Understanding our nervous system

Our nervous system is the delicate interface between our bodies and our emotions. It’s where signs of safety or danger get spotted, interpreted and reacted to.

And it’s the system that we can learn to understand and befriend, through somatic therapy. That’s just a fancy term for therapy that encourages us to learn about and work with our body, not just our thoughts. It’s where mind and body work together to heal the damage that may has been done to our nervous system. We do this through noticing and gently tending to the signals that our body is giving us.

Let’s take the example of *Helen.

Helen seeks therapy because she feels anxious all the time. In initial sessions I ask how she feels physically. She mentions often having headaches, struggling to sleep and grinding her teeth at night. This begins to give us both clues about the tension that is being held in her body. So we agree to look at her anxiety through the lens not only of the thoughts that preoccupy her, but also how it’s experienced in her body.

Typically, when working with clients like Helen, I might invite them to consider some body based approaches. This is in addition to us talking about the thoughts that are troubling them. As we discuss painful experiences or memories, we’ll stop periodically to ‘check in’ with the body because we are looking out for what is it telling us as we do this. Are there changes to the breath, body temperature, posture, muscles? When we begin to observe our bodies we can become better at noticing its distress signals, and conversely, when it feels safe.

*An example only – not based on any particular client.

How can somatic therapy help?

During frightening, or dangerous, events, our body’s brilliant defence system is mobilised. This is completely normal and can help us to survive, escape or endure it. But if that trauma is ongoing or it simply overwhelms our defence system, then instead of the defence system switching off as it should, the stress of it can remain stuck in our bodies. Anxiety, tension, stress, insomnia and a host of other nasties can result.

Body based approaches, such as breathwork, relaxation techniques and EFT support you and your body to find your way back to safety. They enable you to work with, not against, your body; attuning to it and learning tools to guide it out of the defence system it has got stuck in. There’s a great, free resource to help you start building this understanding, and resourcing, your nervous system here.

“By listening to the “unspoken voice” of my body and allowing it to do what it needed to do; by not stopping the shaking, by “tracking” my inner sensations, while also allowing the completion of the defensive and orienting responses; and by feeling the “survival emotions” of rage and terror without becoming overwhelmed, I came through mercifully unscathed, both physically and emotionally. I was not only thankful; I was humbled and grateful to find that I could use my method for my own salvation”

Peter A. Levine