Somatic Experiencing

Somatic Experiencing is a form of therapy that is aimed at resolving and relieving symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). It was pioneered by Dr. Peter Levine in 1997 and was based on his observations of how animals in the wild deal with and recover from life-threatening situations.

This style of therapy is aimed at resolving the trauma symptoms (both mental and physical) by focusing on the patient’s somatic symptoms (perceived body sensations). Somatic experiencing requires the client to track and identify the feelings that were associated with the original trauma and then performs body work (physical manipulation through massage and physical movements) to relieve the physical symptoms that are associated with the trauma.