Attachment-focused Somatic Experiencing®
The intricate relationship between the nervous system, experiences of intimacy and sexuality and the fundamental neuroscience of attachment provides a crucial foundation for understanding the profound impact of trauma. Attachment theory emphasises the innate human need for connection and security, highlighting how early relational experiences shape our emotional and behavioural patterns throughout life. Experiences of trauma, particularly those occurring in early childhood or within primary attachment relationships, can profoundly disrupt the development of secure attachment, leading to a cascade of physiological and psychological challenges. These challenges often manifest as difficulties in regulating emotions, forming healthy relationships and establishing a coherent sense of self.
Attachment patterns formed early in life create a lasting relational framework that influences the development of affect, cognition and social skills, with a particular impact on the comprehensive psychological functions of empathy and mentalisation. Adverse experiences or significant emotional neglect in early life can disrupt attachment patterns, leading to varying levels of insecurity or disorganisation, which correlate with distinct features of neurobiological regulation.
Attachment-focused Somatic Experiencing® offers a promising avenue for addressing the complex interplay between trauma and attachment by integrating the principles of attachment theory with the body-oriented approach of Somatic Experiencing®. Somatic Experiencing® is a body-awareness approach to healing trauma, based on an understanding of how trauma affects the nervous system. This approach recognises that trauma is not solely a psychological event but also a deeply embodied experience that can become trapped within the nervous system, leading to chronic dysregulation and a range of physical and emotional symptoms. Somatic Experiencing® aims to help individuals access and release this trapped energy, restoring a sense of safety and self-regulation.
When Kardiner initially described posttraumatic stress disorder in 1941, he termed the trauma response a “physioneurosis,” highlighting its impact on both the body and mind. Interventions like Somatic Experiencing®, which were created later, focus on the bodily manifestations of trauma. This approach helps clients become more aware of their physiological experiences and release stored trauma-related stress.
In a weekly therapy group setting, Attachment-focused Somatic Experiencing® can provide a safe and supportive environment for individuals to explore their attachment histories, identify patterns of relational wounding and cultivate greater self-awareness and emotional regulation. The group setting will foster a sense of community and shared experience, which is vital for individuals who may have experienced isolation or disconnection as a result of trauma, offering a unique opportunity to repair attachment injuries and develop healthier relational patterns (Flores, 2017; Health, 2023).
We will meet once a week in an online format via Zoom, to ensure the safety of participants and to promote ease of accessibility.
Participants will each have an initial consultation with me to explore their current challenges and assess whether such a group would be suitable.
Each session will follow a structure designed to promote safety, connection, and healing:
- Guided Meditation: The group will commence with a guided meditation to gently invite people into the group room and into their bodies, perhaps exploring feet on the floor and noticing the weight of their body on the seat.
- Check-in: Participants will then be invited to check in by briefly sharing how they are feeling in the moment, without going into too much detail.
- Psychoeducation: I will offer some psychoeducation each week related to trauma and the nervous system to offer a frame of reference for the week’s exploration.
- Experiential Practice: One or two members will then have the opportunity to work through some relational ruptures with the rest of the group being in the witnessing role.
- Sharing and Reflection: Participants will be invited to share their experiences and insights from the exercise, fostering a sense of connection and mutual support.
- Grounding Practice: Each session will conclude with a grounding exercise to help participants integrate their experiences and transition back to their daily lives.
Services
- sex and relationship therapy for individuals, couples and multi-person constellations (bio-psychodynamic and systemic)
- body-oriented trauma therapy for individuals and occasionally couples (using somatic experiencing ®)
- workshops (nervous system regulation)
- international retreats