Listening to the Body as a Path to Nervous System Healing
The word somatic has become increasingly popular – often used alongside trauma recovery and nervous system healing – yet it’s still widely misunderstood.
At its core, somatic simply means “of the body.”
The word soma literally translates to body.
So when we talk about somatic work, we are talking about listening to the body’s signals, sensations, and wisdom – and allowing the body itself to guide the healing process.
Listening to the Body Is Somatic
A simple example of somatic awareness might look like this:
You notice tightness in your stomach…and instead of pushing through, you choose not to attend something your body isn’t ready for. That moment of noticing – and responding – is somatic awareness.
This is a foundational principle of my somatic bodywork sessions.
We don’t override the body.
We don’t force release.
We listen.
Why “Somatic” Is Often Linked to Trauma and Nervous System Healing
In recent years, the word somatic has become closely associated with trauma recovery and nervous system regulation/resonance – and for good reason.
Some psychotherapists now incorporate awareness of body sensations into their sessions. When they do, this is often referred to as Somatic Therapy. What they are usually working with is the nervous system and trauma through sensation awareness. However, psychotherapists are generally discouraged from using physical touch as part of their therapeutic practice. For example, in the state of Georgia where I practice, psychotherapists are not licensed to touch.
The Power of Safe, Attuned Touch
As a licensed somatic bodyworker, I am trained and permitted to work directly through the body, with touch or no touch as needed. My RN license also gives me a second license to touch. With clear consent, I place my hands on the part of the body that is asking for support.
This matters – because safe, attuned touch is profoundly regulating for the nervous system. Stress and trauma are not just cognitive experiences. They are stored, held, and often frozen in the body. The body knows what the mind often does not.
My Own Healing Through the Body
Healing through the body is what finally helped lift my lifelong low-grade depression in my twenties – after experiencing it on and off for most of my life.
Like many people, I carried early patterns that began long before I had language – from womb, infant, and toddler stages of life. When these early patterns remain frozen, they can feel existential simply because we’ve never known anything else. This is the work I’ve spent years doing – in my own body and nervous system.
Finding Alchemical Alignment in 2019 was life-changing for me. I have repeated the training three times for deeper embodiment and lived understanding. I have also received professional sessions monthly for the last four years. I have received monthly therapeutic bodywork for 26 years. I live what I do. Prayer and my personal relationship with God and nature have been central to my healing as well. And so have real friendships – the kind rooted in attunement, presence, integrity and care.
Why Co-Regulation Is So Healing
Being with others who can truly attune means being with people who have regulated, resonant nervous systems themselves. When someone can remain present and regulated, their nervous system naturally supports the regulation of others. This is known as co-regulation – or what I sometimes call co-resonance. To me, this is what healing was always meant to look like.
Not forcing.
Not fixing.
But being held in safe, attuned presence.
Why I Facilitate Sanctuary Nervous System Recovery Groups
This is why I feel deeply called to facilitate Sanctuary nervous system recovery groups. When group spaces are held with integrity, pacing, and attunement, the nervous system can finally settle – not through pressure or performance, but through shared presence.
Now that I have metabolized much of the early freeze in my own system, my body naturally holds more ease, regulation, and health. From this place, clients often reach similar states more quickly – not because I am doing something to them, but because the nervous system learns through co-resonance.
The Body Leads the Way
Somatic healing is not about forcing change. It’s about creating enough safety – internally and relationally – for the body to soften, thaw, and reorganize on its own timeline. The body already knows the way.
Gentle Invitation
If you feel called to experience this work in a slow, supported group setting, you’re welcome to explore Sanctuary – a small, trauma-informed nervous system recovery group rooted in safety, attunement, and co-regulation.
