EMDR and Somatic Therapy: How Mind and Body Heal Together

When we think about healing from trauma, we often picture talking through painful memories. But what if your body holds just as much of the story as your mind?

Somatic therapy focuses on the physical sensations connected to your emotions and experiences. EMDR therapy, while different in technique, shares this same mind-body awareness. This makes it a powerful choice for people searching for somatic therapy in Burnaby and beyond.

What Is Somatic Therapy?

Somatic therapy is an approach that pays close attention to the body’s role in storing and releasing stress. When something distressing happens, your nervous system responds instantly. Your heart races, your muscles tense, and your breathing changes. In some cases, your body “remembers” these patterns long after the event is over.

Somatic therapy techniques help you notice and work with these body-based responses so you can release stored tension and restore a sense of safety.

How EMDR Works With the Body

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is best known for its use of bilateral stimulation, often through guided eye movements. But EMDR is more than a visual process. It engages the brain’s natural healing systems while also staying closely connected to what is happening in your body in the present moment.

During EMDR, your therapist may ask:

• “Where do you feel that in your body?”

• “What sensations are you noticing right now?”

  
  

This helps bridge the gap between your emotional memories and the physical responses tied to them. By reprocessing distressing experiences while also tracking sensations, EMDR can help calm the nervous system and shift body-based patterns of stress.

EMDR vs. Somatic Therapy: What’s the Difference?

While EMDR is not technically a somatic therapy in the traditional sense, both share important principles:

• Mind-body connection: Both approaches recognize that emotional healing involves the body as well as the mind.

• Nervous system regulation: Each helps move the body out of fight, flight, or freeze into a more regulated state.

• Present-moment awareness: Both encourage noticing sensations without judgment.

  
  

The difference lies in the method. Somatic therapy may use movement, breathwork, or touch-based interventions. EMDR uses bilateral stimulation to help the brain reprocess distressing experiences.

Why Clients Searching for Somatic Therapy Choose EMDR

If you have been looking for somatic therapy, you may find EMDR offers many of the same benefits. It also provides the added strength of a well-researched, evidence-based structure for processing trauma.

At MindFluent Counselling & EMDR, sessions are designed to help you:

• Notice and release physical tension connected to past events

• Reframe old beliefs that keep you feeling stuck

• Experience a greater sense of safety and calm in your body

• Build resilience for future challenges

Conclusion

Healing is not just about changing your thoughts. It is about giving your body permission to feel safe again.

If you have been searching for somatic therapy in Burnaby, EMDR may be the bridge you have been looking for between mind and body healing.

📅 Book your free consultation with MindFluent Counselling & EMDR today to learn how this approach can help you move forward.