Discover Integrative Somatic Therapy New York
Learn to trust the wisdom of your body.
Are you tired of talking about the same things each week in therapy?
Do you feel stuck and want a deeper approach to healing?
Perhaps you’ve been looking for a more integrative approach to therapy but don't know where to start.
Somatic Therapy New York can help.
Somatic therapy utilizes tools used during counseling sessions that focus on the body rather than the mind. Certain challenges require a different approach to treatment than traditional talk therapy or other cognitive (mind-based) methods. Therapy using only reasoning and logic is seldom sufficient, as the body is designed to have strong responses to traumatic distress that need space to feel released.
Paying Attention To Both Mind And Body Is Key To Lasting Change
Research shows that a unified approach to healing utilizing talk psychotherapy and somatic or movement-based methods is the most effective combination for success. With this therapeutic style, sensations in the body are seen and welcomed as information rather than symptoms, relaying important messages you can begin to understand rather than reject. Somatic therapy New York is ideal for people who are tired of the traditional talk therapy approach and want to experience something more holistic, deeper, and integrative.
When exposed to frightening experiences, your breath quickens, and tension builds throughout your body. Breathing and moving through this moment is helpful and soothing, but our culture often promotes stillness and silence to find peace in the midst of hard events. Without including somatic considerations in an effort to release trauma from your body, you are ignoring your innate healing capacities. Therapy involving somatic experiencing can teach you to gauge your body's feedback and gain tools to notice what your body is telling you.
During therapy sessions, you will work on building somatic awareness, increasing curiosity and connection to your body's sensations while building up a tolerance to be with challenging emotions. Mindfully staying connected to your body amid powerful emotions helps you regulate more effectively outside of therapy sessions when life’s normal ups and downs occur.
How Do Somatic
Approaches Work?
Mind-body therapy works by regulating and soothing your autonomic nervous system (ANS) through breathing, movement, and gentle self-touch. Even small things can make a big difference. Activities like stretching and walking, touching pressure points, and other experiences utilizing all five senses can all help create regulation amid distressing memories, emotions, and other cognitive challenges.
How Does Somatic Therapy Help
Where Other Approaches Fall Short?
One of the limitations of talk therapy is that the focus is on discussing the memories of the past but not on the body’s response to those memories. Yet all stressful events in life generate a physical reaction like the flight-or-fight response, and in moments where you feel threatened or trapped, your body will likely freeze in response. You can unwind this somatic response of fight/flight/freeze by becoming aware of what is happening, acknowledging that this is a normal response to a perceived threat, and integrating breathing and movement to help your body and mind recover.
In the short term, somatic therapy New York can help you learn and practice simple and effective coping tools to help regulate your nervous system. Over time, you’ll begin to “befriend” your body and heal. Especially with issues like trauma, somatic healing therapy can help you with processing the stress response cycle and move your body toward safety and connection.
Somatic Therapy New York
At Third Nature Therapy, all sessions are virtual, during which your therapist will observe you, and your body, creating space to discuss the somatic experiences of your body, moment by moment. All therapy sessions begin with simple grounding activities like breathing and reflecting on the present moment to get comfortable. During sessions, your therapist will ask about any sensations you experience in your body so you gain an increased capacity to be with the sensations and wisdom of your body.
At Third Nature Therapy, the body, mind, and spirit are considered interconnected, and there is no way not to include that in therapy sessions. We utilize therapy treatments like Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), which are essentially somatic. These treatments involve body movements to induce bilateral stimulation to treat issues like trauma, anxiety, and depression. You can read more about our EMDR practice here.
Somatic Therapy New York
Meet Julie Goldberg
Somatic Therapist
Julie Goldberg is the founder of Third Nature Therapy, and she integrates her education and personal practice of yoga and mindfulness into the many facets of her work as a counselor. She became a yoga teacher in 2012, completing a 200-hour training at Amrita Yoga, followed by a 300-hour training with Kripalu and Integrative Yoga Therapy in 2015. After working as a yoga therapist, she attended Naropa University, a graduate school rooted in Buddhism and Transpersonal Psychology.
All of the counselors at Third Nature Therapy are advocates of taking care of your body through sufficient self-care, including considerations of your sleep, movement, and nourishment. Your therapist will work with you to ensure you have a well-rounded support system outside of therapy to get the most out of the weekly sessions.
How much is a Somatic Therapy New York session?
While we don’t accept insurance in our practice for Somatic Therapy New York, we do offer Superbills and partner with Thrizer, a platform that seamlessly helps you navigate out-of-network therapy to save time and money on reimbursement.
You May Still Have Questions About Somatic Therapy…
-
Somatic therapy is a body-centered approach to psychotherapy that helps you process stressful and traumatic experiences by bringing awareness to your physical sensations, movement, and breath. It operates on the understanding that your brain, body, and behavior are interconnected, and these relationships directly impact your psychological and physical well-being. Unresolved emotional tension can manifest as physical symptoms like headaches or sluggish digestion, and somatic therapy provides a gentle way to explore and release these tensions.
-
Unlike traditional talk therapy that can sometimes overlook the body's response to past events, somatic therapy directly addresses the "fight, flight, or freeze" responses, helping you unwind these physical reactions and move towards a greater sense of safety and connection.
During somatic therapy sessions, your therapist will guide you through simple grounding activities and invite you to observe and discuss the sensations you experience in your body, moment by moment. This process helps regulate your autonomic nervous system (ANS) through breathing, movement, and even gentle self-touch, fostering a deeper connection to your body's wisdom.
-
Somatic therapy is for anyone seeking a deeper, body-centered approach to healing and well-being. If you experience physical symptoms like headaches, teeth grinding, or sluggish digestion that may be linked to unresolved emotional tension, somatic therapy can help you explore and alleviate these issues. It's also ideal for individuals who feel disconnected from their bodies and wish to cultivate a stronger mind-body connection, fostering a greater sense of embodiment and self-awareness.
Additionally, if you've experienced traditional talk therapies like CBT or psychodynamic therapy helpful but are looking for a more profound way to process stress, trauma, and emotional responses, somatic therapy offers a powerful avenue. By integrating body-based techniques, it helps you regulate your nervous system, unwind fight/flight/freeze responses, and build resilience, ultimately leading to a more integrated and empowered sense of self.
-
Yes. Somatic therapy is available via video sessions and works beautifully in a virtual format. Many clients find that they can access embodied awareness and nervous system regulation just as effectively from the comfort of their own home.
All therapy sessions begin with simple grounding activities like breathing and reflecting on the present moment to get comfortable. During sessions, your therapist will ask about any sensations you experience in your body so you gain an increased capacity to be with the sensations and wisdom of your body.
Reach out to discuss Somatic Therapy New York
Mindfully connecting to your body’s responses during distressing thoughts, sensations, or memories can aid you in regulating and healing from trauma, anxiety, depression, and other challenges.
Get in touch with Third Nature Therapy at this contact form for a free, 15-minute phone consultation to discuss a Somatic Therapy New York session and how it can benefit your mental health.