Somatic Therapy London — Accredited Practitioner | Tapping School
Somatic therapy in London focuses on helping people regulate their nervous system. The goal is to release stress or trauma stored in the body. Unlike traditional talk therapy, somatic approaches work directly with physical sensations. Somatic providers use body awareness exercises and the mind body connection to support emotional healing.
If you haven’t tried body-based therapy before, you might wonder what to expect. We’re going to cover:
- The definition of somatic therapy and its origins.
- How somatic therapy works for trauma, stress, and mental health conditions.
- Whether EFT tapping is considered a somatic practice.
- The differences between somatic therapy and talk therapy.
- How trauma affects the nervous system.
- Who benefits from somatic therapy.
- How to get started.
- What Is Somatic Therapy?
- Origins of Somatic Therapy
- How Somatic Therapy Helps With Stress, Trauma, and Anxiety
- Is EFT Tapping a Form of Somatic Therapy?
- What Happens in a Somatic Therapy Session?
- Somatic Therapy vs Talk Therapy
- How Trauma Affects the Nervous System
- Why Does Nervous System Regulation Matter?
- Who Can Benefit From Somatic Therapy?
- Somatic Therapy in London – Work With Me
- Online Sessions — Available Worldwide
- In-Person Sessions — London N5
- How Sessions Work
- Book a Session: Start Somatic Therapy in London Today
- Somatic Therapy FAQs
- References
What Is Somatic Therapy?
Somatic therapy is a body based psychotherapy. It focuses on how the body holds and expresses emotional experiences. Trauma can register with the body on a cellular level.[1] In other words, trauma and stress can be ‘stored’ in the body. When negative emotions and experiences are stored in your nervous system, it can cause a host of symptoms.
The Western world tries. However, we can’t separate the body from the mind. Think of how your heart rate, blood pressure, or breathing change when you’re in danger. Or, when you’re very anxious. These reactions illustrate the mind body connection.
Somatic therapy focuses on releasing trauma and stress from the body. Practitioners might use a variety of mind body practices. As a result, people experience relief from negative mental and physical sensations. The goal is nervous system regulation.
Somatic therapy focuses on releasing trauma and stress from the body. Practitioners might use a variety of mind body practices. As a result, people experience relief from negative mental and physical sensations. The goal is nervous system regulation.
Many traditional therapies overlook the mind body connection. It’s not to say that talk therapy isn’t helpful – it is. But, it doesn’t always help people get ‘in’ their bodies. Somatic therapy uses body awareness. This is also called somatic awareness. The approach helps all parts of ‘you’ (your body and mind) get connected again.
Through somatic therapy, you’ll get in touch with what’s really going on, not just mentally, but physically, too; you and your provider will work to treat your symptoms as a whole person.
Origins of Somatic Therapy
Somatic therapy originated in the 19th and 20th century. It was pioneered by Wilhelm Reich, who theorized that trauma was stored in the body.
Peter Levine then developed somatic experiencing in the late 1960s-1970s. Somatic therapy has since become more popular. It has been practiced for well over 50 years. It is now known as an evidence-based treatment for various conditions.
How Somatic Therapy Helps With Stress, Trauma, and Anxiety
Somatic therapy may help with:
- Trauma.
- PTSD.
- Anxiety.
- Panic attacks.
- Chronic stress.
- Burnout.
- Emotional overwhelm.
- Nervous system dysregulation.
- Complicated grief.
Why does somatic therapy work? All of these challenges can dysregulate the nervous system. They strain the body and mind. This can result in mental and physical issues. Digestive distress, headaches, panic attacks, trouble sleeping, brain fog, social withdrawal, muscle tension, fatigue, irritability, and others.
What can dysregulate the nervous system?
Nervous system dysregulation can result from many different experiences. When we think of trauma, we often picture major events. For example, a car crash or a house fire. These are clear, classic traumatic events. Some nickname these ‘Big T Traumas.”
“Little T traumas” are not life-threatening. They’re smaller events, like microaggressions. These build up over time. They can still cause harm and dysregulation. They can still lead to trauma stored in the body. Burnout and emotional overwhelm can create a great deal of tension and stress in the body, too. If you don’t release it, it gets toxic.
