| Sensorimotor Psychotherapy by Ron Rothschild |
We all experience trauma or deeply disturbing events throughout our lives. Why do
some of these events seem to resolve easily, even leave us feeling stronger, while
the pain from other events persists? We resolve challenging situations when we are
able to complete some form of fight or flight. When this completion is halted, we
become frozen, unable to put an event behind us, and need help in finding
resolution. Research and clinical experience both stress that to work effectively with
trauma, we must include working at the body level – the body’s felt sense, while
continuing to work with thoughts and feelings.
Invasive images, sensations in the body, physical pain, feelings of numbness or
disconnection, or an inability to calm ourselves are some of the body’s responses
that show we are blocked or stuck in trauma. The body attempts to work free of
unresolved trauma through repetitive movements or avoidant actions, like tapping,
scanning, shrinking, hiking the shoulders, restricting the breath, clenching the jaw or
kicking outward with a foot. Sensorimotor Psychotherapy utilizes “mindfulness” to
carefully follow these patterns. Therefore, in Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, you
might hear a therapist say: “Where do you feel that fear in your body? Does it have
a shape or a size?” “Watch what happens when you just hang out with that
sensation of your heart being squeezed.” “I noticed that your hands began to push
forward when you said you wanted to be free of that guilt; can we slow down and
repeat that movement against added resistance?” Sensorimotor Psychotherapy can
help one to break ineffective patterns, and help to find what is required to
experience a sense of completion or resolution.
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy is the creation of Pat Ogden, Ph.D. Ogden has taken
theory and technique from the body-oriented psychotherapy of Hakomi and
combined it with components of psychodynamic psychotherapy, cognitive –
behavioral therapy, neuroscience, and the theories of attachment and dissociation.
Ron Rothschild, M.S.W., L.C.S.W, completed the trauma training in Sensorimotor
Psychotherapy in 2005.
some of these events seem to resolve easily, even leave us feeling stronger, while
the pain from other events persists? We resolve challenging situations when we are
able to complete some form of fight or flight. When this completion is halted, we
become frozen, unable to put an event behind us, and need help in finding
resolution. Research and clinical experience both stress that to work effectively with
trauma, we must include working at the body level – the body’s felt sense, while
continuing to work with thoughts and feelings.
Invasive images, sensations in the body, physical pain, feelings of numbness or
disconnection, or an inability to calm ourselves are some of the body’s responses
that show we are blocked or stuck in trauma. The body attempts to work free of
unresolved trauma through repetitive movements or avoidant actions, like tapping,
scanning, shrinking, hiking the shoulders, restricting the breath, clenching the jaw or
kicking outward with a foot. Sensorimotor Psychotherapy utilizes “mindfulness” to
carefully follow these patterns. Therefore, in Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, you
might hear a therapist say: “Where do you feel that fear in your body? Does it have
a shape or a size?” “Watch what happens when you just hang out with that
sensation of your heart being squeezed.” “I noticed that your hands began to push
forward when you said you wanted to be free of that guilt; can we slow down and
repeat that movement against added resistance?” Sensorimotor Psychotherapy can
help one to break ineffective patterns, and help to find what is required to
experience a sense of completion or resolution.
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy is the creation of Pat Ogden, Ph.D. Ogden has taken
theory and technique from the body-oriented psychotherapy of Hakomi and
combined it with components of psychodynamic psychotherapy, cognitive –
behavioral therapy, neuroscience, and the theories of attachment and dissociation.
Ron Rothschild, M.S.W., L.C.S.W, completed the trauma training in Sensorimotor
Psychotherapy in 2005.
