Do You Know You’re Safe, But Still Feel in Danger?
That’s the paradox many trauma survivors live with every day. You’ve done the work. You’ve gone to therapy. But something inside still feels… on edge.
This is where somatic therapy can help. Unlike traditional talk therapy, somatic therapy helps you reconnect with your body—the place where trauma often hides.
If you’re healing from Complex PTSD (CPTSD), narcissistic abuse, codependency, or childhood trauma, somatic therapy offers a compassionate, body-centered path forward.
What Is Somatic Therapy?
Somatic therapy is a therapeutic approach that blends psychological healing with physical awareness. It’s based on the idea that trauma isn’t just stored in your mind—it’s stored in your nervous system, tissues, and patterns of physical response (Levine, 2010).
This method is especially powerful for people recovering from:
- Long-term abuse or neglect
- Narcissistic or emotionally abusive relationships
- Childhood trauma and attachment wounds
- PTSD and CPTSD
- Substance use disorders linked to trauma
Through tools like grounding, breathwork, gentle movement, and body awareness, somatic therapy helps release stuck trauma and restore a sense of safety from the inside out.
Why Somatic Therapy Works for CPTSD
Unlike single-incident trauma, CPTSD is the result of chronic, repeated trauma, often relational in nature. This could include growing up in a dysfunctional or abusive household, being raised by a narcissistic parent, or living in an emotionally neglectful environment (Herman, 2015).
Symptoms of CPTSD often include:
- Emotional flashbacks
- Dissociation
- Chronic hypervigilance
- Shame and self-blame
- Trouble forming safe relationships
These patterns aren’t just psychological—they’re neurological. Your body is literally wired to expect danger. Somatic therapy helps you retrain your nervous system to respond to life differently.
“Trauma is not what happens to us, but what we hold inside in the absence of an empathetic witness.” —Peter Levine, In an Unspoken Voice
Types of Somatic Therapy and Techniques Used
Somatic therapy includes a variety of methods, each grounded in nervous system science and trauma healing:
- Somatic Experiencing (SE) – Developed by Peter Levine, SE helps release “stuck” survival responses like fight, flight, or freeze.
- Sensorimotor Psychotherapy – Merges body awareness with emotional processing to address trauma stored in movement and sensation (Ogden et al., 2006).
- Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy – Combines Polyvagal Theory, somatic tracking, and attachment repair for a full-system approach.
Tools often include:
- Body scans
- Resourcing (finding internal or external sources of safety)
- Titration (processing trauma gently, in small steps)
- Co-regulation with a safe therapist or coach
- Grounding and self-soothing practices
The Role of the Nervous System in Trauma
Somatic therapy draws heavily from Polyvagal Theory (Porges, 2011), which explains how the vagus nerve governs your sense of safety or danger.
If you’ve experienced long-term trauma, your body may default to:
- Fight or flight (sympathetic activation)
- Freeze or shutdown (dorsal vagal collapse)
- Fawning (people-pleasing to avoid threat)
Somatic therapy helps guide your nervous system back into a ventral vagal state—calm, connected, and grounded.
Is Somatic Therapy Right for You?
You might benefit from somatic therapy or somatic-based recovery coaching if you:
- Feel stuck in your trauma recovery
- Struggle with chronic anxiety, freeze states, or panic
- Can’t get out of your head and into your body
- Have tried therapy but still feel disconnected
- Want to build resilience and nervous system safety
At Diverse Paths Wellness, I specialize in supporting clients through a trauma-informed, body-based lens. My work integrates Somatic Attachment Therapy, Integrative Somatic Trauma Training, and over 25 years of mentoring and coaching experience.
Ready to Reclaim Your Body and Your Life?
Your trauma doesn’t define you. Your nervous system is not broken. And recovery is possible—with the right support.
Let’s walk the path of healing together.
– Book a free consult here https://diversepathswellness.ca/book-now – Explore somatic-based recovery coaching https://diversepathswellness.ca/therapists – Read more articles on trauma recovery and resilience https://diversepathswellness.ca/diverse-paths-blog
References (APA Style)
Herman, J. L. (2015). Trauma and recovery: The aftermath of violence–from domestic abuse to political terror. Basic Books. Levine, P. A. (2010). In an unspoken voice: How the body releases trauma and restores goodness. North Atlantic Books. Ogden, P., Minton, K., & Pain, C. (2006). Trauma and the body: A sensorimotor approach to psychotherapy. W.W. Norton. Porges, S. W. (2011). The polyvagal theory: Neurophysiological foundations of emotions, attachment, communication, and self-regulation. W.W. Norton & Company.