What Is Somatic Counselling?
Somatic counselling is a therapeutic approach that includes awareness of the body as part of the healing process.
Traditional talking therapy focuses mainly on thoughts, feelings and life experiences. Somatic counselling also pays attention to physical sensations such as tension, breathing patterns, posture, or feelings of heaviness or lightness.
These sensations can give important clues about what the nervous system is experiencing.
Through gentle exploration, we can begin to understand how the body has responded to stress or trauma, and support the nervous system to move towards greater regulation and safety.
Why the Body Is Important in Trauma and Stress
When we experience something overwhelming, our nervous system automatically moves into protective responses such as fight, flight, freeze, fawn or attach.
These responses are designed to keep us safe. However, sometimes the body can remain in these states long after the original event has passed.
This may show up as:
- Anxiety or constant worry
- Feeling on edge or hyper-alert
- Exhaustion or emotional numbness
- Difficulty relaxing or sleeping
- Feeling disconnected from yourself or others
- Physical tension, aches or ongoing pain in the body
Somatic counselling helps bring gentle awareness to these responses so the nervous system can gradually find a sense of balance again.
By gently tuning into the body and its signals, we can begin to understand how your experiences are being held and find ways to support your nervous system to feel safer and more regulated.
What Happens in a Somatic Counselling Session?
Somatic counselling does not mean doing intense physical exercises or anything uncomfortable. The work is gentle and guided by your pace.
A session may include:
- Noticing physical sensations in the body
- Simple grounding or breathing techniques
- Awareness of how emotions show up physically
- Exploring where tension or ease is felt
- Developing greater connection between body and mind
- Gently using bodily awareness to process and release unprocessed trauma
The aim is to support your nervous system to feel safer and more regulated over time.
Who Can Benefit from Somatic Counselling?
Somatic approaches can be helpful for people experiencing:
- Anxiety and chronic stress
- Trauma or past difficult experiences
- Feeling disconnected from the body
- Burnout or emotional overwhelm
- A sense of being “stuck” despite understanding things intellectually
- Unexplained physical symptoms or persistent pain without a clear medical cause
Even when we know the reasons behind our struggles, the body can still hold patterns of protection. Somatic counselling gently works with these patterns.
Somatic Counselling at Mayberry Counselling
At Mayberry Counselling, I offer an integrative, trauma approach that combines traditional talking therapy with body awareness.
This means we can explore thoughts, emotions and experiences while also paying attention to what the body might be communicating.
Sessions are available:
- Face-to-face in Milton Keynes
- Online counselling across the UK
- Walk-and-talk sessions in nature (Weather dependant)
If you would like to learn more about how counselling could support you, you can visit my 'How I Work' page or get in touch here to arrange a free 20-minute introductory call.