By Emily Carter, a certified health and wellness writer. August 7, 2025
If you look at TikTok or Instagram, you’ll see that a new conversation about mental health is starting. Somatic therapy is a term that keeps coming up in conversations about mindfulness and meditation. Young people are posting videos of gentle shaking, mindful movements, and deep breathing, saying that these things have helped their anxiety more than years of traditional therapy.
It makes you wonder: Have you ever felt like your stress or anxiety isn’t just in your head, but also in your body? That feeling of having a tight chest, a clenched jaw, or a stomach that never stops hurting? If so, you’ve already learned the most important thing about somatic therapy.
This article will go into detail about somatic therapy and the science behind the mind-body connection. We’ll look at why this embodied way of healing is so popular with Gen Z and how it differs from traditional talk therapy.
Main Points
Here are the most important things to know about somatic therapy for people who don’t have a lot of time:
- It’s a “Bottom-Up” Way of Doing Things: Traditional talk therapy works from the “top down,” focusing on thoughts and memories. Somatic therapy, on the other hand, works from the “bottom up,” starting with the body’s physical sensations to deal with stress and trauma.
- Pay attention to the nervous system: The main goal is to control the autonomic nervous system (ANS) so that it can stop being stuck in “fight-or-flight” or “freeze” states where unresolved trauma can keep it stuck.
- Gen Z’s Favorite for a Reason: Younger people like it because they are more aware of trauma, digital burnout, and the need for real, self-directed healing practices that go beyond just talking.
- Not a Replacement, but a Strong Partner: It can be used on its own or with other types of therapy, like CBT, to help people get better mentally in a more complete way.
What is somatic therapy, really?
Somatic therapy is a type of body-centered psychotherapy that looks at how the mind and body are connected. The Greek word soma, which means “living body,” is where the word somatic comes from.
The main idea is that our memories don’t just hold our experiences, like stress, anxiety, and trauma. They leave a mark on our bodies, which is stored as tension, pain, or dysregulation in our nervous system. You might feel this as tight muscles all the time, problems with your digestion, or not being able to relax even when you’re safe.
Dr. Peter Levine was one of the first people to work in this field. His work on Somatic Experiencing® changed how we think about trauma. Levine noticed that wild animals, even though they are always in danger of death, don’t get traumatized very often. They have natural biological ways to shake, tremble, and let go of the huge energy surge that comes with a survival response. People, on the other hand, often use logic and shame to stop these instincts, which keeps that energy inside.
Somatic therapy gives you a safe, guided place to finally finish those self-protective responses and let go of the stress you’ve been holding onto.
How does it work? The science behind it
You need to know about your autonomic nervous system (ANS) in order to understand somatic therapy. This system controls all of your body’s automatic functions, such as breathing, heart rate, and digestion. It has two main parts:
- The sympathetic nervous system is like the gas pedal in your body. It turns on the fight-or-flight response, which sends adrenaline and cortisol into your body to help you deal with a threat.
- The parasympathetic nervous system is like a brake pedal for your body. It helps you relax, recover, and feel safe by putting you in a “rest and digest” state.
Dr. Stephen Porges came up with the Polyvagal Theory, which adds another layer by saying that the parasympathetic system has two pathways. One is the calm “rest and digest” state, and the other is the “freeze” or shutdown response, which is what people do when they can’t fight or run away.
Trauma can throw this system out of whack, making you feel “on” (anxious, hypervigilant) or “off” (numb, disconnected, depressed). It’s like the engine has stopped working or the gas pedal is stuck to the floor.
Somatic therapy helps you become more aware of your body’s internal sensations, which is called interoception. A therapist helps you notice these feelings (like heat, tingling, or tightness) without judging them. This “bottom-up” processing tells your brain that the threat is over, which lets the ANS go back to a stable, balanced state.
“Trauma isn’t what happens to us; it’s what we keep inside when no one is there to listen.” – Peter A. Levine, PhD
Why Gen Z? The Rise of an Approach That Is Real
The rise in interest among Gen Z isn’t just a coincidence. There are a lot of cultural and social reasons why this generation is open to a body-first approach to mental health.
- Gen Z is very aware of trauma because they grew up in a culture where talking about it is normal. They can understand and talk about how their anxiety or depression might be caused by bad things that happened to them in the past.
- Digital Burnout and Disembodiment: This generation is the first to grow up with technology, so they know very well how living life through screens can make you feel disconnected. Somatic practices give people a real way to reconnect with their bodies.
- Disillusionment with the Status Quo: For some people, traditional talk therapy doesn’t seem to do enough. They may have spent years thinking about their problems without feeling a big change in how anxious they were every day. The idea of being able to physically let go of the problem is very appealing.
- The Visual Side of Social Media: TikTok and other platforms are great for showing how to do simple somatic exercises. A 30-second video can show a grounding technique or a gentle movement much better than words alone. This makes the practice easy to understand and try.
The Main Benefits of Somatic Therapy
When used correctly by a trained professional, this method can have very positive effects:
- Stress and Anxiety Reduction: It calms the nervous system, which directly affects the physical causes of anxiety and gives you a longer-lasting sense of peace.
