Somatic Experiencing is a naturalistic, body-oriented approach for resolving trauma symptoms and relieving chronic stress. It is the life’s work of Peter Levine, who holds a doctorate in medical biophysics and psychology; Dr. Levine’s observations from both these fields created a new way of working with people. The SE Approach releases trauma from the body and offers a framework to assess where a person is “stuck” in the fight, flight and freeze responses.

Noting that animals tended to recover relatively quickly from traumatic events, Dr. Levine focused on innate capacities to regulate arousal. As humans, we also have the capacity to override our instinctive responses. This can be adaptive, so we don't automatically lash out or run away in response to everyday stressors. But when we override our responses as a habit, our bodies can get stuck in the survival stage of the stress response, resulting in chronic overwhelm, panic or numbness.

The purpose of SE is to help our bodies move through this stage, returning to a state of ease. We do this by learning to pay attention to physical sensations or using visual imagery. We can use this awareness to guide our bodies back toward wholeness, flow and balance. SE supports us in developing a greater capacity to live fully and mindfully.