“The five somatic technologies provide flexible and powerful tools for accessing the messages my body so desperately wanted me to hear. They have become part of my toolbox for soothing, repair, investigation, change and growth. Re-discovering my inner world has been brilliantly supported through the simplicity and ease of these technologies, but more importantly through Jamie's strong, warm embodiment of Somatic Expression." - Rob, Massage Therapist

The Benefits of Somatic Expression®

	More Information: Overview What to expect in a session Benefits Who does this work and what they say Courses by title Individualized Retreats Getting involved

Somatic Expression is for people who desire more intimate, nourishing and pleasurable contact with their own BODY. There are many reasons why we have neglected our bodies - conditioning, habit, ignorance, disease, fear, shame, etc. As a result, learning the basics of the soma - how to breathe, move, vocalize, contact, and be still - is important for every-body.

In Somatic Expression you become more literate as a soma - a "thinking body". You learn practical tools and creative strategies to manage the stresses, strains and challenges of living in a body, consequently becoming more at home in your own skin as you are oriented to the lay of the land.

Once you have learned the practices, you don’t need equipment, a class, or a teacher. You can practice whenever you want and in your own time as your body is always with you. This intimate conversation with your inner nature restores balance between body and mind, and between doing and being, increasing your comfort, ease, pleasure and grace in daily life. These ongoing collaborations with your soma help you compassionately transform negative states of lethargy, anxiety, pain, and distress into positive states of balance, pleasure and well-being.

You learn to nurture your nature and master your own body from within. Somatic practices help generate more personal self-sufficiency so you can charge up and chill out at will! You are able to:

- lower your blood pressure
- stabilize your balance
- breathe fully and deeply
- move with ease and grace
- decrease your stress
- increase your energy
- ease your aches and pains
- calm yourself

This is movement as medicine. The conversations you can have with your body through its own sensory intelligence - proprioception and interoception - can help you feel more secure in your own skin and stable on your own two feet. You literally discover the strength of your backbone and the support of the ground. Consequently, "being centered" becomes more of a physical reality and less of a conceptual idea.

Through the five somatic technologies of breath, vocalization, contact, movement, and stillness, you open the door to a much more lively relationship with your own being. As one client said, "there is so much more grace and fun in life than I imagined".

Somatic Expression has been particularly helpful for people with life-threatening illnesses and chronic health conditions. By becoming more involved as a collaborator in your own healing process and reclaiming your body, you can feel more alive, empowered and engaged.

Somatic Expression has also been useful for caregivers and other people in the helping professions to learn tools for personal self-care while caring for others.

Therapists, educators, massage therapists, yoga and fitness instructors, and healthcare professionals have been able to learn new methods for creatively and humanely broadening the scope of their specialization.

What makes Somatic Expression classes and individual sessions unique is, whether for personal growth or for professional development, the journey into discovering your body's wisdom is simple, pleasurable, easily understandable and sustainable.

See the article The Five Technologies of Somatic Expression to learn more about this work.

Photo by Hilary Nichols