Frequently Asked Questions

What does the word Somatic mean?

The word somatic means “of or relating to the living body,” and it has long been used in medical terminology like somatic cell, somatic nervous system, somatic disorder, and somatic pain. 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.

What does Clinical Somatic Education do?

Clinical Somatics changes habitual posture and movement by retraining the nervous system.

What is the intention of Clinical Somatic Education?

Clinical Somatics retrains the nervous system to release involuntary muscle tension and relieve pain by retraining damaging posture and movement patterns.

What is a Somatic movement?

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. Practicing somatic movements is quite different than doing sit-ups or push-ups; it’s not about the quantity, it’s about the quality. In a general sense, any movement can be a somatic movement if it is performed slowly, consciously, and with the intention of focusing on the internal experience of the movement.

How does Clinical Somatics improve function and relieve pain?

Clinical Somatics exercises are slow, gentle, and suitable for all ages and physical abilities.

After you have learned Clinical Somatics exercises, they are to be practiced on your own at home—so you can relieve your own pain, keep making progress on your own, and not have to come to sessions forever!

Is Somatics for me?

If you are worried that you might have an illness, infection or structural damage, please ask your doctor to ensure Somatics is safe for you. Otherwise, Somatics is a very safe way to work with pain, and posture or movement issues.

If you like the idea of slowing down and creating awareness of your body and habitual patterns in order to understand where you hold tension, Somatics is the practice for you. The mindfulness aspect will cause your mind to relax, which in turn allows your body to release the tension quicker.

What conditions can Clinical Somatics help?

Clinical Somatics can alleviate and prevent the following functional conditions:

How is Clinical Somatics different than other methods of pain relief?

Clinical Somatics is active. Many healing modalities are passive, meaning that the client stays relaxed while the practitioner manipulates their body. In contrast, Clinical Somatics is active, meaning that the client is actively engaged in the movements. This active engagement allows learning to take place in the nervous system, and is one of the key reasons why Clinical Somatics is so effective in creating lasting change in bodily function. (Of the methods described below, physical therapy is the only active one.)

Clinical Somatics uses pandiculation, which no other method of pain relief or movement therapy does. Pandiculation results in lasting release of involuntary muscular contraction because it retrains the nervous system, resetting the resting level of muscle tension. Pandiculation gently contracts muscles and then very slowly releases them.

What is the difference between stretching and pandiculation?

Stretching typically doesn’t have long-lasting results due to the myotatic reflex (or stretch reflex). When you pull a muscle farther than it can comfortably lengthen, your stretch reflex kicks in, contracting your muscles to prevent you from overstretching and tearing your muscles, tendons and ligaments.
Clinical Somatics uses no conventional stretching techniques. Instead, Clinical Somatics exercises pandiculate muscles, gently contracting and very slowly releasing them, reducing the resting level of muscle tension and restoring voluntary control.