Trauma from a known perpetrator, intimate partner, family member, or trusted guardian, predominantly interpersonal emotional injuries upon survivors that extend beyond memory and cognition and result in post-traumatic stress disorder, physical dysregulation, chronic anxiety, intimacy and trust complications. Talking works, but trauma exists as much in the body as in the mind. Therefore, the next best steps involve various somatic experiencing (SE) and other body-based approaches focusing on the nervous system, interoception, regulation, and embodiment.
Therefore, this article aims to discuss how and why such body-based interventions work most effectively for those trauma victims of known perpetrators with supportive theory and research. Where a somatic approach to trauma recovery is concerned, practitioners should benefit from studied peer-reviewed and clinically experienced literature.
The Need for Body-Based Interventions Following Trauma
Trauma from a known perpetrator is even more traumatising in relation to betrayal, power dynamics, and the uncertain nature of relational safety. For example, many survivors find themselves disconnected from their bodies, perpetually dysregulated, tense, unable to feel or trust their embodied sensations. Such findings are well-documented in trauma literature, which concerns interpersonal violence and especially chronic violence. This means there’s not only a psychological component but also a physical one—somatic concern, hyper vigilance, intrusive images (Brooks et al., 2021).
Read More: Trauma-Focused Therapy for Survivors of Sexual Abuse by family or trusted people
Body-Based Interventions: Somatic Experiencing
On the other hand, prolonged exposure or Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT) are approaches that depend on talk and cognitive appraisal (Cohen et al., 2004). However, while this may be effective for many survivors, and certainly in their own right have been found to work, they’re ineffective relative to the imprint of trauma, the physiological stamp on the survivor’s nervous system rendered operable due to constant overwhelming facilitation of fight or flight or freeze and shutdown long after the traumatic event.
Somatic Experiencing (SE) represents a tuned body-centred trauma-informed venture for such individuals. Created by Peter A. Levine, SE emerges from the premise that trauma is left “stuck” in the nervous system and therefore release and recovery come through cautious engagement with sensation rather than purely emotional/sensory relearning (Kuhfös, 2021).
For example, SE does not have clients relieving their trauma; it promotes renegotiation where these clients learn skills to track what has happened to them in a released capacity via vibrated survival energy and cautiously approach the sensation of trauma. The point is to release into awareness of defensive responses that feel shock-like once there’s been a return to safety for too long. Thus, SE seeks to render people aware of their reactivity without having them live through the trauma again because retraumatization occurs when people are asked.
Read More: How your body responds to Trauma
How Somatic Techniques Work in Practice
Somatic therapies promote mind-body connection over time by recognising bodily sensations, movement, breath and reactions from one’s autonomic nervous system. Research has significantly documented mechanisms that support processing trauma for such body-oriented approaches to trauma recovery:
1. Interoceptive Awareness and Nervous System Regulation
Somatic experiencing (SE) involves increased interoceptive awareness of feelings that occur within the body–i.e., tension, warmth, breath. Thus, survivors learn to distinguish their body’s responses to experience safety versus perceived threat over time. Kuhfónics (2021) suggests that SE increases such proprioceptive and interoceptive awareness, allowing one to come back to their body and resolve reactivity associated with trauma through protective processes as opposed to re-traumatic recall.
SE guides survivors to remember trauma without overwhelming them through pendulation (moving between feelings of ease and distress) or titration (small efforts of engaging with what feels traumatic). In doing so, it maintains a sense of tolerance without overstepping one’s boundaries and reduces flooding, a common limit in trauma treatment.
2. Symptomatic Reduction
PTSD symptoms are reduced through SE and similar mind-body approaches. Symptom reduction and fear of movement among participants were significant among control vs experimental groups that received traditional care compared to somatic experiencing + traditional care in a randomised controlled trial (Andersen et al., 2017).
Additionally, somatic interventions have been shown to enhance resilience and stress regulation. For example, Winblad (2018) suggests that clinical findings from SE reveal significant reductions across various categories of trauma, implying a newfound ability for increased nervous system regulation.
3. Somatic and Sensory Interventions
Although SE is its own treatment modality, body-oriented interventions relate closely to one another in intention, the ability to integrate movement, sensory or mindfulness work into trauma treatment. A rapid systematic review finds moderate to strong levels of evidence for somatic/sensory intervention as a credible means of recovery for interpersonal trauma. These interventions focus on emotional processing within and through the body. Calming efforts include embodied regulation, which relies on breath awareness, mindfulness efforts, movement-based work, therapeutic touch or structured somatic exercises.
Read More: Understanding Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)
Why This Matters for Surviving Perpetrator Abuse
Perpetrator abuse survivors battle unique interpersonal challenges: shame, betrayal, attachment disruption, and hypervigilance. To avoid pain, many survivors dissociate, which often leads to chronic distress-somatic dysregulation. Body-based approaches like SE address this disconnect because they focus on sensation without needing the narrative. For those survivors who find talking about trauma too overwhelming or re-traumatising, such body-based approaches help.
