What Is Somatic Experiencing?
Somatic experiencing (SE) was developed by Peter Levine based on observing how animals discharge stress after life-threatening encounters. Animals shake, tremor, and complete the fight-or-flight cycle. Humans often do not, because social conditioning teaches us to suppress these responses. The result: stress energy gets trapped in the body as chronic tension, pain, and dysregulation. SE works by tracking physical sensations (called 'felt sense') and allowing the body to complete interrupted survival responses. It is not talk therapy. It is body therapy.
By Omar Rantisi, Founder of Therma3 min read
what somatic experiencing is
somatic experiencing is a body-oriented therapeutic approach for processing stress and trauma. developed by Peter Levine over 45 years, it focuses on the body's physical responses rather than the cognitive narrative of what happened. the core concept is that traumatic stress gets stored in the body when survival responses (fight, flight, freeze) are not completed.
SE helps the body discharge that stored energy through a process called titration: slowly approaching the activation, allowing small amounts of sensation to move, and then returning to a felt sense of safety. it does not require retelling the trauma story.
“your body is still responding to something it never finished responding to.”
how your body stores stress
when you face a threat, your body mobilizes energy for fight or flight. if neither option is available (or socially acceptable), the energy does not disappear. it gets stored as muscular tension, bracing patterns, and autonomic dysregulation.
' it is why people with unresolved stress carry tension in specific places (jaw, shoulders, gut) and experience chronic activation (insomnia, hypervigilance, startle response) long after the original threat has passed. your body is still responding to something it never finished responding to. SE helps complete that cycle.
how somatic experiencing works in practice
SE practitioners guide you to notice physical sensations: warmth, tightness, tingling, numbness, tremoring. you track these sensations as they move and change, without analyzing or narrating. the practitioner helps you pendulate between activation (the stress sensation) and resource (a place in your body that feels calm or neutral). this gradual back-and-forth allows the nervous system to discharge stored energy without overwhelm.
you might experience involuntary shaking, deep breaths, temperature changes, or emotional releases. these are completion signals. therma's body-awareness check-ins build the interoception skills that SE relies on.
Common questions
do I need a therapist for somatic experiencing?
for trauma processing, yes. SE is a clinical modality that requires trained practitioners. however, the foundational skills (body awareness, tracking sensations, pendulating between activation and calm) can be practiced independently through body scans and mindful check-ins.
is somatic experiencing the same as yoga or breathwork?
no. yoga and breathwork are practices. SE is a therapeutic framework that uses body awareness to process specific stress and trauma. there is overlap in the body-awareness component but SE is targeted at completing interrupted survival responses.
how long does somatic experiencing take?
individual sessions typically last 50-90 minutes. the number of sessions varies. some people experience significant shifts in 3-5 sessions. complex trauma may require longer. the body sets the pace, not the calendar.
Related concepts
Omar Rantisi
Founder of Therma. UCLA Math + Sociology. Building tools for the space between silence and therapy. Not a therapist. Just someone who needed this to exist.
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