Somatic Experiencing
Somatic Experiencing Therapy
Women who have struggled with trauma, stress, and shock may not realize how much of that they continue to hold on to in their bodies. Releasing this compressed energy can help women to recover from trauma, no longer being stuck in fight or flight mode and instead reaching full potential.
With Worthy Wellness Center, our partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient, and traditional outpatient programs can help women participate in a range of holistic therapy including somatic experiencing therapy.
Get in touch today or call (833) 569-3814 to see how Worthy Wellness Center can help you.
What is Somatic Experiencing Therapy?
Somatic experiencing is a form of holistic therapy that's designed to resolve the symptoms of untreated trauma and stress that accumulate in the nervous system and throughout the body.
With somatic experiencing, it is thought that trauma gets compressed within the nervous system, having a negative impact on life and energy. Individuals who have unresolved trauma from childhood or adulthood can be easily triggered and when that happens they are more likely to be stuck in patterns of fight or flight.
These patterns make it difficult to break free and achieve a life of purpose and success.
Women who have dealt with trauma directly, those who work in fields of medicine like first responders and nurses, and women who have indirectly experienced trauma can all benefit from the holistic body work that helps resolve this tension.
How Somatic Experiencing Helps
Somatic experiencing provides a body oriented form of therapy that can be used to help women heal from trauma and stress disorders, releasing compressed energy in the nervous system and breaking free from patterns that leave women otherwise stuck and unable to move forward in life.
The Science of SE
When individuals are under threat of death, the body goes into fight, flight, or freeze mode to help reduce the risk of injury or death. This reaction, however, is meant to be time sensitive, something that happens in an acute setting.
It produces a high amount of energy thanks to the adrenaline, energy that would otherwise be needed to flee or to fight.
Once the danger has passed, that energy is meant to be discharged. For example:
Margaret was in a serious car accident. After all of the injured parties had been taken to the hospital and the vehicles towed home, Margaret stood in her backyard talking to her roommates.
Her roommate suggested that she go to the hospital for an examination but Margaret swore that she felt fine. However, Margaret was also pacing erratically though she didn't realize it. Her entire body was shaking, and she couldn't stop moving.
A few hours later, she collapsed, exhausted as all of the extra adrenaline or energy that had been triggered in response to the car accident had finally burned itself off.
Now consider what would happen if Margaret wasn't able to burn that excess energy off or redirect it. If that energy got trapped in her body, Margaret's nervous system might actually think it was still under threat, causing extreme reactions disproportionate to events in the future and making it such that Margaret held on to that trapped or compressed energy in her physical body.
With somatic experiencing, individuals like Margaret are able to release this stored energy, turn off any signals in the body and brain that there is an existing threat, and work through trauma.
Resolving Energy through Somatic Experiencing
When people feel threatened, they can get overwhelmed and a wild amount of energy gets locked down inside in order to avoid feeling or processing that energy.
This can happen when an individual gets triggered, activating the fight-or-flight response. But as that same individual tries to avoid or compress those feelings they end up compressing the energy from the fight or flight response.
The result?
The body is working to physically lock down, almost stopping certain natural processes and leading to painful physical symptoms. Such symptoms can even cause people to be violent toward themselves or others as a result of that immediate burst of energy from the trigger.
This causes a secondary issue whereby that same person is using all of the energy they would normally use to live a happy, fulfilling life trying to suppress the negative energy brought about by the triggers.
The treatment?
Healing trauma helps bring these sensory experiences together in a coherent way while discharging the energy that was otherwise tightened and held inside the body.
Discharging that energy has to be done slowly. Just as the fight or flight response caused massive energy to build up and immediately be compressed, were all of the energy to be released at once it would be just as overwhelming.
In order to use somatic experiencing to reintegrate and release the compression of energy, it must be done in a safe, supportive environment.
Gradual release means creating the situation to release a small amount of energy at a time until the full energy has been integrated back into the nervous system, allowing it to reset. This prevents individuals from being overwhelmed, while also redistributing energy that same person needs to live a healthy, fulfilling life.
Working with Worthy Wellness Center
At Worthy Wellness Center, our facility offers a wide range of services including:
- Detox
- At-home detox
- Partial hospitalization programs
- Intensive outpatient programs
- Pet-friendly treatment
- Long term treatment
- Sober living
- Failure to launch programs
No matter the level of care you receive, and regardless of whether your treatment is for addiction and/or dual diagnosis, somatic experiencing can be a critical component of your treatment plan.
Failure to Launch Programs and Somatic Experiencing Therapy
Many women experience fear and anxiety during life transitions and adjustments, often tied to unprocessed trauma. Our facility recognizes that this crippling anxiety can create what is called “Failure to Launch” syndrome where women struggle with a sense of being stuck, having unclear direction, and no ambition.
When these feelings are the result of life changes and transitions triggering unprocessed trauma, somatic experiencing can be effectively combined with treatment programs to help slowly release the compressed energy held in place by those triggers and, in so doing, realign energy women need to find their direction and ambition.
Pet-Friendly Treatment and Somatic Experiencing Therapy
At Worthy Wellness Center, we know that emotional safety is the foundation to becoming your best self. Sometimes that means having your pets with you during the course of your treatment.
As a pet-friendly treatment center in San Diego, your pet will be there with you during things like walks and holistic therapy. This can create a supportive environment where somatic experiencing can help you release the compressed energy from triggers and trauma while your pet can be there to sustain your deep bond and give you the emotional support you need as you slowly regain control over your energy.
What Worthy Wellness Means to Our Clients
Met the team here and toured the facility. The staff here are very caring and attentive. They have a well rounded staff that each have extensive experience in the treatment industry. The facility itself is warm and inviting. They’ve done an excellent job creating a safe environment for people to get vulnerable and get the help they desire.
We Accept Most Insurance Plans
Everyone deserves access to exceptional care, regardless of their financial situation. That’s why we’ve partnered with a wide range of insurance providers to ensure that our services are as accessible as possible. The admissions team at our drug rehab will work with you to navigate insurance claims and benefits so you can focus on what truly matters – your health and well-being. We accept all out of network insurance as well as cash pay and accept referrals from detox and residential facilities. Let us take care of the paperwork while you embark on your journey to wellness.
Explore Somatic Experiencing in San Diego with Worthy Wellness
Learn more about somatic experiencing at Worthy Wellness Center. Call today at (833) 569-3814.