Somatic Experiencing and Your Body’s Response to Stress, Trauma and Pain
Have you ever noticed your heart racing during a conversation, or felt yourself going blank during conflict? Maybe you automatically agree, smooth things over, or adapt, even when something inside you says no.
Afterwards, you might think: “Why did I react like that? That’s weird, I should be able to handle this”
This can happen after a long period of stress, a significant life event, or even trauma. The reality is, your reactions are not random. They are your body’s way of responding to stress and protecting you.
What is trauma?
Trauma can develop after very frightening or distressing experiences that overwhelm a person’s ability to cope. These events are often life-threatening or feel like a significant threat to a person’s physical or psychological wellbeing.
Trauma is not just about the event itself, it's about how our body experiences it. An event may have little impact on one person but cause severe distress in another.
How Trauma and Long-Term Stress Affect the Body
Trauma and long-term stress don’t just live in memory, they are also held in the body and nervous system. As Bessel van der Kolk explains in The Body Keeps the Score, traumatic experiences can change how the brain and body function. The nervous system can remain on high alert, even long after the danger has passed. Over time, the body may begin to react automatically to everyday stress as if the threat is still present. Even when you know you are safe, your body may still react as if the threat is there. This can show up as tight muscles, a strong stress response, shutting down, or difficulty relaxing.
At its core, the nervous system is constantly evaluating signals of safety and danger in order to protect us. When the system perceives danger, it prepares the body to respond. When it perceives safety, the body can settle, recover, and restore balance.
This is also relevant when we look at pain.
How Somatic Experiencing Supports the Body
Somatic Experiencing (SE) is a body-based approach that supports people experiencing symptoms from long-term stress or trauma. It was developed by Peter A. Levine, a biologist and psychologist, who combined knowledge of physiology, biology, and trauma to create this method.
SE helps the nervous system complete natural responses to intense events and make sense of feelings that overwhelm. Unprocessed trauma can disrupt the body’s rhythm and regulation, reducing resilience and contributing to physical and psychological symptoms. SE involves gently noticing bodily sensations and working with stored survival energy. This supports the body in restoring balance and a sense of safety.
For someone with persistent pain, the nervous system may be more sensitive to cues of threat. SE can help support regulation and gradually guide the body toward feeling safer.
Understanding the Nervous System – Polyvagal Theory
Another way to understand how SE supports the nervous system is through the lens of Polyvagal Theory, developed by Stephen Porges. While research and discussion around PVT are ongoing, it provides a helpful framework for recognising how the nervous system shifts between different states. In the image below, three different states and hybrid states are described. You might notice yourself moving through these states at different times, or that one state shows up more often than the others.
Pain Physiotherapy at Evolving Pain
At Evolving Pain, we aim to build a better understanding of your pain. We combine top-down approaches, such as pain education, with body-based approaches like Somatic Experiencing.
This combination helps you better understand your body, regulate your nervous system, and feel safer.If you recognise yourself in any of this, know that you are not alone and support is available. You can book an appointment or get in touch to explore how we can help you.
Written by Noor van der Landen
Physiotherapist
To book with Noor
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