Somatic Therapy Training
You are about to make a phone call and your hand stops above the screen. The conversation has not happened yet, but your stomach seems to have started it without you. Fear can arrive as thoughts, physical sensations, an urge…
A person sits opposite you and waits for an instruction. It can be tempting to fill the silence with something impressive: close your eyes, go deeper, follow the sensation. But the most useful next sentence may be much simpler. Would…
You feel unsettled but the word anxious does not quite fit. There might be warmth in your face, a restless foot or a stomach that feels unusually busy. Putting a small mark on paper can sometimes be easier than writing…
You reach for a pen, adjust your grip and bring it towards the page. Most of those small decisions happen without an internal meeting. Your position sense is doing useful work in the background. Proprioceptive exercises draw attention to position,…
Grief can make ordinary things feel unfamiliar. A meal takes effort. A familiar room feels different. You may be tired, restless, numb or suddenly tearful while doing something that seems unrelated to the loss. There is no single bodily shape…
You can reach for a cup while looking at the person speaking to you. You can usually tell whether your elbow is bent without checking it in a mirror. Your body has information about where its parts are, even when…
You sit down to breathe more calmly and discover you have given yourself another job. Should your belly move more? Is your chest allowed to move? Are you doing enough? The breath, which was managing quite well without a committee,…
You finish a piece of work and notice your teeth have been holding an unofficial meeting. Your jaw feels busy, even though you have not been eating or speaking. A gentle jaw tension check-in can help you notice that habit…
Anger can arrive with heat, a quickened heartbeat, a set jaw or a sudden wish to act. It can also arrive quietly. You might be unusually polite while mentally composing a speech no one should receive at midnight. Noticing anger…
Sometimes you know you want to say no, but the sentence takes a surprisingly long time to reach your mouth. At other times you say yes before you have checked whether you mean it. A small somatic boundary exercise can…