- Better emotional control: It teaches you how to deal with uncomfortable feelings and sensations without getting too upset, which makes you more emotionally strong.
- Relief from Long-Term Pain: Nervous system dysregulation has been linked to a lot of unexplained physical symptoms, such as migraines and fibromyalgia. This pain can be lessened by somatic therapy.
- Deeper Trauma Processing: It helps you deal with traumatic memories that might be too hard to get to through talk therapy alone.
- Improved Mind-Body Connection: You learn to listen to what your body is telling you and have a more caring and connected relationship with yourself.
Some Common Somatic Techniques You Might Come Across
A somatic session isn’t just talking. Your therapist might show you how to do different gentle exercises that focus on your body.
Grounding
This means paying attention to how your body touches the things around you, like your feet on the floor and your back against the chair. When you’re feeling anxious or disconnected, this is a simple but powerful way to ground yourself in the present.
Getting resources
Your therapist will help you find and build a sense of safety and strength within yourself. This could mean remembering a time when you were in a peaceful place, with a loved one, or when you felt like you could do something well. This “resource” becomes an anchor you can use when you’re having a hard time with your feelings.
Titration and Pendulation
These are the main ideas behind Somatic Experiencing. Titration is when you touch on a small amount of a traumatic feeling and then quickly go back to a safe place or “resource.” Pendulation is the natural rhythm of going from being awake to being calm. This gentle rocking back and forth helps the nervous system deal with the stress that has built up in small amounts without getting hurt again.
Table: Somatic Therapy vs. Regular Talk Therapy
| Feature | Somatic Therapy | Traditional Talk Therapy (e.g., CBT) |
|---|---|---|
| Main Focus | The body’s physical feelings and the nervous system. | Beliefs, thoughts, and ways of thinking. |
| Approach | “Bottom-Up” (Body → Mind) | “Top-Down” (Mind → Body) |
| Main Aim | Let go of stored traumatic energy and regulate the nervous system. | Recognize and change unhelpful behaviors and thought patterns. |
| The Process | Includes body awareness, movement, and tracking sensations. | Includes talking, analyzing, and cognitive restructuring. |
| Role of Memory | The body’s current response is more important than the narrative. | Memory and story are central to understanding the problem. |
Finding a Qualified Practitioner
As somatic therapy becomes more popular, more and more people who aren’t qualified are offering it. Finding a practitioner with real training is very important.
Find licensed mental health professionals, such as a psychologist, LCSW, or LMFT, who also have extra, specific certifications in a recognized somatic modality. Some important certifications are:
- Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner (SEP): From Somatic Experiencing International.
- Sensorimotor Psychotherapy: From the Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute.
- The Hakomi Method: Taught by the Hakomi Institute.
When looking for a therapist, ask questions like:
- “What kinds of somatic training and certifications do you have?”
- “How do you combine somatic work with talk therapy?”
- “How do you make sure a client feels safe and doesn’t get hurt again during a session?”
In Conclusion: The Future is Embodied
Somatic therapy isn’t just a passing trend in wellness; it’s a complex, evidence-based method that respects the body’s natural wisdom. It offers a way to heal that talking alone can’t always reach by dealing with the physical effects of trauma.
Gen Z’s acceptance of it shows that society is moving toward a more holistic and integrated view of mental health, where the mind and body are not seen as separate things, but as partners in our journey to wellness. It reminds us that we need to listen to our bodies first if we want to heal our minds.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- Can somatic therapy take the place of talk therapy? Not always. For a lot of people, it works best when used with talk therapy. Somatic therapy is great for letting go of trauma and calming the nervous system, but talk therapy is great for understanding things mentally, making new habits, and processing the story of your life. The best way to do things is often to use both.
- Are you able to do somatic exercises by yourself? Yes, you can safely do a lot of simple grounding and orienting exercises at home to deal with stress every day. But if you want to deal with deep-seated trauma, you need to see a qualified therapist. Trying to let go of strong traumatic energy without the help of a professional can be too much and may even cause more trauma.
- How long does it take for somatic therapy to work? This can be very different for each person, depending on how complicated their trauma history is. After just a few sessions, some people say they feel better and calmer. For some people who have been through a lot of trauma, it may take longer. The goal is not a “quick fix,” but rather the slow, long-lasting restoration of the nervous system’s ability to control itself.
References
- Levine, P. A. (2010). In an Unspoken Voice: How the Body Releases Trauma and Restores Goodness. North Atlantic Books.
- Porges, S. W. (2011). The Polyvagal Theory: Neurophysiological Foundations of Emotions, Attachment, Communication, and Self-regulation. W. W. Norton & Company.
- The National Institutes of Health (NIH). (2019). Somatic Experiencing: A New and Effective Approach to Trauma Treatment.
- Ogden, P., Minton, K., & Pain, C. (2006). Trauma and the Body: A Sensorimotor Approach to Psychotherapy. W. W. Norton & Company.
- American Psychological Association. (2021). The Mind-Body Connection in Mental Health.
- Van der Kolk, B. A. (2014). The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. Viking.
