The Power of Somatic Practices
Somatic practices help us reconnect with the body as a source of wisdom, balance, and healing. In a culture that rewards productivity and overthinking, it’s easy to live from the neck up. We get caught in thoughts, worries, or to-do lists, often forgetting that the body is constantly sending signals about what we need.
At the Somatic Psychotherapy Center, we view these signals – sensations, tension, movement, and breath – as doorways into deeper awareness. Somatic practices invite you to slow down, notice what’s happening inside, and find steadiness in the present moment.
Grounding through the body is not only soothing, it’s essential for regulating the nervous system. When practiced regularly, somatic tools can shift how you meet stress, connect with others, and inhabit your life.
What Are Somatic Practices?
Somatic practices are intentional ways of using movement, breath, and awareness to regulate your body and emotions. “Soma” means “living body” – not the body as an object, but the body as it’s experienced from within.
These practices draw from modalities such as Somatic Experiencing, Hakomi Therapy, and mindfulness-based approaches that center presence and curiosity.
Rather than changing what you feel, somatic work helps you be with what you feel. That shift, from control to compassion, allows the body’s natural rhythms of regulation and repair to reemerge.
Somatic Practice #1: Grounding Through the Senses
Grounding connects you to the present by orienting your attention to your physical surroundings.
You can begin by simply noticing where your body makes contact with the ground or chair. Feel the weight of your feet, the support beneath you, the air on your skin.
Next, bring in your senses: What do you see, hear, smell, or feel right now? This gentle act of noticing helps regulate the nervous system by signaling to your body, “I’m safe.”
If you feel anxious or disconnected, you might try a structured grounding practice like the 5–4–3–2–1 technique: name five things you see, four you can touch, three you hear, two you smell, and one you taste.
Grounding doesn’t have to be formal. You can do it while walking to the subway, sipping your coffee, or feeling the texture of your clothes. The key is presence.
Somatic Practice #2: Breath Awareness and Regulation
Your breath is one of the most powerful tools for nervous system regulation. Shallow or rapid breathing often accompanies stress, while slower, deeper breaths signal calm.
Try this: place a hand on your belly, another on your chest. Notice which moves more as you breathe. Without forcing anything, invite your breath to drop lower into the belly. Imagine filling yourself from the bottom up.
You can also use rhythmic breathing to balance your system. For instance, breathing in for a count of four and exhaling for a count of six activates the parasympathetic “rest and digest” response.
Practicing this before a difficult conversation or at the end of the day can help the body reset.
Somatic Practice #3: Mindful Movement
Movement brings awareness into the places where energy or emotion might be stuck. This could be as simple as stretching, walking, or swaying to music.
Try setting aside five minutes to move however your body wants. Let go of how it looks and tune in to how it feels. Maybe you roll your shoulders, stretch your arms, or shake out your hands.
Hakomi Mindful Somatic Therapy often uses small, mindful experiments in movement to bring unconscious patterns into awareness. As you move, notice if certain areas feel tight, numb, or fluid; your body may be showing you where it’s ready to release or where it needs care.
Somatic Practice #4: Tracking Sensations
Tracking sensations means observing what’s happening inside your body with curiosity and without judgment.
For example, you might notice warmth in your chest, a flutter in your stomach, or heaviness in your legs. Labeling these experiences – “tight,” “tingling,” “buzzing,” “expanding” – helps the brain and body reconnect.
In Individual Somatic Psychotherapy, tracking sensations can reveal how emotions live in the body. Over time, you’ll begin to recognize the early signs of stress, boundaries, or pleasure – information that helps you respond rather than react.
Somatic Practice #5: Micro-Moments of Mindfulness
You don’t need an hour-long practice to feel the benefits of somatic awareness. Micro-moments woven throughout your day can have profound effects.
Try pausing to feel your feet on the floor before sending an email, noticing your breath while waiting in line, or placing a hand on your heart when you feel overwhelmed. These tiny gestures of presence gradually retrain your nervous system to associate awareness with safety.
With consistency, these moments accumulate, creating a baseline of calm and connectedness that extends beyond formal practice.
Why Somatic Practices Matter
The nervous system learns through repetition. Each time you pause, breathe, or feel your body, you are sending a new message: I can be here. I can feel this.
Over time, this builds resilience. Somatic practices not only support stress management but deepen self-awareness, emotional regulation, and relational capacity.
They remind us that healing isn’t something we do only in therapy. It’s something we practice, moment by moment, in how we relate to ourselves and the world around us.
If you’re curious about bringing these tools into your personal therapy, you might explore Somatic Experiencing or Individual Somatic Psychotherapy, both of which integrate these practices into a safe, guided setting.
FAQs About Somatic Practices
What are somatic practices used for?
Somatic practices are used to help regulate the nervous system, reduce anxiety, and reconnect with the body. They can support therapy for trauma, depression, and stress by fostering body awareness. Learn more about our Trauma and PTSD Therapy.
How do somatic practices differ from mindfulness?
While mindfulness emphasizes awareness of thoughts and sensations, somatic practices focus specifically on body experience and regulation. The two complement each other beautifully. Hakomi Therapy combines both.
Can I do somatic practices on my own?
Yes, many can be practiced daily without guidance. However, working with a therapist trained in Somatic Psychotherapy can help you move safely through deeper layers of sensation and emotion.
How do somatic practices help trauma recovery?
Trauma often lives in the body as patterns of tension or shutdown. Somatic work helps release these stored responses through gentle awareness and movement. Explore more in our Somatic Experiencing Therapy page.
How can I start incorporating somatic practices today?
Start small. Notice your breath, take mindful pauses, or feel your feet on the floor. These moments build a foundation for deeper body awareness and resilience.
Work With Us
At the Somatic Psychotherapy Center, we believe healing unfolds through connection with your body, your emotions, and others. Somatic practices are one way to begin this connection from wherever you are.
If you’d like to learn how these practices can support your well-being, we welcome you to contact us or schedule a session. Together, we can help you feel more at home in your body and your life.
