Somatic Bodywork for Anxiety and DepressioN
- Ryan Autumn
- 6 days ago
- 5 min read
So much of mental health treatment centers on thoughts, emotions, and insight. Somatic bodywork begins somewhere different: with the body.
Many of my clients feel anxious without always knowing why. They carry a quiet heaviness they cannot seem to shake, or feel disconnected, even when there is no apparent problem.
Many have explored counseling therapy or other forms of support, yet still sense that something deeper remains unresolved. What becomes clear again and again is that anxiety and depression are not only psychological experiences. They are also physiological states. They live in muscles, breath, posture, and in the nervous system itself.
In sessions here in Phoenix, I pay as much attention to the body as I do to words. How someone breathes, where they hold tension. Whether their system feels guarded, collapsed, or restless. Long before a story is spoken, the body is already telling one.
Anxiety often presents as tightness in the chest, shallow breathing, restlessness, jaw tension (TMJ), or a persistent sense of vigilance. Depression can show up differently. It may feel like heaviness in the limbs, emotional flatness, low energy, or a quiet withdrawal from life. Some people can feel themselves “leaving” their body, or hiding inside of it. In both cases, the nervous system has adapted to stress or overwhelm in ways that may have once been protective, but are no longer serving present-day life.
Somatic bodywork works directly with these patterns of protection. Rather than trying to change internal experience through force or analysis, the focus is on helping the body return to a felt sense of safety. When the nervous system begins to settle, emotional states often soften with it.
How the Body Holds Stress and Emotion
The nervous system is designed to keep you safe. When a person experiences ongoing stress, threat, or emotional strain, the body responds through shifts in muscle tone, breathing patterns, posture, and internal rhythms. These can even show up as over- or underactive digestion. Over time, these shifts become habits of the body. A system that once adapted to survive can remain in a state of tension long after the original danger has passed.
Neuroscience research supports this understanding. The autonomic nervous system constantly scans for cues of safety or danger and adjusts internal states accordingly. Stephen Porges’ work on the polyvagal theory describes how this process shapes emotional experience, social engagement, and our ability to rest and recover (Porges, 2011).
Without safety, the body orients to protection over connection.
Supportive touch assists the nervous system through experience rather than instruction. Intuitive touch, breath awareness, and present-moment tracking of body sensations offer a physiological invitation to soften defensive patterns. For many people, this type of regulation cannot be accessed through cognition alone. The body needs to feel safe before the mind can fully rest.
What Research Suggests About Body-Based Approaches
The study of somatic methods continues to evolve, and I believe in being transparent about the current state of research. While this field does not yet have the volume of data seen in more established psychological treatments, the findings that do exist are meaningful.
A randomized controlled study of Somatic Experiencing, a well-known body-based trauma modality, found significant reductions in symptoms of post-traumatic stress as well as depressive symptoms (Brom et al., 2017). Additional research shows that developing awareness of internal bodily sensations, known as interoception, is associated with improved emotional regulation and lower psychological distress (Mehling et al., 2018).
There is also a growing body of work linking chronic pain, nervous system dysregulation, and depression. When pain and physical tension begin to resolve through body-based interventions, mood improvement can follow. Bessel van der Kolk’s work has been influential in bringing attention to this connection, noting that unresolved emotional distress does not remain confined to the mind but shapes the body over time (Van der Kolk, 2014).
This does not mean that bodywork replaces therapy. In fact, I commonly partner with psychotherapists to mutually refer clients based on their needs. The research highlights the importance of addressing the whole person. Emotional healing is incomplete when the body is overlooked.
What Somatic Bodywork Feels Like in Practice
Each session unfolds differently. There is no standardized protocol, and nothing is forced.
The work may include gentle touch, fascial release, awareness of breath, or extended moments of rest. Some people arrive full of words. Others arrive quiet and withdrawn. Sometimes emotions arise. Sometimes the shift is simply a deeper breath or a softening of the shoulders that has not happened in years.
The goal is to drink the water, not to pour it all over the place.
Many are introduced to somatics through big, dramatic releases. Crying, yelling, and erratic shaking can be a form of release, but they are far from required.
The nervous system responds to presence more than pressure. My role is not to fix, analyze, or direct, but to create a space where the body can gradually remember safety. Often, the changes that matter most are subtle. A nervous system that pauses. A body that lets go. A client who leaves feeling more grounded than when they arrived.
Living With Anxiety or Depression in Phoenix
Phoenix has a distinct energy. Bright light, constant movement, heat that presses inward. It is a city that rewards productivity and pace. For many people, that rhythm becomes the nervous system’s default.
Long workdays, digital overwhelm, and limited rest eventually take a toll. Stress accumulates quietly in the body until tension becomes normal and exhaustion unremarkable. Over time, the system forgets how to reset fully.
Practicing here has shown me how deeply people in this city long for stillness, grounding, and relief from constant internal urgency. My work offers a space for that. Not as an escape from life, but as a way back into it. A return to sensation. A return to breath. A return to a body that no longer needs to brace.
Who This Work May Be Helpful For
Somatic experiencing often resonates with people who feel anxious yet unable to identify a clear cause. Others come when depression takes the form of emotional numbness rather than sadness. Many are high-functioning and privately exhausted. Some arrive after years of therapy without the bodily relief they hoped for. Others simply feel disconnected from themselves and want to reconnect in a non-verbal way.
This approach can be especially supportive for those who:
Carry stress physically
Wish to work through past trauma
Feel trapped in constant thinking
Have difficulty relaxing
Experience chronic tension, pain, or fatigue
Want a body-centered approach to emotional care
Somatic bodywork is not intended as a replacement for medical or psychological treatment. It is not appropriate as a stand-alone approach for active crisis, suicidal ideation, psychosis, or untreated severe psychiatric conditions. In those situations, support from licensed medical or mental health professionals is essential.
I work with clients out of my home office in Midtown Phoenix, in a quiet and private setting designed to feel grounded and unhurried. If you are curious whether somatic bodywork might be supportive for you, I offer discovery calls as a simple place to begin. These are not sales calls. They are a chance for you to ask questions, share a little of what you’re carrying, and get a sense of whether this work may be a good fit.
You don’t need to be certain. You only need to be curious.
1616 N Central Ave., Phoenix AZ, 85004
References/Further Reading
Brom, D., Stokar, Y. N., Lawi, C., Nuriel-Porat, V., Ziv, Y., Lerner, K., & Ross, G. (2017). Somatic Experiencing for posttraumatic stress disorder: A randomized controlled outcome study. Journal of Traumatic Stress.
Mehling, W. E., Acree, M., Stewart, A., Silas, J., & Jones, A. (2018). The Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness and its relationship to emotional regulation. PLoS ONE.
Porges, S. W. (2011). The Polyvagal Theory. New York: Norton.
Van der Kolk, B. (2014). The Body Keeps the Score. New York: Viking.
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