Somatic therapy: Why it could be the missing link in your wellness journey

Talk-based therapies arose in the 1900s and continue to help many in their healing journeys. While talk therapy works primarily with the brain and thought processes, we are now learning more about the importance of processing trauma through the body using ‘somatic work‘, a term coined by Thomas Hanna in the 1970s.

Somatic therapy centres the body and its connection with our minds to create a more holistic approach to healing and wellness.

Sarah Mackay-Wiggers is a somatic therapist, business mentor, and movement specialist. In her years of working with women through movement, she noticed a pattern that would transform her future career trajectory.

“Women were resisting exactly what they needed most,” she said.

She recounted how burnt-out women would arrive at her studio fixated on getting a vigorous workout, despite their bodies crying out for rest. Their identities as hard workers held them back from leaning into the type of movement that could help heal their nervous systems.

Conversely, those who would benefit most from strengthening their core, stability, or postural muscles dismissed the idea by clinging to a ‘yogi’ identity and resisted other beneficial movement.

“Everyone had an identity tied to a specific method and, in doing so, they were shutting themselves off from what their body was actually craving,” Mackay-Wiggers said.

She realised most of the women she worked with were disconnected from their bodies and had little ability or comfort with intuitive movement.

“That was the moment I knew these people didn’t need another exercise instructor. They needed someone to help them listen to their bodies. To break free from the structured, standardised, and regulated way of moving. To be curious. To explore what actually felt good,” she said.

Healing through the body: Moving from awareness to emotional release

Mackay-Wiggers believes that talk-based interventions certainly have a valuable place, especially if the alternative is no therapy at all.

“Every word of truth you speak sets your body more and more free,” she said.

“Talk therapy can help you understand your patterns, name your experiences, and bring awareness to what’s been suppressed. But awareness alone doesn’t complete the cycle.”

Even with great awareness of our emotions and stories, our bodies retain energetic charge – holding tension, altering breathing patterns, and contracting against that which hasn’t been fully processed.

“That’s where somatics comes in. It moves beyond just knowing and into releasing. Because true healing isn’t just about telling the story — it’s about letting your body finally let it go,” she said.

Mackay-Wiggers explained the distinction between cognitive-only and somatic therapies as top-down versus bottom-up approaches to managing stress or trauma.

“Imagine there’s a burglar in your house,” she said. “What happens first?”

For most of us, the body will react far quicker than logical or conscious thought processes. You may gasp, clench your muscles, your heart rate may increase and your nervous system goes into high alert. Then, emotions like fear or panic may flood your system. Only after this emotional flood, Mackay-Wiggers explained, will the mind start processing questions like ‘what does this mean?’ or ‘what should I do now?’

“This is our innate, primal way. We feel first, then process and respond,” she said.

“Now, imagine experiencing this in reverse. You see the burglar and, instead of reacting, you calmly think first: ‘What should I do?’ Then, at some point, you might start feeling fear. And then your body finally gasps and clenches.

“Feels wrong, doesn’t it? That’s because it is the wrong way around. But this is exactly what happens when we rely solely on top-down approaches — trying to think our way through emotions while ignoring what the body is already holding.”

Mackay-Wiggers described somatic work as a return to the way humans are designed to process emotion – allowing the body to complete its natural cycle of release and regulation rather than stifling it with logic.

“Real healing isn’t just about understanding — it’s about feeling and freeing,” she said.

Defying self-limiting stories: How somatic therapy can improve our wellbeing

Periods of low mood can resemble being stuck in the past; ruminating on old pains, wounds, failures, or disappointments.

On the flip side, many people who struggle with anxiety live in an imagined future full of worst-case scenarios. Somatic therapy can be a powerful antidote for our tendency to lose ourselves in the past or future by grounding us in our bodies and connecting us to the here-and-now reality.

Mackay-Wiggers explained that, while it is fantastic that we can now discuss our stories more openly, there may have been a slight overcorrection, leading some of us to stray into rumination territory that disconnects us from our innate bodily wisdom and healing ability.

