Somatic Movement

Somatic Movement

Somatic Movement enhances human function and body-mind integration through mindful and restorative movement. SM encompasses distinct disciplines each with their own educational or therapeutic emphasis, principles, methods and techniques.

I incorporate postural and movement evaluation; experiential anatomy; guided movement patterning to increase efficiency; all while developing perceptual, kinesthetic and proprioceptive sensitivity. Somatic Movement supports homeostasis, co-regulation and neuro-plasticity in the human being.

A somatic movement, generally speaking, is one, which is performed consciously with the intention of focusing on the internal experience of the movement rather than the external appearance or result of the movement.

Due to its generic definition, the term somatic can be used to describe a variety of forms of movement and healing modalities. You may have heard of somatic yoga, somatic experiencing, somatic psychology, somatic therapy, or somatic dance therapy. You may have even heard of somatic education!

Thomas Hanna coined the term somatic education. Hanna used the term somatic education to describe methods of sensory-motor education that use somatic movement to improve motor control and sensation and change learned muscular patterns. Many people find somatic movement education methods to be highly effective in relieving chronic pain, improving bodily function, and recovering from common musculoskeletal conditions.

In order to be most effective, a somatic movement should be performed as slowly as possible. The human nervous system, which controls our posture and movement, must learn new things very slowly. With practice, we are able to gradually speed up and perform movements more quickly while still maintaining form and control. When we do movements quickly, we are not learning anything new we are simply reinforcing existing learned patterns.

A somatic movement must also be performed consciously, with our complete internal focus and attention. Conscious attention is key to the learning process; we can't learn something new if we aren't aware of what we're doing.

Methods of somatic education teach specialized somatic movement techniques in systematized ways that are specific to each method. Well-known methods of somatic education include Clinical Somatic Education, also known as Hanna Somatic Education, the Feldenkrais Method, and the Alexander Technique.

Many methods of somatic education use both hands-on movements, guided by a certified educator, and self-care movements, which are practiced by the student on a regular basis at home. One of the tenets of all forms of somatic education is that students should be responsible for their own health and learning. The role of a somatic educator is to empower students to take care of themselves by teaching them the tools they need to stay out of pain and continue to improve their posture, movement, and function throughout their lives.

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