When the Body Doesn't Feel Safe: Understanding Stress, Healing and Somatic Awareness

Have you ever noticed that it can be difficult to truly relax even when you know you are safe?

Our bodies are constantly monitoring our environment for signs of safety and threat. When we experience stress or perceive danger, the nervous system activates a stress response that prepares the body to respond. Heart rate and breathing can increase, muscles can tense, and the body becomes more alert.

This response is helpful when we need to respond to an immediate threat. Once the threat has passed, the body normally begins returning toward its usual state.

The difficulty comes when stress is prolonged or the body continues responding to perceived threats.

Chronic stress can affect sleep, digestion, immune function, metabolism and other systems involved in maintaining health. Research also indicates that chronic stress can interfere with wound healing and other aspects of physical recovery.

What Does Feeling Safe Have to Do With Healing?

Feeling safe is not simply a matter of telling yourself, "I am safe." The nervous system responds to information from both inside and outside the body.

When the body is repeatedly experiencing stress, it may be more difficult to settle into a relaxed state. This can affect how we experience our surroundings, our emotions and even our own physical sensations.

Creating opportunities for relaxation and reducing ongoing stress can support the body's ability to return toward a more regulated state. Relaxation practices can activate what is known as the relaxation response, which is associated with slower heart rate, lower blood pressure and reduced stress-hormone activity.

How Can Somatic Healing Help?

Somatic approaches bring attention to what is happening in the body in the present moment.

This might involve noticing your breathing, muscle tension, heart rate, posture or other physical sensations. Depending on the approach, it may also include gentle movement, mindful awareness or relaxation practices.

The purpose is not to force the body to relax or to assume that every physical sensation has an emotional cause. Instead, it can be an opportunity to develop greater awareness of how your body responds to stress and what helps you feel more settled.

Research into specific somatic approaches, including Somatic Experiencing®, is still developing. A 2021 review found preliminary evidence of benefits for some trauma-related symptoms and well-being, but also concluded that the quality of the existing research was mixed and that stronger studies are needed.

Healing Begins With Awareness

Supporting the body does not mean ignoring medical care or trying to treat physical illness through somatic practices alone.

It can mean creating space to notice what your body is communicating, recognizing when stress is affecting you, and learning practices that support relaxation and greater awareness.

Sometimes the first step is simply to pause.

Notice your breath.

Notice where you are holding tension.

Notice what happens when you allow yourself a moment of quiet.

With compassion and patience, greater awareness can become part of learning to reconnect with yourself—and to recognize what helps your body move toward a greater sense of calm and regulation.