“The vulnerability buzzword has led to a culture where people are getting stuck — stuck in their story, stuck in the healing journey itself,” she said.

“Healing isn’t just about going deep into your past, unpacking your trauma, and processing your emotions. It’s also about living. About letting yourself receive, bringing in joy, lightness, and fun — because often, that’s what we’re forgetting to do. 

“Yes, your mental health matters. Yes, healing your past is important. But healing is also about embracing the present, finding joy, and allowing yourself to experience life beyond ‘the work’.”

She also explained that some of us use words to intellectualise, rather than truly feel our emotions. We can also use our language to convince ourselves that we are fine, rather than surrendering to the natural life cycle of an emotion as it moves through the body.

“People say they’re fine, but their body? It’s anxious. It can’t sleep,” she said.

“We can convince ourselves with words, but the body doesn’t lie. It holds onto what we suppress, and until we address that on a somatic level, no amount of logic or reasoning can override what the body knows to be true.”

How to include somatic work in your healing journey

We live in a society ruled by hustle culture, which tells us we need to be constantly optimising and striving harder towards our goals. Somatic therapy, perhaps counter-intuitively, asks us to soften and surrender, which can feel incredibly confronting if we’re stuck in our current habitual cycles of stress and busyness.

“It’s not about doing more. It’s about undoing what’s been keeping you disconnected. And once that shift happens? Everything opens up,” Mackay-Wiggers said.

“Embodiment isn’t just a concept, it’s something you feel. And when you start by reconnecting with your body, every principle, every lesson, can then be applied to your being. To your life. To your leadership. To the way you show up in the world.”

If you’re curious about how somatic therapy could improve your wellness, ease anxiety, or regulate your nervous system, Mackay-Wiggers provided a simple yet profound practice you can try to reconnect with your body today. Take yourself through the following steps in a place you feel safe and won’t be disturbed and notice any physical or emotional shifts that occur.

1. Lie down and settle in

Find a comfortable spot on the floor and lie down with your knees bent, feet flat on the ground. Let your spine relax into the surface beneath you.

2. Create space in your spine

Lift your hips gently into the air, then lower them down one vertebra at a time, reaching your sit bones toward your heels. Feel the space opening up in your spine as you release.

3. Check in with your pelvis

Notice if your pelvis is tucking backward, pressing your lower back into the floor. Instead, allow for a natural, gentle curve in your lower back – your spine’s neutral state.

4. Connect with your breath

Place your hands between your belly button and pubic bone. Inhale through your nose, feeling your belly rise. Exhale, letting your belly fall away from your hands. This may feel unfamiliar — most of us have learned to breathe shallowly.

5. Anchor your awareness

As you continue breathing, check in with your thoughts. Are they stuck in yesterday’s conversations or anticipating tomorrow? Gently guide your focus back to the present — right here, right now — feeling your hand on your belly, your breath moving in and out.

6. Scan for tension

Bring awareness to your jaw — can it soften? To your shoulders — can they melt away from your ears? Each time your mind wanders, return to the body, to the breath.

7. Offer gratitude

Take a moment to acknowledge the quiet miracles happening within you — your heart beating, your blood flowing, your body carrying you through every moment without asking for anything in return.

8. Listen to your body’s message

If your body could speak, it would say: I love you. I’m here for you. I honour you.

And now… What do you want to say back?

Surrender is not about giving up, it’s about trust

Unlearning everything that has kept us overwhelmed, stressed and burnt out, and reconnecting with our body can take time, patience, and a willingness to surrender.

Allowing whatever our body needs to process to simply arise without judgement can be the hardest part, especially if you pride yourself on always having everything under control.

“But here’s the thing, surrender does not mean giving up. It means taking inspired action toward your goals while releasing expectations about how and when they unfold,” Mackay-Wiggers said.

Reconnecting with our body through somatics can help us trust that we will always have our own backs, no matter what internal or external challenges we face. In this way, somatic therapy could be a life-changing, liberating experience that influences every part of our lives.