Whether you’re overwhelmed by excessive worry, long work hours, childhood trauma, or negative words from others, holding the energy from these experiences inside can be taxing.
Validating yourself is critical. If you feel dysregulated, upset, or overwhelmed, you deserve relief. Regardless of cause. Part of what we often work on with EFT is radical acceptance; acknowledgement without judgment. This can include acknowledging how you feel.
Is EFT Tapping a Form of Somatic Therapy?
EFT tapping works with the body. It regulates the nervous system. It uses mind body practices. So, is EFT a form of somatic therapy? Yes. EFT tapping is a somatic treatment. It’s a great example of an effective body based technique. EFT teaches accessible trauma release exercises. Once you learn them with the help of a somatic therapist in London, you can use tapping techniques on your own.
Like other somatic approaches, EFT tapping:
- Works with physical sensations in the body while processing emotional experiences.
- Releases stored negative emotions, energy, and trauma.
- Reintegrate the body and mind.
EFT combines elements of cognitive therapy–specifically, cognitive restructuring–with physical, acupuncture based stimulation. Research shows that EFT tapping can help people to mitigate a range of symptoms, situations, and conditions. Anxiety, trauma, depression, stress, burnout, and somatic symptoms included.[2] It’s also safe and cost-effective.
What Happens in a Somatic Therapy Session?
Considering somatic therapy? You might wonder what happens in a typical session. Here are some examples of techniques a somatic therapist in London might use.
- Body scanning. Noticing body sensations, from your head to your toes or vice versa.
- Grounding. Techniques to connect with the present moment. For example, the ‘5 4 3 2 1 exercise’ or pushing against a wall.
- Titration. Addressing the smallest traumatic events or stressors first to avoid overwhelm or overload. Moving on to a bigger traumatic event or stressor gradually.
- Breathwork. Breathing exercises. These are simple. They can help calm mental and physical stress responses.
- Gentle movement. Rocking, dancing, stretching, or shaking (tension release shake) to release stored energy.
- Resourcing. Recalling a memory, place, or person to help you feel calm.
- Mindfulness. Mindful thinking.
Somatic therapy in London at Tapping School uses these techniques as a part of our process
Somatic Therapy vs Talk Therapy
What’s the difference between somatic therapy vs talk therapy? Here are some key distinctions.
| Somatic therapy | Talk therapy |
|---|---|
| Focuses on body sensations. | Focuses on thoughts. |
| Nervous system regulation. Feeling safe in your body and mind. | Primarily relies on verbal exploration. Talking about what you’re going through or have been through, how it affects you, etc |
| Embodied awareness. Connecting with the present moment, understanding where you feel emotions in your body, using grounding techniques to work through physical and mental sensations. | Cognitive processing. Understanding the connection between thoughts and events, identifying and changing negative thought patterns. |
Both are valuable. Integrating the two means that you can get the benefits of each therapy type. For many people, this is pivotal for nervous system regulation. That’s why combining both via EFT is so powerful.
How Trauma Affects the Nervous System
How does trauma affect the nervous system? Many trauma survivors experience a stress response in the mind and body when met with triggers. The body and mind learn to perceive that they’re not safe, even when you are safe in reality. This causes ‘fight,’ ‘flight,’ or ‘freeze’ responses. Here’s what those might look like.
- Flight: leaving, walking away, avoidance.
- Fight: anger, surges of toxic energy, urges to lash out.
- Freeze: freezing up. Difficulty responding or reacting.
People may also experience physical symptoms during an active stress response. For example, a pounding heart, muscle tension, sweating, or shaking.
Nervous system regulation = helping yourself feel safe. The goal of nervous system regulation is to help you get out of a chronic fight or flight response like state.
Why Does Nervous System Regulation Matter?
It is important to feel safe for your mental health. But, your physical health is affected by a lack of safety, too. Nervous system dysregulation is associated with various chronic health problems.[3] This is because being in such a hypervigilant state for so much of your life strains the body systems. Many people who come to somatic therapy in London find that this is true for them at the time they start treatment.
