Reconnect With Your Body. Reclaim Your Life.
At A Time To Heal, we offer trauma-informed somatic therapy to help you move beyond talk-based healing. If you’ve been stuck in patterns of anxiety, overwhelm, or emotional numbness, somatic therapy can guide you back into connection—with your body, your inner world, and your life.
Rooted in neuroscience and the wisdom of the body, somatic therapy offers a powerful path forward for those recovering from trauma, stress, and chronic emotional pain. We provide both in-person sessions in Richmond Hill and Vaughan, and virtual therapy across Ontario.
What Is Somatic Therapy?
Somatic therapy is a holistic approach to mental health that integrates the body and nervous system into the healing process. Unlike traditional talk therapy, which focuses primarily on thoughts and emotions, somatic therapy explores how trauma and stress live in the body—and how to gently release them.
Through mindful awareness, movement, breathwork, and other body-based techniques, clients learn to listen to their internal cues, discharge stored tension, and regulate their nervous system.
Somatic therapy draws from a range of methods, including:
Somatic Experiencing (SE)
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy
Deep Brain Reorienting
Polyvagal-Informed Therapy
Hakomi Method
Breathwork
How Can Somatic Therapy Help?
Our bodies often hold onto trauma in ways our minds can’t explain. You might notice this through:
Chronic tension or pain
Emotional numbness or dissociation
Hypervigilance or startle responses
Digestive issues
Difficulty relaxing or sleeping
A sense of being "stuck"
Somatic therapy can support healing by:
Helping you recognize and release survival responses
Rebuilding a sense of safety and presence in your body
Restoring emotional regulation and resilience
Increasing self-awareness and embodiment
What to Expect in a Somatic Therapy Session
Every session is tailored to your needs and comfort level. Rather than following a script, your therapist will gently guide you through body-based practices that support nervous system regulation and healing.
For a full list of techniques we may incorporate, visit our 5 Powerful Types of Somatic Therapy page.
Sessions are paced with care, always attuned to your body’s rhythms and boundaries.
Is Somatic Therapy Right for Me?
Somatic therapy is especially helpful for:
PTSD and complex trauma
Anxiety and chronic stress
Depression and emotional disconnection
Attachment wounds and relationship struggles
Chronic pain and medically unexplained symptoms
If talk therapy alone hasn’t brought relief, somatic therapy may offer a deeper, more integrated way forward.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Q: How is somatic therapy different from regular therapy? A: Traditional therapy focuses on thoughts and feelings. Somatic therapy includes the body in the healing process, recognizing that trauma is not just remembered—it's stored in the nervous system. By working through physical sensations, somatic therapy can access and resolve what words alone sometimes cannot.
Q: Is somatic therapy evidence-based? A: Yes. Somatic approaches are grounded in current research on trauma, neuroscience, and the autonomic nervous system. Modalities like Somatic Experiencing, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, and Polyvagal Theory have been shown to support nervous system regulation and trauma recovery.
Q: What does a typical session look like? A: Sessions are collaborative and paced gently. Your therapist might guide you through body awareness practices, help you notice subtle shifts in sensation, and support you in staying present through emotional processing. No forced retelling of traumatic stories—just grounded, body-first support.
Q: Can I combine somatic therapy with other therapies like EMDR? A: Absolutely. In fact, integrating somatic techniques with EMDR can enhance the effectiveness of trauma reprocessing by keeping the nervous system regulated and anchored during sessions. Many of our therapists are trained to combine these approaches.
Q: Do you offer somatic therapy online? A: Yes. We provide somatic therapy both in-person (Richmond Hill & Vaughan) and virtually across Ontario. While some techniques are adapted slightly online, clients still report powerful shifts and deep body awareness in virtual sessions.
Begin Your Somatic Healing Journey
You don’t need to live disconnected from your body or stuck in survival mode. Somatic therapy offers a safe and empowering path to healing. Whether you’re recovering from trauma or simply looking to feel more at home in yourself, our team is here to help.
Book your first session or reach out to learn more about our somatic therapy services in Ontario.
