The boring but important bit
I believe passionately, that processing trauma should never be too overwhelming or dysregulating, or leave you feeling unable to cope.
I offer Somatic Trauma Therapy as one of the approaches to treating trauma symptoms, and I’ve completed an intensive 12-day, three-part professional training over the period of a year. This was with Babette Rothschild; comprising 84 hours of taught theory and practice.
What is Somatic Trauma Therapy?
Simply put, it’s a way of helping your body let go of trauma, without needing to re-experience or retell your painful experiences in detail.
It’s a body-based (but not body-only) therapy model, which blends different therapeutic interventions, and prioritises keeping your safety and control at the core.
We will focus on:
- Awareness – gently noticing sensations, tension, or subtle movements in your body, connecting to yourself.
- Safety – learning tools and increasing your resources to enable you feel secure in the here and now.
- Control – moving at a pace that feels okay for you and is not overwhelming.
- Integration – learning from your therapeutic experiences and being able to use this learning in your day-to-day life; enabling you to feel calmer, steadier, and more at home in yourself.
The goal of Somatic Trauma Therapy isn’t to erase your past, but to loosen its hold on you, so you can live with more choice, resilience, and ease.
How can Somatic Trauma Therapy help you?
When you think of trauma, you probably think about memories or emotions — the images that replay in your mind, or the feelings that suddenly flood you. But trauma doesn’t only live in your thoughts. It also shows up in your body.
After trauma, your nervous system sometimes stays in survival mode (commonly understood as fight, flight, or freeze), often long after the danger has passed. This can leave you feeling extremely vigilant, tense, anxious, numb, or easily triggered into panic.
Here’s where Somatic Trauma Therapy can be helpful to you. It’s a gentle, body-based approach to healing, helping to release your “stuck” survival responses which trauma has left behind. You might have already found that talking alone hasn’t shifted the “stuck” feelings in your body.
Somatic Trauma Therapy can help by:
- Releasing trauma held in the nervous system; easing physical tension, hypervigilance, or numbness.
- Restoring a sense of safety and control; learning tools to steady yourself in daily life.
- Restoring a sense of connection to yourself; feeling more whole, resilient, and present.
You can experience the benefits of this, as you notice:
- Feeling calmer and more grounded.
- A greater sense of safety and choice in how you respond to triggers.
- A reconnection with yourself and others, with more ease in relationships and daily life.
What to expect
Somatic Trauma Therapy is a gentle, body-based way of healing after difficult experiences. You don’t have to re-live or retell your trauma in detail; instead, we will focus on helping your body feel safer, calmer, and more connected in the present.
Sessions are paced gently, giving you tools to manage triggers, ease tension, and feel more at home in yourself.
In Somatic Trauma Therapy, we work slowly and safely, first focusing on building stability and resources; learning ways to regulate emotions and bodily responses.
We work with your body, noticing its responses, and gently improving awareness. This might mean gently noticing your breathing, posture, muscle tension, and small shifts in sensations or subtle movements. We do this together, as I invite you to pay attention to yourself as much as feels safe.
Self-awareness and gently noticing sensations can help release ‘stuck’ survival energy from your nervous system.
We work within your ‘window of tolerance’ — this is the zone where your nervous system is calm enough to process things, but not so overwhelmed that it shuts down.
We do this by pausing, slowing down, and returning to safety whenever it is needed, using the resources and tools we will have previously established. By moving gently back and forth between difficult feelings and safety, we avoid you feeling overwhelmed, and give your nervous system the time and tools to settle.
Because this therapy works a lot with trauma stored in the body, you don’t have to remember lots of details to heal.
An important principle of the therapy is that you should never feel out of control or overwhelmed, and I will be checking in with you frequently during the session, and encouraging you to pause or stop if or when you need to.
In practice this might look like:
- Gently noticing a tight chest or shallow breathing, and practising easing this.
- Learning to ‘track’ when you feel like you’re nearing overwhelm, and being able to bring yourself back to a state of calm.
- Experimenting with small movements or postures that shift how your body feels.
Over time this can reduce the intensity of your triggers and build your resilience.
What does it cost?
Sessions are £80 per hour (pro rata).
A standard session is 60 minutes, though we can agree a different length depending on your needs.
Trauma therapy sessions are often recommended to be 90 minutes, to support good therapeutic experience and outcomes.
What makes this approach different?
- The gentleness of the process; you’re never asked to re-live trauma unless you choose to.
- The collaborative pace; you’re always in charge of how far we go.
- The practical tools you can use beyond therapy, like grounding and self-regulation techniques.
This is a safe, supportive space where you can bring your full self, however messy or overwhelmed you might feel, and know you’ll be met with respect and compassion.
Is this for you?
You may find Somatic Trauma Therapy especially helpful if:
- You’ve been through difficult experiences (accidents, abuse, loss, medical trauma, long-term stress).
- You notice trauma showing up in your body through tension, pain, sleep problems, or feeling “on edge.”
- Talking about your past feels overwhelming, and you’d prefer a gentler, body-based approach.
- You want to feel calmer, safer, and more connected, both to yourself and others.
Common worries about starting
It’s natural to feel hesitant. You may have some worries or concerns too…
- Will I have to relive my trauma?
No. We work at your pace, focusing first on safety and grounding. - What if I feel out of control?
You’re always in charge of what we notice and explore. - Does this really work?
Yes, and even small shifts, like feeling calmer or sleeping better, can bring meaningful relief.
Every step, no matter how small, is progress.
Why now?
You might be here because life feels intolerable at times. Because you don’t want your history to keep shaping your present. Or because you want your future to look and feel different.
Somatic Trauma Therapy can help you move from just surviving to truly living, with more safety, strength, and connection.
Quick FAQ: Somatic Trauma Therapy
Do I have to talk about my trauma?
No. You don’t have to re-tell or relive painful memories in detail. We focus on your body’s signals, safety, and grounding in the present.
What happens in a session?
We go at your pace. You might notice sensations, practise grounding tools, or explore gentle ways to release tension. We may process trauma using techniques which provide you with a felt sense of safety. Nothing is forced; you stay in control.
How long are sessions and what do they cost?
Sessions are usually 60 minutes at £80. Longer (90–120 mins) sessions are available by agreement, and are £80/hr pro rata.
How can this help me?
Many clients feel calmer, more grounded, and better able to handle triggers and intense emotions. You may also sleep more easily, release physical tension, and feel more connected with yourself and others.
What if I feel nervous about starting?
That’s completely normal. We begin gently, with safety first. You’ll always have the choice to pause, slow down, or stop.
Who is this for?
Somatic Trauma Therapy may help if you feel stuck in survival mode, easily triggered, or disconnected from your body, especially if talking alone hasn’t been enough.
Next steps
If this sounds like something you are interested in, take some time to explore more on my website.
Then, when you’re ready, get in touch to explore working with me.
There’s no online booking button, because I’ve found that real connection matters more than ticking a box.
You don’t have to do this alone. Healing is possible, and it starts with small, safe steps.
