There is a component of Somatic Experiencing® that I don’t talk about very much, and although it was introduced early in the second year of training, I haven’t implemented it often. For what might be understandable reasons (you know… I work almost exclusively on Zoom…)
Touch work.
A decent percentage of SE™ professionals are manual therapists or bodyworkers. For them, the touch work part of SE is either second nature or completely different because of the way it’s used.
SE touch work is all about directing and amplifying the supportive container that the practitioner holds for their client.
I’ve mentioned this before, of course, but my job is not to heal or lead or direct you. Instead, it is to hold a safe-enough container and encourage your nervous system (and your brain) to heal itself, because it can and does.
What the touch component of this work does is to bring the body and brain’s attention to a specific area, when there is the capacity for it, so that this healing becomes more focused.
Let me be clear.
This is not a needed component of SE.
And some nervous systems need a lot of work before being able to withstand that kind of narrowed focus.
And not everybody (practitioner and/or client) is ok with it, now or ever, for every one of their own reasons.
Not a single respectful practitioner out there will require or force touch work on their clients.
But when it is fully consented to, it can move things through differently. So it’s part of the toolbox.
Even virtually.
And this is where it circles back around to me, personally. And you, potentially.
I’ve been trained in reiki for 2 decades, so I have a touch modality with “distance” capability under my belt. This is different, but that experience gives me something to draw on.
So when I started supporting clients a year ago with “a hand” here and there, after getting consent, it wasn’t super weird for me.
However, starting to weave this into my practice more actively over the last couple of weeks has opened my eyes to even more possibilities. A few of you have been part of that!
If you are working with me, or work with me in the future, that may be a part of how we work with your nervous system. Always, and only, if you’re ok with it!
In a peer support meeting, I had yesterday, I demonstrated a virtual touch-on-the-shoulders to someone who didn’t know it could be done through Zoom. And I was quite surprised.
I asked for, and got, specific consent from this human. But it turns out I should have gotten consent from the other attendees! Everyone on the call felt my hands/presence to some degree.
When I asked my practitioner about it last night, she said that that has been her experience in virtual settings, too. So it’s a thing! WOW.
This is good for me to know, even though I have no intention of adding that touch component to the groups I run, at this time.
In other news: My one-on-one practice is doing well, and there is almost always a spot or two for those who want to see if our work together is what they need.
And in running groups, I per-force am looking to reach more folx who want and need this work. That means you’ll hear from me more, and it means that I’d appreciate it if you help me spread the work (uh… word).
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