Somatic Experiencing®
1:1 Sessions
A body-based approach to working with stress, survival responses, and the patterns your nervous system has learned to hold.
In-person in Brooklyn + online
WHAT TO EXPECT
Somatic work is experiential, but that doesn't mean it's mysterious.
From the outside, a session might look pretty ordinary. We sit together and talk. You bring whatever's happening in your life, whatever you're noticing, whatever you want to work with.
What's different is what we're listening for.
Somatic Experiencing® is a way of slowing things down enough to notice how your body and nervous system are actually communicating — through sensation, emotion, movement, an image or memory that surfaces, the meaning you're making of it all.
Your chest tightens. Your breath shifts. You feel an urge to pull away, or an old image comes back to you, or anger shows up out of nowhere. Maybe you catch yourself thinking, I need to get out of here.
These aren't separate, unrelated things. Part of the work is getting curious about how they fit together, and what they're telling you about how your system is responding right now.
You don't have to already know how to listen to your body — learning its language is the work itself.
THE BODY HAS MORE THAN ONE LANGUAGE
Sensation · Images · Behavior · Emotion · Meaning
HOW WE BEGIN
First, we learn your nervous system.
The first several sessions are foundational on purpose. Before we move into deeper Somatic Experiencing® work, I want you to have an actual map of your nervous system, and some ability to recognize what it's telling you as it's happening.
Using the first two phases of my Human Capacity Method™, we start with Awareness + Resourcing.
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We start mapping your patterns. What happens when you get activated? What are the earliest signs stress is building for you? What shows up in your body when overwhelm starts, or when your system begins shutting down instead?
We also practice slowing an experience down and tracking it through sensation, emotion, movement, imagery, and meaning. Over time, things that once felt automatic start becoming things you can actually notice while they're happening.
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Then we figure out what actually gives your system more support.
You'll learn foundational somatic practices and explore the internal and external resources that help you stay connected to yourself, orient to what's happening now, and stay present with more of your experience without getting overwhelmed by it.
This gives us a shared language for the work. It also gives you skills you can use outside of session, as you get better at recognizing and responding to your nervous system in everyday life.
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With that foundation in place, we can begin deeper Somatic Experiencing® work—working with specific patterns, experiences, and survival responses, while supporting what shifts in session to become increasingly available in everyday life.
WHERE THE WORK CAN GO
We can work with what happened today, or what your body has been carrying for years.
Once you have more awareness of your nervous system and a foundation for working with it, sessions start being shaped more and more by whatever's showing up for you or specifically around your goals.
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Sometimes we start with something familiar: shoulders that brace, a tight chest, a clenched stomach, a breath that disappears, restlessness, numbness, or some other pattern your body keeps returning to.
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Sometimes it's something that just happened: an argument with your partner, a hard conversation at work, losing your patience with your kids, setting a boundary, or catching yourself shut down when you wanted to stay present.
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And sometimes we work with experiences that still carry a charge, like an accident, a medical experience, a loss, an assault, or another traumatic event.
THE PRACTICAL DETAILS & FAQS
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Individual sessions are 50 minutes and $300 per session. Sessions are paid individually rather than as a package.
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Yes. I offer in-person sessions in Downtown Brooklyn (26 Court St) and Greenpoint, (117 Dobbin St) as well as virtual sessions online.
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Most clients begin by meeting weekly, which gives us enough continuity to build the foundational skills and begin working with your nervous system in a consistent way.
Over time, frequency can shift depending on your needs, goals, and where we are in the work.
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We start with a complimentary consultation call. It’s a chance for you to tell me a little about what’s bringing you in, learn more about how I work, ask questions, and see whether working together feels like a good fit.
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No. Somatic Experiencing® can be used to work with trauma, but you don’t need to identify with having experienced trauma to benefit from the work.People come in for many reasons—including anxiety, chronic stress, overwhelm, difficulty settling, shutdown, relationship patterns, major transitions, or simply the sense that their body keeps responding in ways they understand intellectually but haven’t been able to change.
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Somatic Experiencing® is the primary modality I use in my work, and my scope of practice is somatic coaching. I am not a licensed mental health professional, so our work is not psychotherapy and does not replace mental health treatment when it is needed.
I work with people experiencing anxiety, overwhelm, nervous system dysregulation, the effects of difficult or traumatic experiences, and patterns that continue to show up in the body. When appropriate, somatic coaching can also work alongside therapy, giving us a place to focus specifically on the body and nervous system.
If you’re unsure whether this work is the right fit, we can talk about that during your consultation.
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There isn’t a set timeline. The first several sessions are intentionally foundational as we learn your nervous system, build awareness, and develop resources for working with what you notice.
From there, some people come with something specific they want to work through, while others use the work more longitudinally as patterns and experiences emerge. We’ll continue to assess what is useful for you as the work develops.
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Sun & Wave Somatics is a private-pay practice and does not accept insurance. Payment is due at the time of each session.