The Power of “Pleasant Touch”

Recent research on the healing powers of touch and why it matters to healing from trauma.

Client experiences on the table

In the last month I’ve gotten a few new clients, all who came in because they had heard about somatic therapy and/or co-regulating touch.

With new clients, I can forget how delightful, amazing, curious and heart-warming it is be with them as they discover themselves in a new way, as they discover the universe inside themselves known as their body. 

Coregulating Touch (CRT), a form of therapeutic touch, opens portals into the body where clients can enter and begin their exploration of self from the inside out and from the bottom up.  More importantly, coregulating touch opens portals into the body through pleasant sensations.

It’s like being held, I feel surprisingly comforted.

I feel like I can finally exhale.

It’s weird to feel how relaxed my body is.  I thought I knew what calm and relaxed were until I felt this.

Did I just fall asleep? (Yes, you fell into a deep rest state.) I NEVER just fall asleep like that.

These are just a few of the comments that I’ve heard from clients new to the experience of coregulating touch.  Pretty cool, right?

Eventually, clients start to ask, how does CRT work? 

From the outside, it looks like I’m doing nothing but sitting next to my client lying on the table while I’ve got my hand under their back near their kidneys or cradling their head in my hands.  Unlike a massage therapist, I’m not moving my hands nor trying to manipulate the body.

And yet, how to explain why coregulating touch works not only to increase pleasant sensations in the body but also to support deep, physiological and psychological healing?

The Power of “Pleasant Touch”

Zhou-Feng Chen, Ph.D., director of the Center for the Study of Itch & Sensory Disorders at Washington University states, “Pleasant touch sensation is very important in all mammals.  A major way babies are nurtured is through touch. Holding the hand of a dying person is a very powerful, comforting force. Animals groom each other. People hug and shake hands. Massage therapy reduces pain and stress and can provide benefits for patients with psychiatric disorders. “

Dr. Chen and his team experimented with mice and were able to identify a specific neural circuit and neuropeptide responsible for relaying the sensation of pleasant touch from the skin to the brain. 

“This is important because now that we know which neuropeptide and receptor transmit only pleasant touch sensations, it may be possible to enhance pleasant touch signals without interfering with other circuits, which is crucial because pleasant touch boosts several hormones in the brain that are essential for social interactions and mental health,” he explained.

I encourage you to read that last bit again:

Pleasant touch boosts several hormones in the brain that are essential for social interactions and mental health.

As it turns out, receiving attuned and supportive touch, or pleasant touch, has strong, measurable and physiological positive consequences in the brain and the body!

Dr. Chen wrote, “pleasant touch provides emotional and psychological support that helps mitigate social isolation and stress.  These findings may have important implications for elucidating mechanisms by which pleasant touch deprivation contributes to social avoidance behavior and mental disorders.”

From <https://neurosciencenews.com/pleasant-touch-sensation-20488/>

Childhood Trauma, Touch and Embodying Safety

Interestingly, “the researchers found that mice lacking pleasant touch sensation from birth had more severe stress responses and exhibited greater social avoidance behavior than mice whose pleasant touch response was blocked in adulthood.” 

In my world of working with clients who experienced childhood trauma, this particular finding highlights the importance of nurturing touch and attunement in our very early years of life, ages 0-5.  Without nurturing touch and positive emotional attunement in those early years, those children are more likely to grow into adults who struggle with anxiety, depression, social isolation and struggles to maintain healthy relationships. 

So, when my clients lay down on my massage table for coregulating touch, their nervous system and body gets to experience real, palpable relief: a release of long held constriction patterns in their body.  This is the beginning of embodying safety (vs danger) in their nervous system. 

Here’s how clients have described an embodied sense of safety in their life:

• “I’ve found a new level of groundedness.  I noticed that I’m naturally standing taller.”
• “Instead of feeling frustrated or impatient with my kids, I was able to see their distress and offer them a hug.”
• “My breathing just feels easier overall.”
• “I can now feel more and more spontaneous joy.”
• “I trust my body now. It’s not the enemy.”

Remarkable, right? 

As the power of coregulating touch shifts a client from living in “danger” or survival physiology to safety/thriving physiology, here’s just a few examples of what I hear about:

• Healthier boundary setting and keeping
• Less self-abandonment in the form of people pleasing
• More self-confidence, self-trust and self-compassion
• Easier return to feeling grounded after an upset
• Increased sense of meaningful connectedness in relationships

The power of pleasant touch, touch that has no demands, is not sexual in nature, is deeply attuned, and has intentions of care and support, is nothing short of MIRACULOUS!

Self-reflection

What I want you, Dear Reader, to hear is that if you’ve experienced early trauma or traumatic experiences in general and you’re struggling:

YOU DON’T HAVE TO KEEP STRUGGLING. 

