Ancient and modern medical principles alike rely on the idea that our body stores different kinds of energy in different places and ways — Hindu chakras, Chinese meridians, pressure points and even the lymph and endocrine systems all incorporate the concept of physical reactions to emotional events. In cases of stress, distress or trauma, the body goes through a series of innate responses known as fight or flight reactions, producing hormones and activating areas of the brain that control everything from feelings of fear to breathing patterns. Among many therapists, doctors and researchers, there is a common belief that even after the event has passed, the effects can linger on as stored energy that impacts your day-to-day life. Somatic therapy relies on this belief and focuses on finding and releasing pent-up tension called somatic energy.
Somatic therapy was first developed in the 1970s, when experts observed that animals in the wild do not exhibit symptoms of trauma like humans do despite their confrontation with life-threatening situations relatively frequently. Researchers concluded that animals are more efficient at processing and discharging trauma-induced energy stores through their physical responses to fight or flight situations. This led to the belief that human trauma may result from an unnatural accumulation of these energy reserves in the body, and ultimately to the development of somatic therapy, which uses a physical approach to therapy designed to release these energy reserves. Those who participate in somatic therapy may use massage, movement, stretching, exercise or skin treatments in an effort to disengage areas of trauma-induced tension.
