Written by Jody Cecil, Licensed Professional Counselor
If you’re new to the process of counseling, you might imagine it looking something like
this: the client does most of the talking while the therapist listens. During the session,
the therapist might provide insights into your experiences, share advice on how to
navigate issues and help you feel and express emotion. Even as you read this, you
might recall a scene from a movie or book you’ve recently read.
Counseling or psychotherapy does involve our thoughts, beliefs, behaviors and
emotions. But what about the body?
Will you join me in a little experiment? For just a moment, pause. Put everything down
and turn your attention to your body. Slow down and notice your breath. Follow it as you
breathe in and out. You don’t have to change it or fix it. Simply be curious, much like
watching the flow of a river or clouds in the sky. What did you notice? Perhaps you’ve
found yourself caught in thoughts, unable to follow your breath. Maybe your chest
tightened, and your breathing became more shallow. Perhaps, as you were breathing in
and out, you noticed your shoulders drop and there was an openness in your chest.
When I first began my work as a counselor, my focus was primarily on the narrative –
what the client was saying and feeling. What I eventually learned was that I was missing
a large part of the client’s “story” and an important pathway for change, healing and
growth. The body was telling us something; we needed to slow down and pay attention
to it.
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy (SP), developed by Pat Ogden, is a therapeutic modality
that incorporates the body in the treatment of trauma and attachment/relational issues.
You may have heard the phrase, “the body keeps the score,” taken from the title of
Bessel Van Der Kolk’s well-known book. Our bodies remember and adapt to keep us
safe. Returning to our breathing experiment, even how we breathe is a part of our story.
If you learned to “hold it all in” and not feel emotion, you might also hold your breath
when feeling distress. Using SP, clients can discover how their body currently functions
and work with it to change patterns that currently interfere with health and well-being.
As a licensed professional counselor, Jody Cecil has completed extensive training in SP
and other modalities that incorporate the whole person – mind, body and spirit. If you’re
interested in a wholistic form of therapy, please contact her to schedule a session:
Taking Root Counseling. For more information on Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, visit
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute.
