Somatic Practices / Somatic Approaches

Somatic approaches, known in English as “somatic practices,” work through the body to regulate emotional tension. The word “somatic” comes from the Greek word soma, meaning “body.” The basic premise is that stress, anxiety, and traumatic experiences have physical effects. Muscles tense up, breathing becomes shallow, the heart races, and the stomach tightens.

Instead of talking about the experience right away, attention is focused on these bodily signals. Children and adolescents learn to notice these sensations and use them to return to a calmer state. Experts refer to this as emotion regulation through the body. This often sounds familiar to parents, as they’ve long used these methods to soothe young children: rocking, holding, and breathing calmly together.

Three key elements appear in almost all body-oriented methods.

• Body awareness: consciously sensing where tension is located in the body without immediately trying to push it away.
• Breathing: Slow exhalation calms the autonomic nervous system and lowers your heart rate and muscle tension.
• Grounding: feeling the connection to the floor, a chair, or your own feet to anchor yourself in the here and now.

The idea behind this is that a body that feels safe sends a “all clear” signal to the brain. This connection between physical state and emotional state is also described by the polyvagal theory. Many exercises aim to bring the nervous system out of a state of constant alarm and to practice self-calming.

There are several schools of thought under the umbrella of somatic approaches.

• Somatic Experiencing (SE) developed by Peter A. Levine, an American trauma researcher. SE is based on the premise that stress energy trapped in the body following an overwhelming experience can be gently released. The focus is on bodily sensations; a detailed retelling of the trauma is not the primary concern.
• Body-oriented trauma therapy is an umbrella term for methods that incorporate bodywork into trauma treatment.
• Breathing and grounding exercises, often incorporated as building blocks into other therapies.

Related techniques include relaxation methods such as Jacobson’s progressive muscle relaxation and autogenic training, which specifically reduce muscle tension and inner restlessness. Mindfulness also overlaps with the body-oriented approach because it directs awareness to the present moment.

It’s worth taking a sober look at the current state of the evidence. Relaxation techniques such as progressive muscle relaxation have shown fairly reliable evidence of effectiveness in reducing stress in studies. For Somatic Experiencing, there are a few controlled studies and reviews suggesting a reduction in trauma symptoms. However, the studies are often small and vary in methodology, so their conclusiveness remains limited.

The German S3 guideline on post-traumatic stress disorder recommends trauma-focused psychotherapy as the first-line treatment, such as trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy or EMDR. Body-oriented methods are classified there as complementary components. They do not replace guideline-based treatment. For parents, this means that somatic exercises can provide support and relief. In cases of a diagnosed disorder, they should be used alongside professional therapy, not in its place.

Many of these things can be easily tried out in everyday life, without any prior knowledge.

• Breathe slowly together: inhale for about four seconds, exhale for six seconds. The long exhalation has a calming effect.
• Feel your feet: plant them firmly on the ground, wiggle your toes, and consciously notice the contact.
• Movement: Walking, swinging, hopping, or stretching can help relieve tension.
• Physical contact: a hand on the back, a firm hug. This supports co-regulation, in which a calm adult provides support to the child.

Your own state of mind is important. A parent who is stressed out themselves will have a hard time calming a child. Regular self-care is therefore no trivial matter.

These exercises are meant to provide support, not a diagnosis. Janike is a social worker and parent coach currently training to become a child and adolescent psychotherapist; she is not licensed and does not make diagnoses. Rückenwind offers coaching and support, not psychotherapy. If a child appears to be under persistent stress, withdraws, or cannot settle down after a traumatic experience, the situation should be evaluated by a professional. The appropriate professionals to consult are a child and adolescent psychiatric practice (KJP), a pediatrician, or a medical or psychotherapeutic specialist.