🧠🗣️ How Fo’ Fix Your Noggin? Let Your Body Talk.
Plenny peeps stay looking at somatic therapy fo’ heal dea wounds, promising dat da secret sauce fo’ real kine healing stay in focusing on da body ova da mind.🙏💆♀️
I wen get one Zoom meeting wit one therapist name Emily Price. Wit my permission, she wen talk to my feet.👣 She mahalo dem, tinkin’ dey get choke stuff fo’ tell us.
I was talking stink ’bout dis fear I get ’bout my writing, like one big fail coming. Price stay in front one hanging plant in her office inside her hale in Austin, Texas. Wit her red-blond hair tied up and her gentle features, she make da space feel real close-knit, even ova Zoom. She listen, take notes, den wit one wave of her hand, we move my fears to one side.
“So you get dis ting spinning inside you,” she tell me. Den we start for explore my body, fo’ get in touch wit da physical sensations.
Price was showing me one kind new kine therapy called somatic experiencing, or S.E. fo’ short. Da idea behind S.E. is dat we live “from da bottom up,” 🔄 and our feelings come from da nerves all ova our body, not just from da head. Da kine belief dat da mind is da source of our feelings, S.E. flip dat on top his head.
Den Price ask me, “What you noticing?” after she wen talk to my feet. I told her I wish I could let go and just let her talk to my feet. She respond, “Dey might be telling us something really important.” Den we go back fo’ focusing on da body.
Price, who is 40, get her master’s in social work and started learning S.E. seven years ago. She tell me dat once clients start thinking too much, dey not in touch wit their bodies anymore. “We giving your head one break,” she say. “Let your body do what it needs fo’ do.”🧘♂️
In our session, she turn my feet and calves into one “resource,” using S.E. language. She had me tap my feet steady 🦶 and den had me imagine dey were like da roots of one tree, pulling nutrients from da soil. 🌳 It was hard not fo’ tink was all kind funny kine, but it was effective. I was pulling calm up from my heels wit each slow breath, feeling less uncomfortable and more clear-headed.
Dis is one kind technique in S.E. called “pendulation.” Da idea is fo’ help da client move between feeling unstable and stable, using different parts of da body. Fo’ example, feeling tight in da chest, but relaxed in da hands. Dis movement between different states is key fo’ da therapy. Da goal is fo’ help da client let go of da destructive energy in da body.
Price told me not all of her clients like fo’ try somatic methods. Some scared da feelings in da body going rush out and cause trouble. But fo’ dose dat do try, Price mix in cognitive behavioral therapy, which helps replace bad thoughts wit good ones. Da mind still important, but da body stay first.🧠💪
S.E. practitioners sometimes even use touch to help, or since da pandemic, one kind virtual touch. Price tell me, “I get one vibe. I feel kind of like one magnet.” If she feel like it’s going help, she might place her hand on da client’s shoulder or neck. She also might put her feet on top da client’s. “I am offering myself as support for whatever their body needs to do,” she say.
Price say her clients feel choke relief when things go good. She remember clients saying dat da bad energy was leaving their body, going into da carpet or dripping off their fingertips. 🌈 One client she talked about was able fo’ stop sabotaging their relationships at work and at home afta trying this treatment. “Seeing how much better someone can feel—it can be like watching magic.”🎩✨
I wen talk to choke somatic therapists, and all of dem tell me dey booked solid. Mental health professionals been in high demand since da start of da pandemic, but somatic therapy seems fo’ be something different. Plenty people who wen try traditional therapy feel like it no help as much as dey was hoping, and dey looking fo’ something new. Dis somatic therapy might just be da new thing dey looking for.🔍🆕
NOW IN ENGLISH
🧠🗣️ How to Heal Your Mind? Let Your Body Speak.
Many people are turning to somatic therapy to heal their wounds, promising that the key to real healing lies in focusing on the body over the mind.🙏💆♀️
I had a Zoom meeting with a therapist named Emily Price. With my permission, she spoke to my feet.👣 She thanked them, believing they had a lot to tell us.
I was expressing a fear I had about my writing, as if a big failure was imminent. Price was in front of a hanging plant in her office at her home in Austin, Texas. With her red-blond hair tied up and her gentle features, she made the space feel very intimate, even over Zoom. She listened, took notes, then with a wave of her hand, we pushed my fears aside.
“So, you have this thing spinning inside you,” she told me. Then we started to explore my body, to connect with the physical sensations.
Price was introducing me to a type of therapy called somatic experiencing, or S.E. for short. The idea behind S.E. is that we live “from the bottom up,” 🔄 and our feelings come from nerves all over our body, not just from the brain. The common belief that the mind is the source of our feelings, S.E. turns that concept upside down.
Then Price asked me, “What are you noticing?” after she spoke to my feet. I told her I wish I could just let go and let her talk to my feet. She replied, “They might be telling us something really important.” Then we returned to focusing on the body.
Price, who is 40, earned her master’s in social work and started learning S.E. seven years ago. She told me that once clients start thinking too much, they lose touch with their bodies. “We’re giving your head a break,” she said. “Let your body do what it needs to do.”🧘♂️
In our session, she turned my feet and calves into a “resource,” using S.E. terminology. She had me tap my feet steadily 🦶 and then had me imagine they were like the roots of a tree, pulling nutrients from the soil. 🌳 It was hard not to think it was all a bit odd, but it was effective. I was drawing calm up from my heels with each slow breath, feeling less uneasy and more clear-headed.
This is a technique in S.E. called “pendulation.” The idea is to help the client move between feeling unstable and stable, using different parts of the body. For example, feeling tight in the chest, but relaxed in the hands. This movement between different states is key to the therapy. The goal is to help the client release destructive energy in the body.
Price told me not all of her clients like to try somatic methods. Some fear the feelings in the body will rush out and cause problems. But for those that do try, Price combines cognitive behavioral therapy, which helps replace negative thoughts with positive ones. The mind is still important, but the body comes first.🧠💪
S.E. practitioners sometimes even use touch to help, or since the pandemic, a kind of virtual touch. Price told me, “I have a vibe. I feel kind of like a magnet.” If she feels like it’s going to help, she might place her hand on the client’s shoulder or neck. She might also put her feet on the client’s. “I am offering myself as support for whatever their body needs to do,” she said.
Price said her clients feel great relief when things go well. She remembers clients saying that the bad energy was leaving their body, going into the carpet or dripping off their fingertips. 🌈 One client she spoke about was able to stop sabotaging their relationships at work and at home after trying this treatment. “Seeing how much better someone can feel—it can be like watching magic.”🎩✨
I spoke to many somatic therapists, and all of them told me they’re booked solid. Mental health professionals have been in high demand since the start of the pandemic, but somatic therapy seems to be something different. Many people who have tried traditional therapy feel like it didn’t help as much as they were hoping, and they’re looking for something new. This somatic therapy might just be the new thing they’re looking for.🔍🆕
