Why Practice Somatic Movement for Anxiety?
AA somatic movement for anxiety practice isn’t just about taming negative thoughts; it’s also about deeply connecting your mind to your body. Moreover, symptoms like tightness in the chest, shallow breathing, and a sense of unease can make it hard to feel calm and grounded. If you’ve experienced catastrophic thinking, where your mind spirals into worst-case scenarios, you likely know how overwhelming these sensations can be. In fact, somatic movement helps address both the mental and physical aspects of anxiety, offering a path to relief and calm.
But what if there was a way to break that cycle? Fortunately, somatic movement for anxiety practices, like the video below, offer a powerful approach to calm your body and mind by bringing awareness to your breath and movement. By reconnecting with your body in a gentle and mindful way, you can help reduce the physical and emotional grip of anxiety.
How Does a Somatic Movement for Anxiety Practice Work?
This somatic movement for anxiety practice focuses on reconnecting with your body’s sensations. Furthermore, it’s about slowing down and paying attention to how your body feels—without judgment. In addition, when paired with slow, intentional breathing, somatic movement allows you to regulate your nervous system, which can be especially helpful if you experience anxiety in the chest.
In the following 30-minute somatic movement practice, you’ll be guided through different phases of breath awareness, slow breathing, and gentle movement. Specifically, this is a Beginner Practice that introduces the foundational concepts of somatic movement with detailed verbal instruction, making it ideal for beginners. Moreover, this session focuses on helping participants stay present, calming anxious thoughts through guided breathwork, and building essential body awareness. Lastly, the consistent verbal guidance ensures that participants remain engaged, reducing the likelihood of distraction or overthinking.
Somatic Movement for Anxiety: How it Works
When anxiety takes hold, your body responds by tightening up and shortening your breath. Over time, this can create a feedback loop that reinforces your anxious thoughts. However, by introducing somatic movement and breath awareness, you can disrupt this loop and help your body find a state of calm. During the practice, you’ll be guided to:
- Observe how your body feels in the present moment, noticing any tightness or discomfort.
- Gradually shift from normal breathing to slow, deep breathing to soothe your system.
- Pay attention to how different parts of your body, like your waist and chest, move with each breath.
As you deepen your breath and explore movement, you’ll begin to release some of the physical tension that anxiety creates. By relaxing your muscles and breathing deeply, you’re sending a message to your brain that it’s safe to calm down.
Don’t get stuck in your head!
One of the biggest challenges with anxiety is the tendency to get stuck in your head. Moreover, you may find yourself constantly overthinking, analyzing every scenario, or worrying about the future. Somatic movement invites you to shift your attention from your mind to your body.
For many people, this is a new and uncomfortable experience. Sitting with physical sensations like tightness in the chest or difficulty breathing can be difficult at first. However, through practice, you can learn to observe these sensations without reacting to them.
In essence, focusing on the body helps you create space between yourself and your anxious thoughts. Furthermore, this space allows you to notice when anxiety is starting to rise and gives you the tools to calm it before it spirals out of control.
Somatic Movement for Anxiety: How to Get Started
If anxiety and catastrophic thinking are weighing you down, somatic movement for anxiety may be the relief you need. To help you get started, here’s a step-by-step breakdown of the practice:
1. Prepare Your Space: Lie down comfortably with your legs extended and arms by your sides. Additionally, support your knees or head with cushions if needed.
2. Evaluate Your Body: Take a moment to notice how you feel. Are you relaxed or anxious? How is your mood? Importantly, acknowledge these feelings without judgment.
3. Normal Breathing: Breathe naturally and observe how the air feels as it moves through your body. Where do you feel your breath—your chest, throat, or abdomen?
4. Slow Breathing: Gradually slow your breath, inhaling and exhaling for 5-6 seconds each. Notice how this changes your body’s sensations.
5. Deep Breathing: Deepen your breath even further, filling your lungs completely before exhaling. Explore how your body reacts—whether it feels calming or creates tension.
6. Body Awareness: Focus on relaxing your waist, abdomen, and back as you breathe. Let go of any tightness you notice.
7. Breath Movement: Visualize your breath moving through different parts of your body, like your chest and abdomen, and observe how each area responds.
8. Movement and Breath: Incorporate gentle arm and shoulder movements to open up space in your ribcage, deepening the breath’s impact on your body.
9. Spinal Awareness: As you breathe, notice how your spine elongates and your chin shifts slightly. This subtle movement helps release tension.
10. Final Check-In: After the practice, reevaluate how your body feels. Do you notice any shifts in your mood or tension levels?
Like any practice, the key to benefiting from somatic movement for anxiety is consistency. By regularly incorporating this practice into your routine, you may start to notice that your body becomes more responsive to your efforts. Anxiety may feel less overwhelming, and you’ll have tools to help you manage it in the moment.
Somatic Movement for Anxiety: The First Step Towards Calm
Somatic movement for anxiety is more than just a practice—it’s a powerful tool for reclaiming a sense of control over both your body and mind. Moreover, if anxiety and catastrophic thinking have been ruling your days, then this is your chance to change that.
First, check in with your body right now. How does it feel? Are your thoughts racing, or do you feel calmer and more grounded? As a result, by gently shifting your focus throughout the day, you’ll start to notice these subtle changes and build a greater sense of balance over time.
In addition, give this practice a try, and see how it can help you find peace and ease, both in your body and your mind.
I regularly work with the following chronic symptoms:
