The term "somatics" was coined by professor and theorist Thomas Hanna in 1976 and it has come to represent a field of movement studies and bodywork that foregrounds the internal physical sensations, perceptions, and experiences of the body.
Have you ever been stressed and needed to go for a run to “clear your mind”? When we elicit strong emotions these emotions can get stored in the body. Somatic release offers us a bridge to connect our mind, body, and soul.
How do these energies get stuck inside of us? To be honest, it begins at an early age. Many of us are conditioned to suppress things. Perhaps you were told to stop crying when you were little. Maybe your boyfriend in the 5th grade broke up with you in school and you were unable to release a sad emotion. How about simply being in a traumatic event?
All of these scenarios and thousands more elicit a fight-or-flight response in our bodies. When we have emotions that begin to get stored in the body and don’t release this can cause a number of issues, possibly even disease.
It is not uncommon for me to see blocked chakras and concentrated energetic areas and learn that my client has an issue with that area. It is said that all diseases begin in the auric field. I am not here to argue one way or another. However, on an energetic level, it is interesting to me to see a correlation between concentrated energy and a physical problem.
There is a great book called “The body keeps the score” by Bessel van der Kolk that dives into the connection of trauma, how it affects us, and our mind, body, and brain. When you look at Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Ayurvedic medicine depending on the organ or part of the body they can anticipate if you have stored anger, grief, etc. These systems have been around for thousands of years treating patients to get to a root cause.
Just like Western Medicine today has separated treating a disease, if you’re only working on the mind to treat stress you are missing where the stress is being stored. We must bring the system back together to clear the energetics.
There are wonderful practices for somatic release.
Acupuncture
A TCM practice of acupuncture focuses on the meridians in the body. A trained professional will assess your concerns and create a plan that works to alleviate your symptoms. It is done by targeting the body’s pressure points. It is thought that energy gets stuck in certain areas and the needle releases the energy to allow the qi to flow.
Breathwork
Breathwork has really taken center stage recently for its tremendous versatility. Not only can it help with simple stress relief, but it really has the ability to get deep into our body and allow for deep release. I have personally seen participants have major releases during class, myself included. Since you are focusing on the breath through unique breathing patterns your mind becomes “unplugged”. When we are able to release the control of the mind our body becomes the healer. Our bodies know what to do to reach homeostasis, but quite frequently are overpowered by the mind. During breathwork deep release is possible that's to the release of control and your body being able to release stored emotions.
EFT Tapping
EFT is a unique technique that uses focal points of the body and identifies fears or issues. You work through the focal points using a series of statements that allow the release of these negative emotions and move through. It is touted as a great technique to reduce worry, fear, and stress, and create a sense of calmness.
Exercise (ex. Running, Lifting, Yoga)
For obvious reasons, but the premise of somatic work is allowing our body to release and work on the mind to reduce the severity of the emotion. Many of us have experienced exercise high. It allows the brain to shut off and exert all our energy. Not to mention it helps keep us in shape.
Slow Somatic Stretching
Mindful stretching, similar to yoga, but with more intentional postures with deep relaxing breaths can be incredibly beneficial, especially for those who have spent a long period of time in a severely stressed state.
Somatic Shaking
Quite possibly one of the most interesting techniques I have partaken in. It is a simple effective “exercise” where your body begins to involuntarily shake, tremor, and vibrate. Often held at a certain point until the mind and muscles can no longer hold, the body begins a slow rhythmic shake until the body receives full autonomy to release. It’s a liberating experience releasing muscles that have been stressed and tight all the while recalibrating your alignment and your body syncs neuronal connections with itself.
Swamping
Swamping can be done solo, in a group, or with a buddy. It is the practice of letting yourself embrace, express, and feel your feelings to aid healing. During swamping anything goes. You can jump around, scream, hit a pillow, scream into a pillow, cry, move, dance. Whatever you feel goes. In my opinion, it is truly a practice encouraging you to be your uninhibited self. Thus letting these complex feelings and emotions that aren’t generally acceptable to release in society out.
There are a variety of ways to work on releasing stored energy. This is the beauty of somatic work. You may find that some options work more favorably for you.
There is a phrase that says, “What we resist persists.” This is incredibly true for somatic release. You may feel resistance when it comes to doing this work. It is natural because it is hard. Take breathwork, for instance. It can be long and uncomfortable and cause emotions and pain to arise within you.
It can be absolutely transformative, though. Somatic release can challenge your mind, and there will be days when your ego may fight with you. It is about discipline and the ability to overcome inner self-talk. Enough is enough. Nothing changes if nothing changes.
We are all capable of great things, but unfortunately, sometimes it is ourselves that holds us back the most. I’d encourage you to create a schedule and stick to it to see the best results. An accountability buddy is also a great option.
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