Somatic Nest Care
Narelle Fowler 

How Does SE Work?

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Somatic Experiencing helps the body release survival energy that can become stuck during overwhelming or traumatic experiences. Unlike talk therapies that primarily work top-down, SE uses a bottom-up approach, beginning with body sensations and felt sense to gently support integration. Rather than focusing solely on the story or details of what happened (or perhaps not at all), SE gently invites you to listen to the story held in your body - bringing awareness to sensations, images, behaviours, emotions (affect), and memories. 

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When the nervous system perceives threat, it instinctively prepares to fight or flee. If those responses aren't possible, the body may enter a freeze state - a kind of protective shutdown. These responses are designed to be time-limited and adaptive. But when the survival energy doesn’t get a chance to complete and discharge, it can remain stuck in the system. SE supports the safe discharge of this incomplete survival energy, helping the body recognise that the threat has passed.

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Inspired by how animals naturally process and release trauma through movement, trembling, shaking and stillness, SE honours the body’s innate wisdom and capacity to protect itself and heal, making space for deep relief, regulation, and reconnection.

 

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Understanding Trauma

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Trauma can arise from a single overwhelming experience, or emerge gradually through chronic stress or adversity. It can shape how we feel, how we relate, and how we navigate the world - often without us realising how and why.​​

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Trauma may arise from:

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• Emotional, physical, or sexual abuse

• Birth trauma - for baby, mother, or both

• Medical interventions or accidents

• Grief, loss, or sudden life change

• Neglect or early attachment disruptions

• Natural disasters, war and conflict 

• Systemic pressures such as racism, poverty, or marginalisation

• Intergenerational trauma passed through family or cultural lineages

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This work is profound, it’s also slow, gentle, and always grounded in safety - meeting your system where it’s at, with deep respect for your body’s natural pace, comfort and wisdom.

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Is SE for me if I don’t want to work on trauma? 

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Absolutely yes. As expressed in more detail below, the early phase of SE work focuses on establishing more safety and stability in the body and identifying supportive resources. While Somatic Experiencing is widely known for supporting trauma recovery, it’s also a powerful and gentle modality for deepening embodiment, for remembering how to truly inhabit your body and listen to its wisdom. SE helps you attune to the language of your body - your sensations, emotions, instincts, needs, and boundaries.

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This work offers practices to gently build your capacity for safety, regulation, and connection. Much of SE is about learning to befriend your body - to find what feels safe, comfortable, and grounding. The pace is slow, responsive, and always led by what feels right for you in the moment.

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Understanding your nervous system - how it shifts into fight, flight, freeze, fawn or collapse in everyday life, is deeply empowering. It helps you recognise your nervous system patterns with compassion and equips you with tools that support regulation and choice. Over time, you develop a greater capacity to be present with more of your experience - without becoming overwhelmed.

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The corner stones of SE include:

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• Nervous system education; learning about fight, flight, freeze, fawn & collapse and other survival responses helps you understand your experiences and responses with less shame or fear.

• Resourcing; identifying and strengthening internal and external resources (e.g., grounding tools, supportive people/protector allies, sensory anchors) that create a felt sense of safety and stability.

• Tracking sensations; gently guiding attention to bodily sensations in a manageable way, which helps develop interoceptive awareness and helps you to interpret what your body is communicating. 

• Pacing and titration; working slowly and touching into your physiology in small doses to ensure the body doesn’t become overwhelmed.

• Establishing boundaries; learning what “yes” and “no” feel like somatically, and supporting you to advocate for your needs in and out of sessions.

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🌀 Early phase: Establishing Safety and Stabilisation

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Before diving into traumatic memories or experiences, the focus of the work is on helping you to feel safe enough - in your body, in your environment, and in the therapeutic relationship.

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🌿 Why This Stage Matters

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Without this foundation, diving too quickly into trauma content can lead to re-traumatisation, shutdown, or overwhelm. This stage isn’t about “fixing” or “going into the story” - it’s about building capacity, creating a container of safety, and helping the system feel more choice and support.

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Many clients experience deep healing just from this phase alone - finding trust, and reconnection with their bodies after long periods of disconnection and dysregulation. 

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Why I Work With SE

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Somatic work has become the missing piece that allows me to offer counselling in a more holistic and integrated way.

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We don’t just think our way through life - we feel it and respond to it through our bodies and nervous systems. Developing a deeper, more compassionate relationship with the body brings a kind of healing that words alone often can't reach. It’s here that we begin to reconnect and truly come home to ourselves.

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Somatic practices have been some of my greatest allies - in birth, postpartum, my work, my healing and life itself. Through my own healing journey and professional training, I have gathered a rich tapestry of tools for grounding, regulation, expression, and integration - essentials for the big experiences we move through as humans, and tools I use daily as I navigate life. 

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SE is about listening. It’s about gently restoring trust in the body’s innate ability to protect, heal, repair, communicate and come home to itself within the container of a safe therapeutic relationship. 

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​Curious about working together?

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I offer a free 15-minute discovery call so we can connect and sense into whether my approach feels supportive for you. You're welcome to get in touch via my Contact Page.