Thus, SE teaches survivors to regulate bodily states and increase tolerance of once-unbearable sensations instead of reliving the details with a heightened stress response. Over time, this reduces hyperarousal, somatic tightness or tension, and promotes a new sense of embodied safety which supports survivors’ attempts at emotional and interpersonal recovery.
Read More: When the Body Trembles: Understanding the Somatic Roots of Chronic Anxiety
Limitations and Gaps in Research
SE is championed through the existing literature assessing its effectiveness, but new studies have yet to be generated. Compared to SE, evidence-based extended exposure therapy (PE) and trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy (TF-CBT) have much more access to clinical trials, which means their somatic counterparts still have to go through the same empirical scrutiny.
Moreover, it’s challenging to compare SE through the lens of control because so many somatic studies boast heterogeneous samples, assess additional body-oriented interventions or charge who is more effective through predisposed capacity gaps. But future studies like this one that adjust SE for sexual assault survivors indicate SE’s universality for trauma-oriented work.
Finally, case studies are qualitative but help the clinician understand whether somatic regulation works for relational and emotional connection for complex trauma due to preverbal or attachment trauma.
Read More: Mission Vatsalya: Protecting Minors from Sexual Assault
Somatic Approaches to a Broader Recovery Framework
SE is most effective through a secondary, comprehensive, trauma-informed approach that offers psychoeducational resources, safety and choice. Survivor-centred therapeutic spaces championing empowerment, consent and bodily autonomy facilitate workshops for known-perpetrator abuse victims. SE can be an addition to community resources, psychoeducational offerings and support counselling that creates a similarly structured healing process where mindfulness efforts, trauma-informed yoga and other somatic interventions can supplement SE efforts by facilitating emotional regulation and increased body awareness to feel safe within one’s body again.
Conclusion
In conclusion, somatic experiencing and body-based efforts are an increasingly important element of trauma therapeutic options, especially for known-perpetrator abuse. Focusing on the physiological component of a trauma and away from retraumatizing narrative exposure gives survivors access to distress and regulates it.
Preliminary research indicates that SE provides an embodied sense of empowerment to facilitate regulatory efforts for anxious responses to minimise PTSD symptomology. While much work still needs to be done to assess efficacy and treatment recommendations, current literature and clinical experience advocate effective use of trauma-informed care that includes SE.
Thus, survivors can achieve a tolerable and safe connection within their bodies that empowers them, diverts overwhelming caution, and re-establishes a sense of safety within their bodies and minds.
FAQs
1. Why are body-based therapies especially helpful for survivors of known-perpetrator abuse?
Abuse by someone trusted often leaves trauma stored in the body, not just in memory. Body-based therapies help survivors reconnect safely with physical sensations and regulate their nervous systems without forcing detailed verbal recounting of the abuse.
2. How is somatic experiencing different from traditional talk therapy?
Somatic experiencing focuses on bodily sensations and nervous system responses rather than primarily discussing traumatic events. It allows trauma to be processed gradually, reducing the risk of emotional overwhelm or re-traumatisation.
3. Is somatic therapy enough on its own for trauma recovery?
Somatic therapy is most effective when integrated into a broader trauma-informed approach that may include counselling, psychoeducation, and social support. Healing from complex abuse often requires both emotional understanding and physiological regulation.
References +
Andersen, T. E., Lahav, Y., Ellegaard, H., & Manniche, C. (2017). A randomised controlled trial of brief Somatic Experiencing for chronic low back pain and comorbid post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms. European journal of psychotraumatology, 8(1), 1331108. https://doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2017.1331108
Brooks, E., Flores, J., Loeser, M., Nickel, A., & Richason, H. (2021). Sensory and somatic interventions for interpersonal trauma: A systematic review. Indiana University ScholarWorks. https://scholarworks.indianapolis.iu.edu/server/api/core/bitstreams/8c2710e9-5a4e 4fd5-b31c-3d4995376755/content
Brom, D., Stokar, Y., Lawi, C., Nuriel-Porat, V., Ziv, Y., Lerner, K., & Ross, G. (2017). Somatic Experiencing for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Randomised Controlled Outcome Study. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 30(3), 304–312. https://doi.org/10.1002/jts.22189
Kuhfuß, M., Maldei, T., Hetmanek, A., & Baumann, N. (2021). Somatic experiencing – effectiveness and key factors of a body-oriented trauma therapy: a scoping literature review. European journal of psychotraumatology, 12(1), 1929023. https://doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2021.1929023
Nixon, M. A. (2024). Exploring women’s experiences of healing from sexual violence: The role of body-based practices. Counselling and Psychotherapy Research. https://doi.org/10.1002/capr.12747
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