Did someone forward this to you? Subscribe to the Rekindle Newsletter.
Hey {{First Name | there}}!
I’m curious if you have ever heard of and/or tried any sort of somatic therapy? If you’ve tried it, I’d love to hear about your experience! If you haven’t, I’d love to hear your questions!
Several months ago, I experienced it for the first time and the result was life changing.
I showed up to the session feeling stress and anxiety in my stomach, but unable to identify where it was coming from or why I was feeling that way. Throughout the course of the session, I felt the energy start to move in my body until it came up and out of my throat. I coughed it out and it literally left my body. I felt immediate calm and peace.
I’ve seen several therapists in the past, almost all of whom have focused on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). It’s never really worked for me. There have been times in my life when showing up for a sessions have benefitted me, but more-so because of the commitment to myself that it exemplified than from what I actually took away from the sessions.
I’m already highly self-aware. I think about my thoughts, reframe them, change them, and make decisions when something is off. So talk therapy always felt like a slowed-down version of what I was already processing because I had to catch the therapist up.
Can you relate to this experience?
Fearing there was no way to feel better
There have been times when I’ve felt truly burdened, stuck, anxious, depressed, etc. But in those times I continued to be “high-functioning.” On more than one occasion, this has led to a therapist tell me that, “You seem to be doing great!”
Those words did not reassure me. They terrified me. They made me feel so alone.
I thought, “If you can’t see that I’m struggling as I literally sit here and tell you I am struggling, where am I going to find help?! How will I get out of this?!”
This backdrop of experiences is why my first somatic therapy session changed my life.
I didn’t talk at all about my thoughts or have to recap my last week. I didn’t have to explain myself. I didn’t need to make my life make sense for someone else.
I just told her how my stomach felt, and she said, “let’s start from there.” Then I closed my eyes and followed her prompts as I paid attention to my body and felt sensations.
And after about 20 minutes, I had the light feeling of actual resolution. Stress gone and out from my body. I didn’t have to do anything after that. I didn’t need to remember to reframe my recurring thoughts every time I washed my hands or complete similar homework exercises I’ve been given in the past.
I just got to enjoy feeling better.
Starting my own somatic experiencing journey
This led me down a path. For the past several months I’ve been learning as much as I can about somatic experiencing and improving my felt sense and mind-body connection. I’ve seen improvements in my stress and anxiety management by using breathing techniques and trying to let energy move through my body rather than get stuck in it.
In fact, I recently enrolled in a certification program to get trained on somatic experiencing for stress release. I thought, why just tell other people that this modality exists (knowing that it is hard to find practitioners)? Why don’t I fill in a gap here myself so I can actually help people experience the benefits themselves?
I believe this skillset will fit perfectly into my coaching practice. What if that feeling of being stuck could just disappear? What if the tightness in your chest could just evaporate? What if your spinning mind would just quiet down so you could rest and rejuvenate?
It would accelerate your creativity, clarity and momentum, wouldn’t it?
I have a journey ahead of me to complete the training and earn my certification. But I wanted to share some of this with you because themes related to felt sense keep wanting to show up in my writing. I want you along for the journey with me.
I’ll keep you posted as I learn!
Opinions Alight: Your thoughts and opinions are valued in the Rekindle community. Illuminate us with your perspective by responding to the poll question!
We all experience stress in different ways, but might have some similarities here. Which annoying symptom of stress do you relate to the most? 😅
- Tension headaches that feel like a tiny jackhammer in your skull 🛠️💢
- The classic "butterflies in the stomach" sensation before a big event 🦋🎤
- Clenched jaw and teeth grinding, turning you into an unintentional night DJ 🎧😬
- Sudden breakout of stress-induced acne, because why not add insult to injury? 😑🚫
- The restless leg syndrome that kicks in during late-night worry sessions 🦵😴
How did you like today's Rekindle?
As always, thank you for being here! If you know someone looking to add more creativity to their life, or whose on the journey to build/rebuild something, please share Rekindle with them.
Warmly,
Jennifer
