The Somatic Therapy Workshop offers you experiential learning of body-based techniques to enrich your sense of awareness, connection, trust, and agency when dealing with trauma or great amounts of stress leading to emotional dysregulation.

Workshop Details 

Location: In Balance Health Counselling and Yoga Studio
Date: Saturday, May, 3 2025
Time: 9:30am – 4:00pm
Cost: $150 (plus tax)
This Workshop is currently full, please email renee@inbalancehealth.ca to inquire

What Theory is Somatic Therapy Based On?

The theory of somatic therapy is based on the idea that the things that happen in a person’s life, including negative experiences, are not only stored in the brain but in the body as well.

Emotions, if not properly processed, can become trapped within the body, manifesting as physical symptoms or chronic tension. Heightened awareness of these sensations in somatic therapy helps individuals identify and release trapped emotions.

According to this theory, a person can find healing through therapy that addresses the mind and body connection.

What is the Goal of Somatic Therapy?

The main goal of somatic therapy is to help a person increase awareness of the physical sensations that come from their mental health conditions and use this awareness to release tension, stress, and trauma and find healing.

Trauma significantly impacts the nervous system, often causing it to become stuck in a state of hypervigilance or freeze. Somatic therapy addresses this by helping individuals process the body’s stored protective defenses around these experiences.

Somatic therapy helps one regain a sense of balance, safety, and flexibility in their nervous system for improved present day functioning.

Workshop Objectives: 

• Education on how old emotional wounds manifest in the somatic memory through the nervous system
• Learn techniques to rebalance the nervous system to cultivate a sense of calm and safety in the body 
• Build a deeper, stronger, and safer relationship with your body 
• Foster feelings of safety when you are feeling anxious or isolated 
• Find a sense of groundedness to ease feelings of disconnection or dissociation 
• Learn techniques to release the lingering somatic symptoms of trauma from the tissues and body 
• Explore ways to reduce the intensity and frequency of triggers

Workshop Outline (6 hours)

Morning Itinerary 9:30am-12:30pm

• Introduction to the process of interoception and somatic sensing through body awareness scans and movement
• Education on how the body perceives threat in activation of the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS), how the body holds traumatic memory, and how we build a flexible and resilient ANS
• Exploring grounding practices – connecting to senses, orientation and mindfulness, touch
• Breathwork as a regulating practice 

Afternoon Itinerary 1:00pm-4:00pm

• Identifying your personal triggers which activate the stress and connecting how your own thoughts, behaviours, and emotions affect the stress/anxiety cycle
• Co-regulation and safety practices: glimmers
• The role of trust in autonomic nervous system regulation
• Movement practices: follow body cues, stretching, yoga poses, shaking, free movement/dancing
• Self Expression practices: voice and chant
• Restorative resting practices 

Closing Sharing Circle