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ICF Onaylı Koçluk, Mentorluk ve Somatik Terapi | Cevvela
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Somatik Terapi

Somatic therapy is a body-oriented psychotherapy approach that resolves the bodily traces of trauma, stress and anxiety through breath, movement and body-awareness techniques. Resting on the "bottom-up" regulation of the autonomic nervous system, this method has strong clinical evidence especially in PTSD, chronic stress and anxiety (Brom et al., 2017; Kuhfuß et al., 2021).

What is somatic therapy?

Somatic therapy derives from the Greek soma (body) and is a body-oriented psychotherapy approach that places at its centre how trauma, stress and emotional experiences are stored in the body. Its fundamental difference from traditional talk therapy is that it uses the two-way flow of information between brain and body as a therapeutic tool. In neuroscience this mechanism is explained within the framework of vagal tone regulation and polyvagal theory (Porges, 2011).

Brain–body connection: the mechanism

Traumatic experiences are encoded not only in the cognitive layers of the brain but also in the autonomic nervous system:

  • The amygdala stores threat memory and triggers bodily alarm responses.
  • The hippocampus causes trauma to lose its time stamp; the body keeps living the "moment".
  • The prefrontal cortex loses function under stress; rational responses become harder.

Somatic therapy works on this circuit bottom-up: first noticing body signals, then regulating them, and only last constructing cognitive meaning. This approach complements the "top-down" logic of classic cognitive-behavioural therapy.

"The body keeps the score."

— Bessel van der Kolk, MD · The Body Keeps the Score (2014)
The nervous system returns to its own rhythm the moment it feels safe.
Scientific Evidence

What does the research say?

The data below rests on published research; each card carries its source.

80%

The proportion of PTSD patients given Somatic Experiencing (SE) who no longer met clinical diagnostic criteria.

Brom et al., J. of Traumatic Stress, 2017

26–73%

The range of reduction in anxiety symptoms after somatic therapy (meta-analysis).

Kuhfuß et al., Eur. J. of Psychotraumatology, 2021

6–12

The average number of sessions for marked improvement in mild-to-moderate stress and anxiety.

Payne, Levine & Crane-Godreau, Front. Psychol., 2015

60%

The proportion of patients for whom body-oriented therapies produced more improvement in chronic pain than talk therapy alone.

van der Kolk et al., J. Clin. Psychiatry, 2014

Scientific reference list
  1. Brom, D., et al. (2017). Somatic Experiencing for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Randomized Controlled Outcome Study. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 30(3), 304–312.
  2. Kuhfuß, M., et al. (2021). Somatic experiencing — effectiveness and key factors of a body-oriented trauma therapy. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 12(1).
  3. Payne, P., Levine, P.A., & Crane-Godreau, M.A. (2015). Somatic experiencing: using interoception and proprioception as core elements of trauma therapy. Frontiers in Psychology, 6, 93.
  4. Porges, S.W. (2011). The Polyvagal Theory. W.W. Norton & Company.
  5. van der Kolk, B. (2014). The Body Keeps the Score. Viking Press.
  6. Levine, P.A. (2010). In an Unspoken Voice. North Atlantic Books.
Indication

Who is somatic therapy for?

Suitable situations

  • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
  • Chronic stress and burnout syndrome
  • Anxiety disorders
  • Depression (mild-to-moderate)
  • Chronic pain syndromes
  • Grief and loss experiences
  • Stress-related bodily symptoms
  • Body-image issues

Consult a clinician first

  • Active psychosis or schizophrenia diagnosis
  • Bipolar disorder (manic phase)
  • Active substance addiction
  • Severe dissociative disorders
  • Untreated major depression

Somatic therapy does not replace clinical psychotherapy or medical treatment. Expert consultation is required for individual assessment.

Benefits

Seven evidence-based benefits of somatic therapy

1

Eases trauma and PTSD symptoms

Somatic Experiencing draws on how animals spontaneously reset their nervous system after stress; it consciously activates this mechanism in humans.

