When I feel overwhelmed, anxious, burnt out, or emotionally flooded, the instinct is often to try to think my way through it.
But those stress and survival responses live in the body.
Somatic practices are gentle body-based tools that help increase awareness, grounding, and nervous system regulation. Instead of forcing relaxation or “fixing” emotions, somatic work focuses on building safety and connection with the body over time.
For many people — especially those experiencing chronic stress, trauma, burnout, ADHD/autism-related overwhelm, or nervous system sensitivity — small somatic practices can become helpful daily supports.
What Are Somatic Practices?
Somatic practices involve paying attention to body sensations, movement, posture, breath, and nervous system responses.
Some signs of nervous system dysregulation can include:
- Muscle tension
- Jaw clenching
- Fatigue
- Restlessness
- Dissociation or numbness
- Hypervigilance
- Difficulty relaxing
- Digestive system disturbances
Somatic work aims to support awareness and regulation gently, without overwhelming the body further.
Nervous System Regulation Does Not Have to Be Intense
One common misconception is that healing has to involve dramatic emotional release or intense experiences. In my experience, the opposite is true!
For sensitive nervous systems, slower and gentler approaches are often more sustainable.
The goal is not to feel calm all the time. The goal is to be able to tolerate the intensities that life can sometimes throw at us and return to our baseline easily.
Gentle Somatic Practices You Can Try
Orienting
Orienting involves slowly looking around your environment and noticing what feels neutral or safe.
You might notice:
- Light through a window
- Colors or textures
- Familiar objects
- Sounds in the distance
This simple practice can help shift the nervous system out of survival mode and back into the present moment. Survival mode – the activation of the fight-or-flight nervous system, often is a response to the past more than it is to the present (unless you are, in fact, in danger right now!)
Supportive Self-Touch
Gentle self-contact can help increase grounding and body awareness.
Examples include:
- A hand on the chest
- Holding the jaw or cheeks
- Resting hands on the thighs
- Wrapping arms around the body
The goal is not to force comfort, but to offer the nervous system supportive sensory input. When I’m coaching my patients in person with this kind of touch, I suggest imagining running into a friend on the street who is obviously distressed. Maybe you even know that they’re in distress because of a difficult situation that no one can fix. You might put a comforting hand on their shoulder and just offer reassuring presence. Can you be a friend to your own body?
Small, Intentional Movement
Small, innocuous movements can help the body feel more connected and regulated. We’re trying to remind the body that movement isn’t the enemy. Particularly for hypermobile folks, movement itself can feel threatening. By keeping the movements small, soft, gentle, and inquisitive, we can let the body know that it isn’t going to be overwhelmed. Try:
- Rolling the shoulders in small, soft circles
- Doing your best impression of a stalk of seaweed in the kelp forest; gentle rolling swaying movements that are small and easy.
- Pressing the feet into the floor
- Fluid movements of the arms that are small and non-strenuous (don’t look for a stretch feeling, look for almost no feeling!)
Often, small movements feel safer and more manageable for overwhelmed nervous systems.
Somatic Practices for Sensitive and Neurodivergent Nervous Systems
Many ADHD and autistic people experience chronic stress, sensory overload, masking fatigue, or difficulty recognizing body signals.
Somatic practices can sometimes help support:
- Sensory overwhelm challenges
- Body awareness
- Recognition of overwhelm
- Grounding during stress
- Recovery from burnout
The most supportive practices are usually the ones that feel flexible, gentle, and sustainable.
Looking for Trauma-Informed Somatic Support?
I work with people experiencing chronic stress, burnout, nervous system overwhelm, chronic tension, and ADHD/autism-related regulation challenges.
My approach combines trauma-informed chiropractic care, nervous system education, and gentle somatic practices designed for sensitive bodies and brains.
You can learn more or book a session through my website.