Somatic Movement as Medicine: Healing Trauma Through the Body

Struggling with unresolved trauma stuck in your body? Somatic movement is a powerful, neuroscience-backed approach to healing. Learn how to release tension, rewire your nervous system, and restore emotional balance through intentional movement.

Somatic Movement as Medicine: Healing Trauma Through the Body

Have you ever felt trapped in cycles of anxiety, chronic tension, or emotional overwhelm—despite your best efforts to talk through your pain? If so, you're not alone. Trauma isn’t just a memory stored in the mind; it’s an imprint held in the nervous system and body. While traditional therapy can be helpful, many people find themselves still struggling with persistent symptoms because trauma is not just psychological—it’s physiological.

Somatic movement therapy offers a science-backed, body-centered approach to healing. By engaging in intentional movement, we can access and release stored trauma, restore nervous system balance, and create lasting emotional resilience.

At Embodied Wellness and Recovery, we specialize in treating trauma through somatic therapy, guiding individuals toward healing that is felt—not just understood.

How Trauma Gets Stuck in the Body

When we experience a traumatic event, our body reacts instinctively, activating the autonomic nervous system (ANS) to respond with fight, flight, freeze, or fawn (Porges, 2011). If the trauma is not fully processed, these responses can become stuck, leading to persistent dysregulation, such as:

     – Chronic muscle tension and pain

     – Anxiety, panic attacks, or hypervigilance

     – Dissociation or numbness

     – Fatigue or burnout

     – Unexplained health issues such as headaches or digestive problems

The body remembers what the mind forgets. Even if we rationalize an experience, our nervous system may remain locked in survival mode—a state of heightened stress that continues long after the initial event.

So, how do we release what is trapped beneath conscious awareness? Somatic movement is one of the most effective ways to reset the nervous system and allow stored trauma to move through and out of the body.

The Neuroscience of Somatic Movement

Somatic movement therapy works because it engages the body’s natural neuroplasticity—the ability of the brain and nervous system to rewire and heal (Siegel, 2020). By incorporating slow, mindful movement, we create new neural pathways that signal safety, helping the body move from a sympathetic stress response (fight-or-flight) into a parasympathetic state (rest and repair).

How Somatic Movement Affects the Brain and Nervous System:

     – Regulates the vagus nerve – stimulating the vagal brake can reduce anxiety, lower heart rate, and promote a sense of calm (Rosenberg, 2017).

     – Releases trapped stress hormones – movement allows the body to metabolize and discharge excess cortisol and adrenaline, reducing inflammation and tension.

     – Enhances interoception – the ability to sense and respond to internal bodily signals, helping us reconnect with our emotional and physical needs.

Through somatic practices, we move the body to move the trauma rather than staying stuck in cycles of talk-based processing without bodily integration.

What Are Somatic Movement Practices?

Somatic movement can take many forms, but the key is intentionality and presence. Some of the most effective trauma-healing movements include:

1. Gentle, Rhythmic Movements

Slow, repetitive motions—such as rocking, swaying, or shaking—help release stored tension and regulate the nervous system. Many trauma survivors instinctively engage in self-soothing movements like rocking back and forth, which can be refined into conscious healing tools.

2. Grounding and Centering Exercises

Walking barefoot, pressing the feet into the floor, or slow spinal movements help bring awareness back to the body, shifting from dissociation to embodied presence.

3. Trauma-Informed Yoga

Unlike traditional fitness-based yoga, somatic yoga prioritizes nervous system regulation over performance. Poses like child’s pose, cat-cow, and legs-up-the-wall encourage deep relaxation and vagus nerve stimulation.

4. Tension and Trauma Releasing Exercises (TRE)

This method, developed by Dr. David Berceli, involves neurogenic tremors, which help the body discharge stored stress. Shaking releases excess energy trapped in the muscles and nervous system, mimicking the natural stress relief mechanisms seen in animals.

5. Breath-Centered Movement

Combining movement with deep, diaphragmatic breathing strengthens the mind-body connection and signals safety to the nervous system. Extended exhalations activate the parasympathetic response, helping the body shift out of survival mode.

Can Somatic Movement Help You Heal?

If you’ve tried traditional therapy but still feel emotionally or physically stuck, somatic movement could be the missing piece of your healing journey.

Ask yourself:

     – Do I struggle with chronic tension, unexplained pain, or a sense of numbness?

     – Do I feel disconnected from my body, emotions, or intuition?

     – Do I experience anxiety, restlessness, or difficulty relaxing?

     – Have I been through therapy but still feel like something is unresolved?

If you answered yes to any of these, your body may be holding onto unprocessed trauma—and somatic movement can help you release it.

Hope and Healing Through Somatic Therapy

At Embodied Wellness and Recovery, we specialize in trauma-informed somatic therapy that empowers individuals to heal at the deepest level. Our approach integrates neuroscience, EMDR, Somatic Experiencing, movement therapy, and breathwork to help you reconnect with your body in a safe and supportive way.

Healing isn’t about just thinking differently—it’s about feeling different in your body. Somatic movement is a powerful tool for anyone who wants to:
✔ Regulate their nervous system
✔ Release chronic stress and tension
✔ Increase emotional resilience
✔ Feel more present, connected, and at peace

Your body is your greatest ally in healing. It contains innate wisdom. Are you ready to listen, to attune to your nervous system, allowing it to tell you what it needs to heal?

Contact us today to learn more about our somatic therapy programs and begin your journey toward full-body healing. Reach out to schedule a free 20-minute consultation with our team of top-rated trauma specialists or somatic coaches to discuss whether Embodied Wellness and Recovery could be an ideal fit for your mental health needs.

 📞 Call us at (310) 651-8458

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References

Porges, S. W. (2011). The Polyvagal Theory: Neurophysiological foundations of emotions, attachment, communication, and self-regulation. W. W. Norton & Company.

Rosenberg, S. (2017). Accessing the Healing Power of the Vagus Nerve: Self-help exercises for anxiety, depression, trauma, and autism. North Atlantic Books.

Siegel, D. J. (2020). The Developing Mind: How relationships and the brain interact to shape who we are (3rd ed.). Guilford Press.