Lauren Dummit-Schock 4/24/25 Lauren Dummit-Schock 4/24/25

Embodied Healing: How Yoga and Movement Deepen Somatic Therapy

Embodied Healing: How Yoga and Movement Deepen Somatic Therapy

Experiencing symptoms of trauma or nervous system dysregulation? Discover how integrating yoga and movement into somatic therapy can support emotional regulation, embodiment, and healing at the root level.

When Talk Therapy Isn’t Enough

Have you ever felt like you’ve intellectually processed your trauma, but your body still carries it? Do you find yourself easily overwhelmed, shutting down in conflict, or chronically exhausted despite doing "the work"?

That’s because trauma isn’t just a memory—it’s a physiological imprint. The nervous system remembers. And true healing often requires more than talking.

At Embodied Wellness and Recovery, we help clients address trauma, addiction, intimacy issues, and nervous system dysregulation through an integrative, body-based lens. One of our most powerful tools? Incorporating yoga and movement into somatic therapy.

Why the Body Needs to Move to Heal

Unresolved trauma disrupts the body’s natural regulation system. It can keep the nervous system stuck in fight, flight, freeze, or fawn. This results in:

– Chronic anxiety or emotional reactivity

– Numbness or disconnection from the body

– Digestive and immune system issues

– Difficulty feeling safe in relationships

Research in neuroscience and somatics shows that movement helps process and release trauma stored in the body’s tissues and nervous system.

Movement creates new patterns. It teaches the body that safety, presence, and connection are possible.

The Role of Yoga in Somatic Therapy

Yoga is more than stretching or mindfulness. When offered in a trauma-informed way, it becomes a gateway to embodied awareness and emotional regulation.

Trauma-Informed Yoga Supports:

– Interoception (awareness of internal body sensations)

– Vagal tone (the strength of the vagus nerve, which regulates stress)

– Self-regulation through breath, posture, and presence

– Safe exploration of boundaries and agency

Yoga postures help release stored tension, while breathwork and mindful attention calm the limbic system and increase activity in the prefrontal cortex—the brain’s center for regulation and decision-making (Van der Kolk, 2014).

Types of Movement That Support Somatic Healing

At Embodied Wellness and Recovery, we use multiple movement-based modalities to support nervous system health:

1. Trauma-Sensitive Yoga

– Focuses on choice, invitational language, and body autonomy

– Encourages slow, grounding movements to restore safety and presence

2. Somatic Movement

– Gentle, intentional movements that help discharge stored trauma responses

– Used to support stuck patterns in the body or soothe hyperarousal

3. Dance and Free Movement

– Helps express and release emotions nonverbally

– Facilitates access to joy, vitality, and empowerment

4. Breath-Informed Movement

– Syncing breath with movement activates the parasympathetic nervous system

– Reduces anxiety, lowers heart rate, and deepens body-mind connection

Common Questions We Hear:

“Why do I feel like crying after yoga?”
Movement accesses parts of the nervous system that words often can’t reach. As tension releases, emotions that were held in the body may surface.

“Is this just another fitness trend?”
No. Trauma-informed yoga and somatic movement are clinically backed, neuroscience-informed practices used in therapeutic settings worldwide (Porges, 2011).

“What if I feel numb or disconnected from my body?”
That’s exactly where somatic movement can help—by gently rebuilding the bridge between sensation and self.

What Healing Through Movement Can Look Like

– Feeling safer in your own skin

– Responding to triggers with curiosity instead of reactivity

– Reclaiming access to pleasure, play, and full expression

– Regaining trust in your body’s cues

– Cultivating resilience from the inside out

Healing doesn’t just happen in your head. It happens in your breath. Your posture. The way you move through space.

When the body is invited into therapy, the whole system begins to shift.

Why We Integrate Movement at Embodied Wellness and Recovery

We believe the body is not just the site of trauma; it’s also the site of healing. Our team combines somatic therapy, EMDR, yoga therapy, and psychoeducation to support our clients in:

– Regulating their nervous systems

– Releasing stored trauma

– Restoring connection to self and others

– Rebuilding intimacy from a place of safety

Whether you’re working through trauma, intimacy issues, anxiety, or addiction, movement can be a profound ally on the path to healing.

You Deserve to Feel at Home in Your Body

Your symptoms are not signs of weakness. They are messages from a body that has been trying to keep you safe. With gentle movement, breath, and support, your system can learn something new.

At Embodied Wellness and Recovery, we’re here to support you on your path to recovery—one breath, one movement, one moment of awareness at a time. Reach out today to schedule a free 20-minute consultation with our team of top-rated somatic practitioners, trauma specialists, recovery coaches, or relationship experts.

📞 Call us at (310) 651-8458

📱 Text us at (310) 210-7934

📩 Email us at admin@embodiedwellnessandrecovery.com

🔗 Visit us at www.embodiedwellnessandrecovery.com

👉 Check us out on Instagram @embodied_wellness_and_recovery

🌍 Explore our offerings at Linktr.ee: https://linktr.ee/laurendummit

References:

Emerson, D., & Hopper, E. (2011). Overcoming Trauma through Yoga: Reclaiming Your Body. North Atlantic Books.

Porges, S. W. (2011). The Polyvagal Theory: Neurophysiological Foundations of Emotions, Attachment, Communication, and Self-Regulation. W. W. Norton & Company.

Van der Kolk, B. A. (2014). The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. Viking.

Lauren Dummit-Schock 4/7/25 Lauren Dummit-Schock 4/7/25

The Science of Reconnection: Using Somatic Therapy to Heal After Relationship Trauma

The Science of Reconnection: Using Somatic Therapy to Heal After Relationship Trauma

Discover how somatic therapy helps couples repair after betrayal, conflict, or emotional disconnection by healing the nervous system. Learn how body-based, trauma-informed approaches restore safety, trust, and intimacy in relationships.