2

Regulates the autonomic nervous system

Through vagal-tone exercises and conscious breathing it activates the 'rest and digest' (parasympathetic) mode; it produces measurable physiological effects.

3

Reduces chronic pain

In muscle tension and 'hard-to-explain' pains arising from the somatisation of emotional loads, it breaks the cycle of tension.

4

Improves emotional regulation

As interoceptive awareness develops, catching the early signals of emotions becomes easier; impulsive reactions decrease.

5

Improves sleep quality

Regulation of the nervous system positively affects sleep architecture; improvement is reported especially in PTSD-related nightmares and hypervigilance.

6

Strengthens body image and self-awareness

Reconnecting with the body reverses the dissociation (disconnection from the body) in a history of trauma or neglect.

7

Boosts the effectiveness of traditional therapies

Together with CBT, EMDR or medication it creates a synergistic effect; body-oriented work eases the deeper processing of cognitive interventions.

Session Flow

What happens in a somatic therapy session?

A typical session is about 60 minutes and unfolds in six stages.

01

Setting up a safe space

You are guided to notice the room, your body and your breath. This 'grounding' is the foundation of the session.

0–10 min
02

Building a resource

You recall a memory, person or place that feels safe, calm or strong. This is the harbour to return to when hard material surfaces.

10–20 min
03

Bodily awareness

You begin to notice the sensations in your body (tightness, heaviness, trembling, heat, pulse). Naming these sensations is the therapeutic process itself.

20–35 min
04

Titration (slow processing)

Difficult sensations are worked in small, tolerable doses. You go through it by the drop, not the flood; processing happens without overwhelming the nervous system.

35–50 min
05

Completion and integration

The body's natural completion movements (trembling, deep breath, release) are encouraged.

50–60 min
06

Closing and return to ground

The session closes with a return to safe ground; observations to carry into the coming week are shared.

~60 min

Body and mind are not two separate things; they are two banks of the same river.

Techniques

Techniques used in somatic therapy

Tap a heading to open its description.

Grounding

Noticing the feeling of your feet on the floor, the support of the chair and the sounds around you. In moments of dissociation it brings you back to the 'now'; its neuroscientific mechanism is the re-activation of the prefrontal cortex.

Titration

Contacting traumatic material in small, manageable doses rather than diving in completely. Staying within the nervous system's 'window of tolerance' avoids over-activation (hypervigilance) or shutdown (freeze).

Pendulation

Making rhythmic shifts between a difficult sensation and a comfortable resource. The brain learns to hold two opposite states together; this supports neuroplasticity.

Body Scan

Systematically observing bodily sensations by focusing from head to toe or on a specific area. Sensations are named without judgement: tightness, trembling, heaviness, emptiness, heat, cold.

Breathwork

Diaphragmatic breathing and long exhalation activate the parasympathetic nervous system. The 4-7-8 breath and coherence breathing (5 seconds in, 5 seconds out) are common protocols.

Integration with EMDR

Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR), combined with somatic awareness, enables traumatic memories to be processed at both the cognitive and bodily levels.

Movement and Expression

Suppressed 'action tendencies' (to flee, to fight, to protect) find bodily completion through small gestures, clenching a fist or trembling. It is the conscious version of the natural behaviour animals do after stress.

Comparison

Somatic therapy and other approaches

CriterionSomatic TherapyCBTEMDRPsychoanalysis
FocusBody + MindThought + BehaviourMemory + EmotionUnconscious + Past
DirectionBottom-upTop-downBothTop-down
Body involved?Yes, centralLimitedPartlyNo
Typical sessions8–2012–206–1250+
Chronic painEffectiveLimitedNot directlyNot directly
FAQ

Frequently asked about somatic therapy

Tap a heading to open its description.

Somatic therapy is a sub-branch of psychotherapy; some somatic therapists are also psychotherapists. The key difference is that, while classic psychotherapy works primarily at the level of thought and emotion, somatic therapy puts body sensations at the centre of the process.

First step

Learning to hear what your body tells you.

The first step begins with a question. Whether it suits you, we assess together in an intro call.

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