What is Somatic Trauma Therapy?
Author: Mattie Griffin - Somatic Trauma Therapist
Trauma is often misunderstood as an event – a painful memory or experience from the past. But trauma is not something that happens to you. It’s something that happens deep within you, at the most fundamental level – in your nervous system.
In fact, trauma impacts a person’s entire physiological structure, all the way down to cellular health. Considering its fundamental nature, it is no surprise that when left unaddressed, trauma can take a heavy toll on a person’s health and life. Symptoms may include:
Anxiety or depression
Chronic pain
Digestive conditions
Sleep disorders
Auto-immune disorders
Behavioral and attention disorders
Learning disabilities
Relationship problems
Mental health conditions
Emotional stress
So why, how, and when does trauma occur? What is it, exactly? And most importantly, how do we heal trauma from the root cause, so that we can live vibrant, healthy, and fulfilling lives?
Understanding Trauma
Trauma is anything that is too soon, too fast, or too much for your body to fully process and release in real-time.
When our bodies perceive a threat, we instinctively respond through one of several survival mechanisms: fight, flight, or freeze.
These survival responses are normal, healthy, functional responses to stress. The “fight/flight” responses prepare our bodies to mobilize in potentially dangerous situations. Our vision narrows. Our breath becomes rapid and shallow. Our heart rate increases, pumping blood to our extremities, so we can run or fight off a predator.
When there is no perceptible, safe, or viable option to fight or flee, however, the body goes into a “freeze” state. In this mode, our body’s goal is, very simply, to shut or slow down any “unnecessary” physiological functions, to conserve as much vital energy as possible. The hope is that whatever threat that may pose danger to our survival will eventually end, or go away.
Whether we respond through fight, flight, or freeze, we are meant to regulate back to a state of homeostasis once the threat has cleared. That is how we maintain a healthy and responsive nervous system. But sometimes we do not re-regulate within an appropriate window of time.
Trauma is what happens when we get “stuck” in that state of chronic survival stress. Recall our working definition of trauma: anything that is too soon, too fast, or too much for your body to fully process and release in real time.
Types of Trauma
There are three basic categories of trauma to help us understand how we sometimes get stuck. They are:
1) Developmental trauma – “anything that is too soon” – This category includes stressful experiences that happen in childhood before we are developmentally capable of processing them on our own. Examples include but are not limited to: neglect, abuse, bullying, divorce of parents, domestic and economic instability, even minor accidents and injuries, in some cases.
2) Shock traumas – “anything that is too fast” – Shock traumas are events or situations that happen suddenly or all at once, overwhelming our system’s ability to fully respond and process. Generally, people remember the exact day and time of shock traumas. Examples include but are not limited to: natural disaster, assault, car accident, death of a loved one, surgical procedure, and others.
3) Accumulated stress – “anything that is too much” – This category encompasses the incremental and accumulative impact of ongoing, disproportionate, and chronic stressors in life. Examples include but are not limited to: financial/economic strain, ongoing worries or fears, strained relationships, unpredictable home or work environment, unpredictable political environment, or social unrest.
Healing From the Inside Out
However trauma manifests, the key to whole person health is never “just in your head.” That is because trauma is not a psychological condition; it is a system-wide physiological reality. If the body is not included in therapy, treatment is incomplete.
Somatic Trauma Therapy is a body-oriented, touch-based, and regulation-focused therapeutic system for healing trauma at the nervous system level. Through gentle support of the body's "fight/flight organs" (adrenals, kidneys, brainstem, etc.), the client's entire nervous system is invited into deep rest and repair.
Some of the far-reaching benefits of Somatic Trauma Therapy include:
Nervous system regulation
Improved emotional balance
Chronic pain relief
Reduced stress, anxiety, and overwhelm
Improved focus and work performance
A sense of calm readiness through daily life
Improved sleep, digestion, immunity, and health
A felt sense of safety in the world
More joy and vitality in relationships and life
A well-regulated nervous system creates more peace in mind and body. Discover a new path to repair ruptured boundaries and reclaim a sense of trust, ownership, and safety in your body through Somatic Trauma Therapy.
To learn more about how Somatic Trauma Therapy can support you in your journey to whole-person health, visit our services page here or reach out to Mattie directly at mattie@aligningintimacy.com to book your free 20-minute phone consultation.