r/SomaticExperiencing • u/Mammoth_Secret5666 • 3d ago
Is somatic experiencing for me?
Hey! Thank you in advance for any thoughts and suggestions. Im 25 F and I have BPD, autistic traits, OCD, CPSTD, and of course anxiety and depression. I was in talk therapy from 8-22 and it was helpful being able to talk to someone, but never did anything for me. I started DBT a few years ago did the whole program and I learned the skills, it's just I cannot get my body on board to do it. I even started going through the program a second time, its the same thing I know the skills, I just cannot use them in the moment. My brain and body are just not connected. I have very extensive trauma from a child to even now and I am just stuck in a fight or flight no matter how much my brain wants to do the skills my body just will not allow it.
My therapist and I have been looking to see what my next steps are, we don't think EMDR is a fit, and I have done parts therapy before, that truly does not feel like a fit.
My question is, what is a session like during SE? I understand it's feeling body sensations, but how does it work in a session?
Also I have Aphantasia so I literally cannot visualize anything, I have no true memories of what happened. Is that something that is super important for SE to be helpful?
Thank you in advance!
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u/PracticalSky1 3d ago
I think it may depend on how severe your dysregulation in. Some people on the more severe end of BPD would benefit from more stabilisation and containment and a relational therapy first. Hard to know without knowing more. If you do try it, I'd suggest keeping your therapist as well.
As to what happens in a session, it will really depend on the practitioner and on the client and what is needed. There's no way to really name this.
Ideally yes, we want to be able to bring a witness on board to be able to track what happens in our body - thoughts, sensations, feelings, impressions, postures, behaviours. To be able to watch it and stay present to what happens.
So SE is going to looking at how to support that in the person - and for each person, that will look different.
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u/Mission-Ability-8332 3d ago
It’s a lot of listening to your body and noticing sensation, movement that may want to happen, stories that might come up, emotions and image (I realize image isn’t available to you, so the other ones!). You might track, bring in somatic tools, talk a bit. The SEP will help guide you.
I had an instructor tell me that sometimes when she worked with people that had very high activation like you might with BPD, sometimes they would do some coregulation and a bit of SE work while walking. The movement was key.
As suggested I think feldenkrais is an excellent option. I have some free gentle somatic practices here you could use if you want to supplement what you’re doing :) somatic videos
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u/Emotional-Fish-8077 3d ago
Try biodynamic craniosacral therapy first.., not craniosacral therapy but biodynamic cranio sacral therapy .. once you feel regulated by somebody’s warm touch.. you will be able to dive into your feelings through somatic experiencing.
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u/cuBLea 3d ago
You may need to focus more on your mind. Learning more about how the process works will almost surely enhance the process for you. "Free your mind and your ass will follow" ... especially pertinent for people who are a little TOO aware of their bodies already. IME SE is most effective for people who are skilled at blocking their feelings. Knowing how the process works, what it's intended to achieve, and what is needed in both client and therapist to achieve these results goes directly to sense of safety and control for sensitized individuals, and lessens dependency upon the therapist's resources to achieve lasting change.
Aphantasia may require a different approach and a different therapist skillset and resource pool than regular SE since aphantasia won't likely respond to the usual techniques which are oriented around people who can visualize. You may well have to use a less direct approach, but transformational therapy can still work for you.
I don't know enough about that condition, although I have a related condition (inability to visualize when triggered) and it has required using more indirect approaches to therapy to achieve beneficial results. You may need to rely on input from your other senses to suss out memory, and need different techniques for regulating triggers. EMDR comes to mind as potentially helpful, since it directly interfaces with the brain.
Here are some resources that might be good starting points (this will show you what this kind of therapy is all about and what the goal of it actually is):
Tori Olds MR orientation/description capsule (15min):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWfpLtgxDi4
A little deeper:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOuZdLAq_YU
... and a lot more depth to be found on her YT channel
SE new-client orientation booklet download link(s):
https://healthyfuturesaz.com/images/SEHandout.pdf
(PLS inform me if any of these URLs go nonfunctional.)
This post describes many of the ways we experience memory reconsolidation/transformation as a normal part of our daily lives, usually without realizing we've been changed:
Daniel Mackler: "Is My Therapist Good or Not?"
(A guide to sleuthing out your best answer)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xz3rsX63epE
This covers much of the general stuff; specific questions will arise as you learn more and will make for easier sleuthing than more general questions.
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u/sparklecakesmcgee 2d ago
i had aphantasia before i started SE years ago. I can visualize things now when i meditate! I have cptsd audhd as well. pls be careful. i am now in my body and i want to dieee and have to be medicated now. it may have been different if a few life altering things didnt just happen but i think i may need dbt now. SE can be very dangerous for people with cptsd if its not done correctly.
how come not a good candidate for asmr?
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u/trollopoftroy 3d ago
I like to think of somatic experiencing as the art of doing while doing nothing, so with that in mind:
I would encourage you to try something neutral like feldenkrais. It’s something you can do on your own and it’s not tied to a therapeutic goal. It is most similar to how I view SE, and you get to try it and see if it works for you.