Somatic therapies are new and important ways to access and clear foundational experiences held in the body. Various contributors to the field include Somatic Experiencing of Peter Levine, Pat Ogden, and, later, the attachment emphasis of Somatic Transformation of Sharon Stanley. In general the somatic approaches emphasize working with the neurobiological response to acute and chronic stress and trauma.
In the Somatic Transformation approach, acute and chronic stress and trauma reactions are understood to be aspects of development and relational experiences throughout the life span, from infancy, through adulthood. The methods also address other sources of acute and chronic stress, such as medical procedures, falls, accidents, assaults, natural disasters, terrorism from the point of view of the felt sense of unworked experience in the body. Recent theories and research on brain-body physiology and memory mechanisms have expanded our understanding of the possibilities of somatic therapy processes in the resolution of conditioned reflexes of trauma. For more information about Somatic Experiencing, see the Foundation for Human Enrichment.
For information about Pat Ogden's methods, go to the Hakomi Institute.
Dr Paulsen completed one year of somatic experiencing training, and one year of somatic transformation training. She incorporates somatic therapy into her work with EMDR and ego state therapy as appropriate.
Tim Iistowanohpataakiiwa also completed those same trainings, and incorporates some of the elements into his spiritual direction practice. Interestingly, somatic interventions are very compatible with the felt sense of Native American ways of being and enhance spiritual practice.
A key element of any somatic approach is to activate one's ventral vagal nervous system with any kind of resourcing that is life enhancing. For videos of indigenous song, dance, drum, chant that access Native American and Native Hawaiian spirituality and community, please go to this link:
