Somatic Experiencing (SE)
Dr. Peter Levine is the founder of Somatic Experiencing. His first book Waking the Tiger explores his view that human animals are unique beings, and endowed with an instinctual capacity to heal as well as an intellectual spirit to harness the innate capacity. Waking the Tiger normalizes the symptoms of trauma and the steps needed to heal them.
Somatic experiencing (SE) is a short-term naturalistic approach to the resolution and healing of trauma developed by Dr. Peter Levine and is supported by research. The word “trauma” in this sense covers a wide range of physical and psychological symptoms that result from the effect of accumulated stress on human physiology.
SE is based upon the observations that wild prey animals, although threatened routinely, are rarely traumatized. Animals in the wild utilize innate mechanisms to regulate and discharge the high levels of energy arousal associated with defensive survival behaviors. These mechanisms provide animals with a built in “immunity” to trauma that enables them to return to normal in the aftermath of highly “charged” life threatening experiences.
SE supports individuals in completing basic fight, flight, and freeze response patterns that remain inhibited after stressful or traumatic experiences. The completion of these response patterns bring a greater capacity for self-regulation as well as an increased sense of well-being and integration. Even though SE primarily targets issues of trauma, it is also an effective way of supporting individuals interested in expanding their ability to authentically be in the world physically, psychologically and spiritually.
Somatic experiencing (SE) is a short-term naturalistic approach to the resolution and healing of trauma developed by Dr. Peter Levine and is supported by research. The word “trauma” in this sense covers a wide range of physical and psychological symptoms that result from the effect of accumulated stress on human physiology.
SE is based upon the observations that wild prey animals, although threatened routinely, are rarely traumatized. Animals in the wild utilize innate mechanisms to regulate and discharge the high levels of energy arousal associated with defensive survival behaviors. These mechanisms provide animals with a built in “immunity” to trauma that enables them to return to normal in the aftermath of highly “charged” life threatening experiences.
SE supports individuals in completing basic fight, flight, and freeze response patterns that remain inhibited after stressful or traumatic experiences. The completion of these response patterns bring a greater capacity for self-regulation as well as an increased sense of well-being and integration. Even though SE primarily targets issues of trauma, it is also an effective way of supporting individuals interested in expanding their ability to authentically be in the world physically, psychologically and spiritually.
- SE employs awareness of body sensations to help people ‘renegotiate’ and heal rather than relive or re-enact trauma.
- SE’s guidance of the bodily “felt sense”, allows the highly-aroused survival energies to be safely experienced and gradually discharged.
- SE may employ touch in support of the renegotiation process.
- SE ‘titrates’ experiences (breaks down into small, incremental steps), rather than evoking catharsis – which can overwhelm the regulatory mechanisms of the organism.