SOMATIC THERAPY

Serving Kitchener-Waterloo, Milton, Oakville, London, and the surrounding areas, Anchoridge Counselling supports you in understanding the connections between felt sensations and the inner parts of oneself.

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There are several types of somatic therapy including Integrative Somatic Parts Work that your clinician may use alongside other therapeutic modalities to best support you.

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Somatic IFS is a branch of the Internal Family Systems model that recognizes that each person has a core self at the center, with other pieces evolving around the core self. It holds that all parts of oneself have positive intent and can contribute their wisdom towards healing of the self.

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This work involves connecting sensations to the core self, allowing an increased sense of wholeness and self-compassion. It allows the person to connect inner parts to felt sensations for a deeper understanding of themselves.

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There are five core practices of somatic IFS: 

somatic awareness, conscious breathing, radical resonance, mindful movement, and attuned touch.

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Somatic therapy practitioners may use tools such as mindfulness, breathing, acceptance and grounding to support clients in managing these uncomfortable bodily sensations.

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Integrative somatic parts work encourages you to explore parts of yourself that may have been rejected or suppressed and attend to sensations with curiosity in order to gain insight into what your inner self needs to heal.

 

Some types of somatic therapy are used to help you become aware of bodily sensations and the messages your body is trying to send you. These may include muscle tension, a lump in the throat, racing heart, jaw pain, headaches or stomach aches.

 

Your therapist will help you understand how your emotions can trigger these physical sensations and help you learn tools to help minimize or relieve these sensations by processing the connected emotions and calming the nervous system.