Somatic Experiencing in Florida
*Online Therapy in Florida and Illinois*
Finding Relief Through Somatic Experiencing: A Path to Ease and Connection
Living with anxiety, trauma, or chronic pain can feel overwhelming. You might experience constant tension, a sense of being on edge, or a heaviness that weighs you down.
These struggles make it difficult to find comfort or connect with others.
Over time, the cycle of worry and pain can leave you feeling stuck and disconnected from the life you want. It becomes hard to manage relationships, stay active, and handle daily responsibilities with confidence.
But here’s the truth…
You don’t have to stay stuck.
Somatic Experiencing offers a gentle, body-centered way to help you break free from these patterns without retraumatization, overwhelm, or needing to analyze every detail.
Together, we’ll work to calm your body’s stress responses, build resilience, and help you reconnect with the life you want—feeling more confident, at peace, and supported by the people and activities that matter most.
Hi, I’m Amy!
Maybe anxiety, trauma, or chronic pain weren’t always such a big part of your life, but now it feels like they’re in control. Everyday tasks that used to be simple feel overwhelming, and the constant worry about what others think makes it hard to stay present. You might avoid challenges or second-guess yourself because fear and uncertainty keep pulling you back.
That’s where I come in. We’ll work together to shift these patterns, so you can start feeling more grounded and confident—able to face responsibilities and relationships without anxiety or pain getting in the way.
The truth is, you deserve a life where trauma doesn’t define you and fear no longer holds you back.
If you’re ready to break free from the cycle and feel more like yourself again, schedule a free 20-minute consultation today.
Florida Somatic Experiencing Practitioner
What is Somatic Experiencing?
Somatic Experiencing (SE) is a body-focused therapy that helps release the trauma and stress your body’s been holding onto. Instead of focusing on talking through past events, SE works with what your body is feeling right now.
It helps you notice where tension or trapped energy is getting stuck and gently guide your system back to balance.
As we work together, SE helps your body let go of all that built-up energy, so you’re not constantly on edge or shutting down when things trigger you. Whether it’s a disagreement with someone, a tough day at work, or feeling like everyone’s watching you in social situations, SE helps calm your system.
This approach helps you feel more in control and able to stay grounded, even when life feels overwhelming.
How Somatic Experiencing Can Help you Find Relief
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Ease Anxiety
Constant fears, worries, and anxiety can feel overwhelming, showing up as tightness in your chest, knots in your stomach, or a relentless sense of restlessness.
Somatic Experiencing helps your nervous system recognize when it’s safe, allowing you to feel more confident in speaking up, making decisions, and being present in the moment.
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Release Trauma
Trauma can leave you feeling stuck, constantly on edge, or even completely shut down. These lingering effects are often held as emotional and physical tension in the body.
Somatic Experiencing gently works with your nervous system to release the trapped energy of trauma, helping you feel safer, calmer, and more connected to yourself and others.
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Relieve Chronic Pain
Chronic pain often goes beyond physical injury or illness; it can be intensified by stress, trauma, and emotional overwhelm.
Somatic Experiencing helps ease your body’s response to stress, which can reduce the intensity of pain and open the door to greater relief and freedom in daily life.
How Somatic Experiencing Can Help You
If you often feel reactive, overwhelmed, or like you’re shutting down, Somatic Experiencing (SE) helps your body get back to a place of balance. SE teaches your body how to sense safety again, so you spend less time stuck in fight, flight, freeze, or collapse. It’s about helping you feel more grounded and connected.
When your nervous system is stuck in survival mode, you may experience:
Physical symptoms like chronic pain or digestive problems
Finding it hard to enjoy the moment or look forward to anything
Feeling like you’re always on edge, even when there’s no real danger
Avoiding people or situations because of fear or worry about what others think
SE can help with anxiety, PTSD, depression, chronic stress, fibromyalgia, and more. Even if you’re feeling disconnected or overwhelmed by what’s going on inside, SE gives you a way to reconnect with yourself and feel more in control.
In our sessions, we’ll focus on getting you more comfortable with your body. Instead of overthinking or trying to figure it all out in your head, SE helps you pay attention to your body’s signals—like hunger, the need to move, rest, or even discomfort. We’ll work together to find what helps you feel calmer and how to practice that during our sessions.
If past experiences come up during our sessions, we’ll always focus on how they’re affecting you in the moment. We’ll only go as far as feels manageable, keeping you grounded in the present. This helps you become more in tune with yourself and feel better able to handle what comes up.
I’ll guide you through each session gently. I’ll ask you what you’re feeling in your body or emotionally, helping you stay connected to what’s coming up. SE is all about being present with both the comfortable and uncomfortable. Sometimes, we might try simple movements like swaying or humming to help you feel more settled. You’re always in control of where we go, and I’m here to support you every step of the way with the tools you need to move forward confidently.
How I Use Somatic Experiencing in Therapy
In our sessions, I create a space where you can explore what’s happening in your body, whether it's physical sensations or emotions. If you’re dealing with anxiety, trauma, or chronic pain, it’s important to start feeling more in control of how you experience these things. My role is to guide you as you tune into your body, sit with the sensations that come up, and recognize what feels comfortable or simply okay.
