Somatic Therapy and the Wisdom of Anxiety: Resourcing, Symbols, and the Rhythm of Resilience

Elijah Forest Therapy

Elijah Forest Therapy Fremantle WA

People speak to me about anxiety in the uncertainty of change of circumstance, of life experiences, work/study, living, financial security, future. And while uncertainty can trigger mental and bodily hijacks in the form of survival responses, feeling stuck and moods, the felt-sense of 'uncertainty' can often be felt as open, playful, allowing, trust baring and grounding. A seed germinated in the forest weaves through shadows and light in becoming the canopy. When we somatically and intentionally feel into the felt senses of 'anxiety' we could begin and notice messages of information and inner knowing from the body, first for regulation, than clarity and change. The body holds memory and knowledge that shows in the nuances, manifested in the way we respond or relate, sometimes unnoticed in micro responses and changes in the body. With symbolic awareness and resourcing we begin to sense what has been waiting to unfold. Each breath, sensation, gesture or posture offers a thread, toward steadiness, trust, and resilience.

Elijah Forest is a somatic practitioner and bodyworker based in East Fremantle Perth as well as seeing clients on tour and via Zoom.

What Is Somatic Therapy?

Somatic psychotherapy is a body-based approach to healing that works with sensation, movement, breath, and awareness. It’s grounded in the understanding that the nervous system holds the memory of all our experiences—the best and resourceful to trauma related—and that healing can happen through the cultivation of gentle, embodied awareness.

Somatic counselling creates space for this us to listen closely to how the body reveals our truth and potential moment by moment.

Navigating Anxiety Through the Body

Anxiety often shows as tightness, restlessness, short breath, or an internal rush. These sensations are real and physical. With somatic awareness we can slow down enough to sense their rhythm, texture, and message. By turning toward our experience with curiosity and grounding, we create more space around the discomfort.

Symbols and Resourcing in Somatic Practice

Symbols in somatic therapy can be images, metaphors, gestures, or sensations that hold meaning and clarity. A wonderful tree, a circle of light, the sensation of warm earth underfoot—each can serve as an internal landmark.

Resourcing is the art of connecting with something that brings a sense of stability. It might be a memory, a relationship, a part of your body, or a visual image. These resources help anchor us when emotions intensify. They remind the nervous system that safety and ease are accessible—even when old patterns rise.

In somatic sessions I support and guide you to discover and cultivate your own embedded unique resources, both the internal and the external - your connection with place, nature and your safe space.

The Natural Rhythm of Somatic Healing

Everything unfolds in cycles—sunrise to sunset, inhale - exhale, the tide's swell and return. The body follows a similar rhythm: activation followed by settling, reaching followed by return.

Somatic therapy honors this movement. Through pendulation, we gently shift attention between intensity and ease, contraction and support. Titration allows us to approach challenging material in small, manageable steps, always returning to a sense of grounding and presence. This rhythm supports integration and resilience over time.

Feeling to Heal: Cultivating Resilience

Resilience grows through felt awareness. As we tune in to sensation, breath, posture, and emotion, we begin to understand our responses and patterns. We learn to stay with experience long enough to feel something shift.

Through breathwork, gentle movement, mindful orientation, and compassionate presence, somatic therapy offers a grounded path for emotional regulation. These tools help us meet the waves of life and our experiences from a stance of resilience, trust, even joy.

Parts Work and Sustainable Self-Awareness

We are made of many parts—tender ones, protective ones, curious ones. Each holds a function, a memory, a need. In somatic counselling, we make space to acknowledge these aspects without judgment.

As we become more aware of our internal dynamics, we also become more responsive. Somatic therapy helps restore balance between these parts, building a foundation of safety and coherence. Over time, clients experience more choice, more clarity, and more capacity to meet life's complexity.

We begin experiencing 'sustainable regulation' - connecting with more ease inward and outward.

Elijah Forest Therapy offers counselling sessions within the somatic modality for clients in Perth in clinic >> 38 George Street, East Fremantle, WA, and via zoom in Australia and the global community.

I work with individuals experiencing anxiety, stress, burnout, trauma, disconnection as well as transition, change, vision and personal development.

Practice: A Somatic Resourcing Invitation

Find a quiet space.

Bring your hands to a part of your body that feels neutral or steady.

Recall a place, image, or moment that gives you a sense of calm.

Let yourself rest there for a few breaths.

Notice how your body responds—temperature, weight, breath, posture.

If tension arises, gently return to the resource image.

Stay with the felt sense of ease or steadiness for one full minute.

This is a beginning—a way to meet yourself with gentleness.

Begin Your Somatic Journey

Whether you're seeking counselling in Perth or looking for a somatic therapist online, I welcome you and would love to hear from you. My work is grounded in somatic awareness, gentle philosophies, embodiment, and connection — and I am passionate about supporting my clients in reconnecting with their body, the self and new potentials.

In-person sessions available in Fremantle, Perth

Online somatic counselling available via Zoom.

Book your session at www.somaticforest.com * Free 15 minutes zoom intro and discovery call available, Send me a message today.