Somatic Therapy in Couples Work: A Body-Based Path to Reconnection

Have you ever tried to fix a conflict with your partner through calm words—only to feel stuck in the same cycle of disconnection, tension, or shutdown?

It’s a common and deeply painful experience: after an emotional rupture—whether it’s betrayal, chronic conflict, or emotional withdrawal—many couples struggle to feel safe with one another again. They may say all the right things, but the feeling of closeness never quite returns.

That’s because healing isn’t just cognitive—it’s somatic.

At Embodied Wellness and Recovery, we specialize in helping couples heal through the lens of trauma-informed, body-based therapy. Using approaches grounded in neuroscience and somatic psychology, we help couples move beyond communication scripts and into the deeper work of nervous system repair, embodied safety, and relational trust.

💔 What Happens in the Body During a Relationship Rupture?

When a rupture happens—whether it’s a fight, betrayal, or repeated disconnection—your nervous system perceives danger. You may:

– Go into fight mode (arguing, blaming, controlling)
– Shut down into freeze (going numb, stonewalling)
– Move into flight (emotionally or physically distancing)
– Fawn to avoid conflict (self-abandonment, appeasing)

These responses aren’t character flaws—they’re biological survival strategies. According to the polyvagal theory, our nervous systems are constantly scanning for cues of safety or threat (Porges, 2011). When emotional safety breaks down in a relationship, the body responds to protect itself—even if that protection looks like defensiveness, withdrawal, or numbness.

This is why rational conversation often fails after conflict. The couple may try to “talk it through,” but one or both partners are stuck in a protective response—unable to truly listen, feel, or connect.

🌿 Why Somatic Therapy Helps Where Words Fall Short

Somatic therapy brings the body into the healing process. Rather than relying solely on conversation, it supports couples in:

– Noticing nervous system patterns that show up in conflict
– Regulating emotional intensity through breath, movement, and sensation
– Creating new embodied experiences of connection and repair
– Building co-regulation skills to calm and soothe each other in real time

In couples therapy, we often begin by helping each partner learn their own nervous system patterns—when they get activated, how it feels in the body, and what helps them return to a sense of safety.

From there, we guide the couple through mindful, body-aware repair practices that allow them to reconnect through shared presence rather than pressure or performance.

🔄 What Somatic Couples Therapy Might Look Like

In a somatic session, we might:

– Invite a partner to notice where they feel tension when recalling a recent conflict
– Practice grounding and orienting to settle the body before dialogue
– Use gentle touch or eye contact (with consent) to explore felt safety
– Support one partner in co-regulating the other through breath and voice
– Guide partners to identify somatic boundaries and express them safely

These practices help rewire not just beliefs but also the felt sense of the relationship. Instead of replaying old emotional patterns, couples build new neural circuits of safety, trust, and responsiveness (Siegel, 2010).

🧠 The Neuroscience of Repair

When safety and connection are present, the body moves into the ventral vagal state—a regulated nervous system mode where empathy, curiosity, and intimacy are possible. From this state:

– Partners can access vulnerability
– Old trauma responses soften
– Emotional repair becomes embodied, not forced
– The brain releases oxytocin (bonding hormone), creating trust and closeness

Somatic therapy isn’t just about calming down—it’s about creating a new experience in the body that contradicts the trauma of disconnection.

💬 Common Questions Couples Ask After a Rupture

– “Can we ever truly trust each other again?”
– “Why do I shut down when we get close?”
– “Why do I feel so anxious—even when things are going well?”
– “How do we reconnect after betrayal?”
– “We’ve done talk therapy—why does nothing change?”

These questions reveal deeper layers of attachment wounds, nervous system dysregulation, and trauma stored in the body. Somatic couples therapy helps answer these questions through experience, not just explanation.

🌱 Hope Is Found in the Body

One of the most powerful realizations in somatic work is this: your body wants to heal.
It doesn’t need to be forced or fixed—it simply needs the right conditions for safety, connection, and attunement.

At Embodied Wellness and Recovery, we support couples in building:

– Emotional attunement through right-brain-to-right-brain presence
– Secure attachment through consistent repair
– Embodied trust by co-regulating in moments of conflict and closeness
– Resilience to navigate future challenges with compassion

Whether you're healing from betrayal, navigating intimacy issues, or struggling with emotional reactivity, somatic therapy offers a path back to each other—through the innate intelligence of the body.

❤️‍🩹 How We Work at Embodied Wellness and Recovery

We offer trauma-informed couples therapy rooted in:

– Somatic Experiencing® and body-based trauma healing
– Attachment-Focused EMDR
– Polyvagal-informed practices
– Relational neuroscience and nervous system education

Serving couples in Los Angeles, Nashville, and virtually, we tailor each session to the unique emotional and physiological needs of each relationship. Our goal is not just to resolve conflict but to help partners feel deeply connected, safe, and whole together.

Your relationship deserves healing that goes deeper than words.
At Embodied Wellness and Recovery, we’re here to help you rediscover each other with presence, safety, and compassion.

Repair doesn’t happen through words—it happens through presence. Let us walk with you. Schedule a free 20-minute consultation with our team of top-rated couples therapists, somatic practitioners, EMDR providers, and trauma specialists and begin your journey to reconnection today.

🧠 Schedule a consultation with a somatic couples therapist
🌿 Learn more about our trauma-informed relationship therapy
📍 In-person in Los Angeles & Nashville | Virtual available nationwide