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HomeInsightsYour Trauma Stays in The Body – Here’s How We Get it Out
Your Trauma Stays in The Body – Here’s How We Get it Out

4 Minutes

Medically reviewed by Dr. med. Sarah Boss
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In the last decade, there has been a revolution in mental health treatment. With works like The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van Der Kolk and The Polyvagal Theory by Stephen Porges, the research shows us that our experiences can live on inside of us long after they have happened. In order to properly treat people, the body must be addressed. At The Balance, we understand this deeply, and it informs everything we do.  It’s not just about bodywork like yoga, tai chi, massage, and acupuncture but also about welcoming the body into therapy sessions as well. One of the core techniques we champion in our clinic is Somatic Experiencing: a technique that was first developed by Peter Levine, a pioneering psychologist, after observing how animals released stress and trauma in the wild. To understand this concept more, we sat down with one of our Somatic Experiencing experts, David Cornwell, to discuss what it is, where it comes from, and why it is so valuable in a therapeutic process.

Somatic Experiencing, developed by Peter Levine, is rooted in the idea that the body holds onto stress and trauma, sometimes long after the mind has moved on. The method is inspired by how animals in the wild release stress after life-threatening encounters.  In the wild, when a wildebeest survives a lion attack, its body instinctively goes through a process of discharging the immense energy and stress accumulated during the encounter. This discharge is a physical release, such as shaking or trembling, allowing the animal to reset its nervous system and return to a calm state. Unlike humans, animals do not ruminate on the trauma but experience it fully in the moment, completing the stress response cycle, and then moving on without lingering effects. Somatic Experiencing focuses on helping individuals tune into their bodies to release pent-up stress and bring balance to the nervous system.

When a traumatic event occurs, if the energy isn’t released, it becomes “stuck” in the body, leading to long-term stress and trauma-related symptoms such as hyperarousal or dissociation. Somatic Experiencing is designed to help people complete this biological response by gently guiding them through their bodily sensations, allowing the nervous system to “discharge” trapped survival energy in a controlled and mindful way.

Somatic Experiencing focuses on the body, but it is not hands-on bodywork. David explains that Somatic Experiencing is about allowing the body to naturally move between states of activation (stress) and discharge (release) in a gentle, gradual process. It doesn’t involve deep analysis or reliving traumatic experiences directly but instead helps clients develop body awareness to release stress patterns slowly over time.

Mindfulness plays a crucial role in Somatic Experiencing by helping individuals become present with their sensations and experiences without judgment. A mindfulness practice can be developed in various ways. The beginning doesn’t need to be overcomplicated. It can be learned through a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction course or in a secular environment with a professional guide or teacher. There is real value in developing a more formal practice, and what that looks like differs for each person. For example, walking in nature—focusing on the feel of the air, the sounds, and the texture of the ground—can deepen one’s connection to the environment.

In one of its literal translations, mindfulness means “to remember.” We forget to pay attention so often. The neuroscience behind this tells us that the more we pay attention, the more attention we are able to pay. It builds momentum. Through mindfulness, clients not only learn to be present but also develop an awareness that allows them to release stress meaningfully. As David says, “It’s not about developing a magical skillset—it’s about being present to what’s important in our lives.”

At The Balance, a Somatic Experiencing session is primarily about building trust and connection. This involves easy, open conversations that allow clients to feel safe and supported. It’s important that trauma isn’t addressed directly in early sessions, as it can be overwhelming. Instead, the goal is to build resources within the client and slowly introduce the idea of “surfing the waves” of stress—starting small and gradually working up to more significant issues.

As he says: “We don’t dive right into the trauma in session one. It is trauma therapy, but it is not trauma-focused. With somatic experiencing, we learn to surf small waves, the easier parts, and the less triggering aspects of one’s life. The client learns how to flow between activation and discharge, then when we get to the big waves – they already know how to surf.” The beauty of this process is that clients learn to understand their own body’s signals and how to regulate their stress responses.

In a typical session, clients are guided to notice sensations in their body, such as tightness or tension, and then return to a point of calm, such as focusing on their breath. This “pendulation,” as David describes, helps them move between states of stress and ease, allowing the nervous system to recalibrate slowly. The process is gradual and doesn’t involve hands-on bodywork—it’s about talking, observing, and developing body awareness.

Somatic Experiencing represents a profound shift in how we approach trauma and stress in mental health treatment. By recognizing that our bodies hold onto unprocessed experiences, this technique offers a pathway to healing that goes beyond traditional talk therapy. At The Balance, we understand that addressing mental health holistically means considering the mind, body, and nervous system together. Somatic Experiencing, alongside other therapeutic practices, empowers our clients to reconnect with their bodies, release stored trauma, and develop resilience. It’s a gentle, yet powerful process that fosters self-awareness, healing, and ultimately, balance.

HOW THE BALANCE CAN HELP WITH Insights

The Balance RehabClinic is a leading provider of luxury addiction and mental health treatment for affluent individuals and their families, offering a blend of innovative science and holistic methods with unparalleled individualised care.

A UNIQUE METHOD TREATING Insights

a successful and proven concept focusing on underlying causes
ONE CLIENT AT A TIME
Our program consists of treating only one client at a time individually designed to help you with all the problematic aspects of your life. All individual treatment sessions will be held at your private residence.
TAILORED LASTING APPROACH
Your program is designed based on your personal needs. The team will exchange daily information and adjust the schedule as we go. Our therapists will work with you treating the root causes and not just the symptoms and goes beyond your stay to ensure lasting success.
BIOCHEMICAL RESTORATION
Our biochemical imbalance can be affected by diet and stressful life events, but it often goes back to genetics and epigenetics. We do specific biochemical laboratory testing to determine an individual’s biochemical imbalance. Combining the results of the lab tests with anamnestic information and clinical tests, we prescribe an individualized and compounded vitamin, mineral, nutrient protocol to help recover from various disease states.
MULTI-DISCIPLINARY & HOLISTIC
Our experts combine the best from psychological treatment, holistic medicine to support you individually and providing complementary therapies all coordinated from one source working complementing each other integrative.
TECHNOLOGY BASED TREATMENT
Using latest cutting-edge technology-based therapies such as Neurofeedback, tDCS, and SSP, we can track the biological patterns of your body, giving us valuable insight into your health and well-being as well support your brain and body performance and recovery with neuromodulation.
TRAUMA INFORMED THERAPY
Complex trauma is often a key factor to distress mental and physical state. The Balance provides a safe space along integrated trauma treatment methods to enable healing.

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