is no single format.
We usually begin seated and talk about what brings you in, what has been happening recently and what you notice as we speak.
I may ask questions about sensations in your body, changes in breathing, emotions, images, impulses to move or what draws your attention in the room. We may notice areas that feel settled or supported as well as areas that feel activated, uncomfortable or difficult to stay with.
Sometimes the work is quiet and subtle. At other times it may involve movement, standing, pushing, reaching, orienting through the room or experimenting with boundaries.
Physical contact may also be part of a Somatic Experiencing appointment when it is appropriate and desired. Touch in an SE appointment is not primarily intended to mechanically change soft tissue. It may instead provide sensory input while we attend to support, boundaries, physiological state or what changes in your experience.
Some appointments remain entirely seated and conversational. Others take place partly on the treatment table or involve movement in the room.
No. Often, a headline is sufficient.
You can tell me as much or as little of your history as feels useful.
Somatic Experiencing does not require a detailed retelling of traumatic events. Much of our work can stay focused on what is happening in the present moment.
That said, the work is not limited to avoiding difficult material.
Once there is enough support and stability in the present, I may invite you to briefly approach a difficult memory, image or piece of your history while remaining connected to resources and noticing what happens in your body.
The goal is not to overwhelm you or make you relive an experience. We are interested in developing more flexibility in how you can approach, respond to and move away from difficult material.
The phrase can sound vague, so I think it is worth being specific.
Your nervous system is constantly receiving information, interpreting what is happening and organizing responses.
Those responses can include changes in muscular tension, breathing, heart rate, attention, emotion, movement, posture and impulses to approach, withdraw, fight, freeze or seek support.
Somatic Experiencing works with these responses as they occur in the present.
We might notice that talking about a particular subject changes your breathing. You may feel an urge to turn away, push something away, stand up or move closer. Your attention may narrow or suddenly move outward into the room. A part of your body may brace while another settles.
Rather than treating those responses as background noise, we become curious about them.
The aim is not to achieve permanent calm. A healthy nervous system needs access to activation as well as rest. I am interested in helping you develop greater flexibility, range and agency in how you respond.
People come to this work with experiences such as:
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persistent stress or overwhelm
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difficulty settling after stressful experiences
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feeling chronically on guard or vigilant
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physical bracing associated with stress
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a sense of disconnection from the body
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strong physiological reactions that seem difficult to control
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trauma that continues to influence present-day experience
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difficulty identifying or tolerating bodily sensations
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feeling stuck between activation and shutdown
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wanting to develop greater awareness of internal experience
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wanting a body-centered complement to psychotherapy or other forms of care
I do not diagnose or treat mental health conditions and Somatic Experiencing® in my practice is not a substitute for psychotherapy, psychiatric care or appropriate medical treatment.
Not in my practice.
Somatic Experiencing® is practiced by professionals from a variety of backgrounds, including many psychotherapists. I practice SE within my scope as a somatic and manual therapy practitioner.
My work focuses on embodiment, sensation, movement, physiological responses to stress and affect and the ways these experiences are expressed through the body.
I do not provide psychotherapy or diagnose mental health conditions.
Some clients work with me alongside a psychotherapist and find that the two approaches complement one another. When someone's needs fall outside my scope, I make referrals to an appropriately licensed professional.
Yes, but touch is not required.
Some Somatic Experiencing® sessions involve no physical contact at all.
At other times, consensual touch may be useful. I may place a hand at an area where you experience support or tension, provide resistance for you to push against, support a limb or use other forms of contact while we track what changes in your experience.
Touch is collaborative and can be adjusted or stopped at any time.
The intention is different from Structural Integration or massage. In an SE appointment, physical contact is primarily being used as part of the somatic process rather than to mechanically change muscles or connective tissue.
Structural Integration begins with a structural and manual therapy intention.
We are primarily interested in physical organization, movement, tension, biomechanics, posture and your relationship with gravity. Most of the appointment involves hands-on work.
Somatic Experiencing® begins with a different intention. We are primarily attending to your internal experience and nervous system responses.
There can be overlap. Something emotional may arise during Structural Integration and an SE appointment may involve touch.
The distinction is therefore less about rigid techniques and more about what we have agreed the appointment is primarily for.
A Somatic Experiencing appointment keeps the primary focus on somatic and nervous system work.
Although touch may be used, we are not primarily trying to change soft tissue, posture or biomechanics through manual therapy.
The Integrative Structural & Somatic Appointment explicitly gives us more freedom to move between SE and hands-on structural work.
If you primarily want to work with stress, trauma-related patterns, physiological responses or your relationship with internal experience, book Somatic Experiencing®.
If you specifically want the option of moving between that work and Structural Integration or other hands-on manual therapy, the Integrative appointment is a better fit.
No.
You do not need to identify as traumatized and you do not need a particular diagnosis to explore this work.
Some people come because of a clearly identifiable traumatic experience. Others notice long-standing patterns of tension, hypervigilance, overwhelm, difficulty settling or disconnection without relating them to a single event.
Other people are simply interested in developing greater awareness of how they respond internally and want more choice in how they move through stressful experiences.
I’ve completed the Somatic Experiencing® Professional Training curriculum. I studied with Debra Clydesdale, L.Ac.; Dave Berger, MFT, PT; Linda Stelte, MED, and Mahshid Hager, LMFT. I’m currently completing the remaining personal session and case consultation requirements for the Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP) certificate.
I also assist Debra Clydesdale, L.Ac. in the Somatic Experiencing® Professional Trainings, where I support students during experiential practice and small-group learning.
My somatic work is informed by my background in Structural Integration, manual therapy, movement practice and the study of pain, perception and embodiment.
Because I work extensively with the body through both touch and movement, I am particularly interested in the places where physical experience, perception, emotion and nervous system responses intersect.