Who Can Benefit From Somatic Therapy?
Somatic therapy can be a good fit for:
- Those who feel “stuck” in traditional talk therapy (e.g., you aren’t making progress or are making limited progress).
- Individuals who want to achieve better emotional regulation.
- Individuals with stress-related chronic pain.
- People with anxiety disorders.
- People with chronic stress.
- People with depression.
- Trauma survivors.
This isn’t an exhaustive list. Others can benefit from somatic practices, too. If you think that somatic therapy in London might be the right fit for you, you’re in the right place.
Somatic Therapy in London – Work With Me
My name is Rad. I am a certified somatic therapist and EFT practitioner based in London, accredited through the EFT Matrix Reimprinting Academy (EFTMRA). I have been working with clients for over 20 years, supporting people through trauma, anxiety, PTSD, chronic stress, burnout, low self-esteem and confidence challenges.
My approach is client-led, body-centred and trauma-informed. Sessions are not about talking through problems until you’re exhausted — they are about helping your nervous system find safety, so that lasting change becomes possible from the inside out.
I work with people at all stages of their healing journey. Whether you are navigating the aftermath of a single traumatic event, carrying years of accumulated stress, or simply feeling stuck despite previous therapy, somatic work combined with EFT gives your body and mind the tools to genuinely shift.
All sessions are fully confidential. I am in regular clinical supervision and all work is carried out in a safe, non-judgmental space where your pace and boundaries are always respected.
Online Sessions — Available Worldwide
Distance is not a barrier to somatic healing. I offer fully online sessions via Google Meet for clients outside London, those with demanding schedules, or anyone who simply prefers to work from the comfort of their own space. Online EFT and somatic sessions are equally effective and follow the same structured, trauma-informed process as in-person work.
In-Person Sessions — London N5
My practice is located at 77 Ashburton Triangle, London N5 1GB, a short walk from Highbury & Islington station. In-person sessions allow for the full range of somatic techniques, including grounding exercises, breathwork and movement-based trauma release
How Sessions Work
Before sessions begin, we’ll start with an intake assessment first to ensure that somatic therapy is appropriate. I’ll ask about your goals. Or, what brings you to somatic therapy. We’ll discuss everything you should expect during the process to help you feel safe, confident, and prepared.
During your sessions with me, we’ll use somatic therapy techniques. EFT tapping is often paired with other body based techniques. Grounding exercises like breathwork are common, as an example.
Book a Session: Start Somatic Therapy in London Today
Interested in somatic therapy in London? Get started today. Call me at 07398 598 888 or rad@tappingschool.com.
Or, you can book online: https://tappingschool.com/eft-session-booking/.
Somatic Therapy FAQs
Somatic means ‘having to do with the body.’[4] Somatic therapy is a body-focused therapy.
It depends. People who have more to work through generally require more sessions. A few months of somatic therapy should warrant noticeable benefits. A single session might take anywhere from 60-90 minutes.
Yes. Somatic therapy is good for trauma and complex trauma.
Depending on where you’re at in the therapy process, you might expect:
History taking: During your first session, a somatic therapist will ask questions about your personal history and what brings you to therapy.
Planning: The provider will tell you what to expect from their unique somatic therapy practice. This may include the specific body based therapy techniques they intend to use.
Body based techniques: most of your somatic therapy sessions should involve body based therapy techniques (e.g., body scan, tapping, breathwork, butterfly hug, gentle movement).
Somatic therapists will check in with you during sessions. This could be before, during, or after using body based techniques. They’ll help you move forward slowly. Going at your pace, a good provider should always be there to help you maintain feelings of safety as you process traumatic experiences.
References
- Salamon, M. (). What is somatic therapy? Harvard Health. health.harvard.edu
- Blacher, S. (). Emotional freedom technique (EFT): Tap to relieve stress and burnout. Journal of Interprofessional Education & Practice. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Anthoni Oisin, BS. (). Understanding the nervous system dysregulation. News-Medical. news-medical.net
- National Cancer Institute. (n.d.). Somatic — NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms. cancer.gov