Trauma doesn’t have to be a life sentence and there are healing modalities out there that can help you reclaim your life and create a life worth living!

For those of you who may fall into the category of surviving early trauma, here are a few questions for your reflection:

1. What does feeling safe mean to you?
2. What is your first memory of feeling safe?
3. How might you describe feeling safe in your body?
4. What helps you to feel safe?  A person, place or thing?  An experience? Doing something?

The Difference Between Somatic Therapy and Other Therapies like EFT

Somatic therapy and Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) are both holistic approaches aimed at healing trauma and emotional distress, but they operate on different principles and methods.

Somatic Therapy:
Somatic therapy focuses on strengthening the connection between the body and mind. It recognizes that trauma and stress are not just stored mentally but are also held physically within the body. Through body-centered practices like coregulating touch, breathwork, and somatic tracking, somatic therapy helps you release these stored tensions and bring your nervous system back into balance, leading to emotional and physical healing. The goal is to bring more attuned awareness to bodily sensations, physiological shifts, postural changes, impulses and actions and use this awareness to process and heal trauma.

EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques):
EFT, often referred to as “tapping,” involves tapping on specific meridian points on the body while focusing on a traumatic memory or emotion. It is based on the concept that tapping helps balance the body’s energy system, which in turn reduces the emotional impact of the trauma or distressing thought. Unlike somatic therapy, EFT does not necessarily involve a deep connection to bodily sensations but rather focuses on rebalancing energy disruptions.

Key Differences:

• Approach: Somatic therapy is body-centered, emphasizing the bodily or felt sense experience of trauma, while EFT focuses on energy pathways and their role in emotional well-being.
• Techniques: Somatic therapy may involve therapeutic touch, mindful movement, and breathwork, whereas EFT primarily uses tapping on meridian points.
• Focus: Somatic therapy often involves deep exploration of bodily sensations to heal trauma, while EFT aims to alleviate emotional distress by correcting energy imbalances.

Techniques within Somatic Touch Therapy

Somatic touch therapy encompasses a variety of techniques designed to help individuals reconnect with their bodies, re-balance the nervous system, release stored trauma, and promote healing. Some of the key techniques include:

1. Coregulating Touch (CRT):

• This involves gentle, non-invasive touch that is attuned to the client’s bodily responses. The therapist might place their hands on specific areas, such as the back or head, to help regulate the client’s nervous system, promoting a sense of safety and relaxation.

2. Breathwork Integration:

• Breathwork is often incorporated into somatic touch therapy to help clients connect with their bodily sensations. Controlled breathing exercises can enhance the effects of touch by further relaxing the body and allowing for deeper emotional release.

3. Movement and Somatic Awareness:

• Movement exercises, even subtle ones, are used to help clients become more aware of their bodies and how they hold tension. This could include simple stretching, guided movements, or spontaneous body movements as a response to the touch.

4. Guided Visualization:

• Sometimes, therapists guide clients through visualizations while applying somatic touch. This can help clients access and process emotions or memories that are stored in the body, facilitating a more comprehensive healing experience.

Benefits of Somatic Touch in Trauma Recovery

Somatic touch therapy offers several profound benefits for those recovering from trauma, by addressing the root causes stored in the body:

1. Release of Stored Trauma:

• Trauma often manifests as physical tension or discomfort in the body. Somatic touch therapy helps to bring the nervous system back into balance and let go of long-held patterns of tension or collapse in the body.

2. Regulation of the Nervous System:

• Trauma can dysregulate the nervous system, leading to chronic stress or anxiety. Through gentle, attuned touch, somatic therapy helps regulate the nervous system, shifting it from a state of fight-or-flight to one of rest-and-digest, promoting overall well-being.

3. Increased Body Awareness:

• Trauma can cause individuals to disconnect from their bodies as a protective mechanism. Somatic touch therapy helps rebuild this connection, allowing clients to become more attuned to their physical sensations, which is crucial for healing.

4. Emotional Resilience:

• By fostering a sense of safety and relaxation, somatic touch therapy helps build emotional resilience. Clients often find themselves better equipped to handle stress and emotional challenges after undergoing somatic touch sessions.

5. Improved Relationships:

• As clients learn to feel safer within their bodies and regulate their emotions, they often experience improvements in their relationships. The ability to set healthy boundaries and engage in meaningful connections is often restored or enhanced.

There is so much love for you here!

Here at Somatic Therapy Partners, we are a group of clinicians who are both somatically trained and therapeutically touch trained.  We specialize in treating early trauma, complex trauma and anxiety.  Reach out and see how we may serve you on your healing path.

Thank you for reading.  Thank you for wanting to heal.  And whatever your next step is on the path of healing, thank you for that too!

Frequently Asked Questions About somatic touch therapy

Still have more questions? Contact Somatic Therapy partners today and start your healing journey.