My experience of Somatic Trauma Relief Therapy

Earlier this year, I was saying to a friend of mine that whilst talking therapy was helping in some ways, I felt I’d got to a bit of a plateau. Also, I’d quite often get emotional and upset and then be sent on my way onto the streets outside the therapy office and have to try and switch back into ‘normality mode’ pretty quickly. It was like things were surfacing but then immediately being shut back down.

It left me wondering: Was I really processing the deeper layers, or just scratching the surface?

Talking therapy helped me understand why I felt the way I did, but it often felt like my body hadn’t caught up with what my mind was learning. My heart would race, my stomach would churn, or my chest would feel heavy during sessions, but there didn’t seem to be a way to really address that part of the experience. It was stored emotions from the past that needed a way to be released.

That’s when I stoped talking therapy and instead started Somatic Trauma Relief Work—an approach that focuses not just on talking through experiences but on how the body holds and processes trauma. Unlike traditional therapy, it goes deeper than words, exploring the ways our bodies can store stress, fear, and pain in our muscles, nervous system, and even our posture.

When I first started working with a somatic therapist, I didn’t know what to expect. It felt strange at first—less like “therapy” and more like tuning into parts of myself I hadn’t fully paid attention to. We’d speak for about half an hour, then I’d get on the therapy bed and she’d do the physical work on my body that felt like a cross between Osteotherapy, massage, and trigger point release. It was often uncomfortable, but in a way that I knew it would bring relief.

It wasn’t an instant miracle, but what I did find was that I was able to connect with parts of myself I had totally forgotten were there. I would have visuals literally of female characters that were parts of me. I’d have conversations with them.

It was like making up with your best friend who you never really wanted to fall out with, but had been too ashamed to make contact with.

Tapping Into an Ancient Part of Myself

One of the most extraordinary experiences I’ve had in somatic therapy happened during a recent session. My therapist was guiding me through some deep breathing and body awareness exercises when something unexpected surfaced. It started as a vague sense of familiarity—a feeling I couldn’t quite place. As I stayed present with the sensations, a vivid image and emotion emerged. It felt as though I was tapping into a part of myself that wasn’t just “me” as I know myself in this life. It was ancient, deep, and primal.

I realised I was channeling a past life.

The details were astonishingly clear: the surroundings, the role I was playing, and the emotions tied to that life felt as real as my current experience. It wasn’t just one life but a collective thread of women’s stories—repressed women who had been beaten, imprisoned, silenced, and even burned at the stake for their power, their voice, or simply for existing in ways that defied the norms of their time.

The energy I was connecting with wasn’t just mine—it was the voice of countless women who had been denied theirs.

In that moment, it became strikingly clear that my work in this life is to empower women. The sensations and imagery carried a profound message: to honour these women’s struggles by ensuring that the women of today have the tools, freedom, and confidence to reclaim their voices and step into their power.

Rather than feeling heavy or overwhelming, this realisation was deeply affirming. It was as though the pain and repression these women experienced had found a channel to finally be acknowledged and transformed. By allowing this ancient part of me—and them—to speak, I felt a deep release. It was as if a sacred contract had been unearthed: a responsibility to carry forward the torch of empowerment, healing, and liberation.

This session wasn’t just about personal healing; it was a call to action.

It reminded me that the work we do to heal ourselves has ripples far beyond what we can see. It connects us to something larger—a collective energy that spans time and space.

And for me, that connection became a guiding force, affirming my purpose to help women break free from the chains—both visible and invisible—that have held them back for far too long.

What came through

I know I channeled a collective energy that day, and it’s an energy that shows itself in the words, images and content I am creating in my courses and programmes, the first of which is The Wise Woman Transits. I know our power as Wise Women from our late thirties onwards has been repressed in the last couple of millennia - when we are no longer in our ‘Attractive Maiden’ years and are ready to stop with the ‘nice girl’ people pleasing. Instead of a time for us to fade into the background, I believe it’s the time we can truly step into our power and lead with Divine Feminine energy.