FAQs

“This seems quite intense, lengthy and a potentially drawn-out process…”

Well, I’m not going to deny this. Yes, it is work, and the payoff isn’t going to be immediately evident (even though you may start feeling relief right from the first session, as you start letting go of long-held unconscious emotional material).

And there’s no way around this, either, simply because this work, by its very nature, involves dealing with painful, fractured, spilt-off, repressed, unwanted, overwhelming, underwhelming aspects of our experience and skilfully integrating them. This isn’t pleasant work, but I’d argue that the medium/long term benefits is worth the effort for most people. Also, we have a say in HOW we proceed and integrate these parts, and just by willing to be respectful, committed, slow, systematic and deliberate in our approach, we can modulate the intensity and seeming tediousness the process might warrant at times.

Indeed, personally I’ve discovered that avoiding this form of work and NOT dealing with repressed emotions or pain by continuing to engage in our favourite set of coping mechanisms IS LIKELY to be more exhausting and intense in the long term.

Some of these coping mechanisms can prove costly too, and it’s typically at this point where many of us feel ready to consider a different way of living, where we’re willing to start embracing our painful past, rather than staying stuck in increasingly destructive patterns.

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“Will I feel tired and need to rest a lot after sessions?”

When working with a new client, I usually move the process at a fairly leisurely pace and avoid going too deep too quickly, and assist the client to get a sense of what’s it’s like for them to explore and gently immerse themselves into the immediacy of their moment-to-moment experience.

More often that not, clients feel more relaxed, clear, calm, light and restful after a session, even when it might have involved working with some traumatic imprint. But then, since each client is different, some of them might be better off taking more time by themselves to do simple low-key activities and not engage in any highly-stimulating activity for at least an hour or so after a session.

This would give them more time & space to gently continue to integrate some of the openings, shifts, releases, and other subtle changes they might have experienced during the course of a session.

In general, my suggestion to any client would be to block short chunks of time during the day, where they’re not doing, striving, or thinking much, but simply just being and engaging in an activity for its own sake.

This might look like petting a dog/cat, simply sitting, staring into the night sky, relaxing on a beach, spending quality time with a loved one, going for a leisurely neighbourhood walk, watering plants, singing, dancing, playing, etc.

All this would count as active form of rest and recovery from session work, while being nourishing at the same time.

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“WHAT are you exactly?”

Like I mentioned elsewhere on this website, I’m a certified somatic practitioner whose primary training is in safely and gently assisting, teaching and mentoring people to access, process and integrate their unresolved mental, emotional and physical imprints from the past and thereby ease their suffering in the present.

As part of the process mentioned above, I also teach people how to track and regulate their nervous systems so that they spend more time in a calm, grounded, and balanced state, so they can lead a richer, meaningful life.

I’m a certified:

Embodied Processing Practitioner &

Kiloby Inquiries Facilitator

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“What is somatic therapy?”

A) Somatic therapy refers to a wide set of modalities, frameworks, methods, techniques and paradigms that focus on the felt sense of the body along with the survival responses deeply programmed into the human organism to release traumatic imprints stored in the body 

In cases where there’s unprocessed trauma and incomplete & thwarted survival responses (which is typical during events that are perceived as overwhelming), it’s been found that working with bodily responses, including tight, contracted muscles, defensive posture, and stuck sensations/emotions first, and skilfully undoing the physical and psychological resistance we’ve built around these sensations & emotions typically creates more space, relief and ease. 

While traditional talk therapy has mostly focussed on the cognitive and the emotional aspects of the client, somatic therapy typically starts with what’s happening in the body first and then attends to emotional and cognitive later. This is because we’re learning that it’s the body and nervous system that respond first when there’s some some of either internal or external source of distress, which is then quickly relayed to the brain, which then responds by signalling the production of certain stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol

Further, it’s IN the body that these unprocessed stress and chronic tension patterns are first encountered, and as a result of the deeply intricate and tightly knit mind-body connection, these patterns are also reflected in the mind and emotions in a variety of distressing symptoms. So by working with the body and the stress physiology first, we’re also make the cognitive and emotive systems more pliable to change and be transformed for the better by letting of limiting self-beliefs and having greater access to more uplifting emotions and feeling states
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“Who is it for?“

A) I’d say, *in general* it’s for any adult who resonates with this approach, who’s genuinely curious about learning how their nervous system, survival states, posture, emotive affect, and cognitive beliefs have been shaped by chronic stress and trauma imprints and finally how these deeply engrained imprints and patterns can be transformed for the better, by creating the right internal and external conditions, so that they may experience greater vitality, ease, flow, pleasure, grounding and joy in more fully inhabiting their own body and mind.

Further, this is also for anyone who wishes to:

A) feel more connected to themselves and others, while improving their sense of personal agency and self-efficacy

B) have a more regulated, calm, and balanced mind

C) become more aware of their tension and stress patterns, so that they can tackle and release them through appropriate means sooner rather than letting it accumulate 

D) have some relief from chronic pain or other limiting mental and physical health symptoms 

E) have a clearer sense of who they are and what they want in general at a deeper level.

F) feel more safe, secure, peaceful and at ease within themselves
G) improve their ability to deal with current and future stressors in their live
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“Can people with specific physical illnesses/ people undergoing other kinds of healing procedures experience this form of process work?“

A) Somatic-based practices can and often are a vital part of healing and recovery from physical illness, especially if accidents, surgical procedures, extended hospitalisation, chronic pain, emotional distress among other things have been involved.
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“Is this a touch-based process?”

A) Both the modalities that I currently facilitate aren’t based on touch per se. However, there are elements where the facilitator encourages and supports the use of self-touch by the client – for instance this could look like the client placing one hand on their chest and the other hand on their abdomen to better connect to what they feeling in those areas. 
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“How should I prepare myself before coming for a therapy session?“

A) Having a reasonably clear intention of what one would like to explore in a particular session would be a good place to start. But I’ve found that isn’t always necessary, as the topic that needs to be explored (in any given session) can be DISCOVERED simply by attuning to the felt sense in the body for a few moments 

If there are concerns or questions, it would help to have them be addressed before the explorative phase so that the mind can be more at ease

Other than these two things, I’d just encourage people to show up as they, and be open and curious about what and how things are going to unfold for them during session work

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“Can somatic experiencing help with building a better relationship with food/ sleep?“

A) Just to clarify, ’Somatic Experiencing’ is a particular TYPE of somatic therapy, which has continued to grow in popularity and accessibility in many parts of the world in the last few years

Now to address the question, yes, somatic therapy in general CAN and DO help with sleep or food issues, through helping the client learn to regulate their nervous system better, releasing trapped emotions and completing stuck survival states (especially freeze and collapse) so that they can learn to spend more time in a calm, open, and balanced physiological state.

This generally translates to fewer cravings, improved ability to follow physiological cues of hunger, satiety and sense of feeling satisfied, leading to better food choices with appropriate portion sizes

Also, when we learn to better regulate and manage our stressors through customized somatic practices, it becomes easier to fall asleep and have a more balanced sleep-wake cycle 

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