In this space, every part of you is welcome—your feelings, your thoughts, and even the times when you don’t feel ready to fully connect with your body. When it feels right, I might invite you to stand up, try some simple movements, press against a wall or desk, or hug something soft like a pillow. These practices help you reconnect with your body in a way that feels safe, giving you the space to gradually build strength and feel more steady emotionally.
What to Expect in Somatic Experiencing Sessions
In each session, we’ll start by talking about how you’re feeling. I’ll help you tune into any sensations, emotions, or thoughts that come up while we talk, keeping you connected to what your body is experiencing in the moment. If it feels right, we’ll explore any areas where you feel discomfort or tension, and practice being with those feelings while also noticing what helps you feel more at ease.
This process, which involves gently shifting between feelings of tension and ease, helps your body let go of long-held stress and strengthens your connection with yourself. As we work together, you’ll likely feel more in tune with your body, better able to handle your emotions, and more confident in facing life’s challenges—whether it’s having a difficult conversation, dealing with fear of failure, or living with chronic pain in a way that doesn’t control your life.
My Approach to Somatic Experiencing
Somatic Experiencing FAQs
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Somatic Experiencing (SE) is a body-based therapy that works from the inside out. It’s designed to help with trauma, anxiety, stress, and the physical symptoms that come with them. SE focuses on helping your nervous system reset so you can better sense what’s truly safe and what’s not. Trauma—whether big or small—can confuse these signals, making you feel like you’re in danger even when you’re safe.
SE helps calm your nervous system and resolve trauma-related reactions like feeling tense, stuck, or shutting down. It helps you manage stress better by reducing what triggers you and teaching your body to tell the difference between real danger and things that just feel threatening. Over time, it helps you feel stronger and more capable.
This process widens your ability to stay calm when things get tough, giving you more space to respond thoughtfully instead of reacting out of instinct. By working through stored stress and trauma, SE helps you handle life’s challenges with more ease and resilience.
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Somatic Experiencing (SE) focuses on the body and how it holds onto trauma and stress, rather than just talking about your experiences. Instead of spending a lot of time revisiting the past or analyzing your thoughts, SE helps you tune into physical sensations and reactions. This allows your body to release built-up tension and reset your nervous system, helping you feel calmer and more balanced. SE is a gentle, body-based approach that works alongside or as an alternative to talk therapy.
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Yes, but it’s not like traditional talk therapy. While we’ll spend some time talking about your experiences, the main focus is on how those experiences show up in your body. You’re always welcome to share as much or as little as you feel comfortable with—there’s no pressure to dive into every detail of your past. Some sessions, you might not feel like focusing much on your body, and that’s okay too. The most important thing is that you feel in control and have a say in how the session unfolds, so it works best for you.
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Yes, absolutely! Many people find that Somatic Experiencing (SE) complements traditional talk therapy. While talk therapy focuses on exploring thoughts, emotions, and past experiences through conversation, SE works directly with your body’s responses to stress and trauma. The two approaches can work together to support your overall healing—talk therapy can help you understand your experiences on a mental level, while SE helps you process and release tension stored in your body. Combining the two often leads to deeper and more lasting change.
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I currently offer virtual sessions only, and Somatic Experiencing (SE) can be just as effective online as in person. During our online sessions, I’ll guide you through the same process of tuning into your body’s sensations and responses to stress. When appropriate, I’ll guide you through somatic practices, which can easily be done through the screen. The most important part of SE is helping you connect with what’s happening in your body, and we can do that just as well in an online setting, ensuring you feel safe and supported throughout.
Being in your own space makes a big difference too. You can settle into a favorite chair, keep comforting items nearby, or even have your pet close by—all of which can help you feel more relaxed and at ease. Feeling safe in your own environment enhances the effectiveness of the therapy and allows us to focus on your healing.
Plus, virtual sessions are much more convenient. You don’t have to take time off work, battle traffic, or worry about parking. It’s therapy that fits into your life, with less hassle and more comfort, so you can focus on what truly matters—your healing.
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Sessions are $180
While I don’t accept insurance, I’m happy to provide receipts that you can submit to your insurance provider for possible reimbursement.
If you're interested in incorporating the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) into your sessions, it’s available for an additional cost, which you can find listed on the SSP page. We can talk about whether SSP might be a good fit for you during our consultation or at any point as we work together.
Get help from a Florida Somatic Experiencing Practitioner
When anxiety, trauma, or chronic pain take over, it can feel like you’ll never find relief. These challenges can drain your energy, making it difficult to stay present with the people and activities you care about. The physical and emotional weight of constantly feeling on edge or disconnected leaves you stuck, unsure of how to move forward.
But it doesn’t have to stay this way.
With Somatic Experiencing, we can work together to calm your nervous system, ease the physical tension, and break the cycle of overwhelm. You deserve to feel more grounded, secure, and resilient, and I’m here to help you get there.