Working at the Edge: A Somatic Approach to Trauma

I often describe Pantarei Approach somatic work as a continual process of exploring edges. The aim isn’t to dive directly into the depths of one’s trauma, but to locate the most accessible edge of it and see if we can meet it with curiosity rather than force.

This is why I keep returning to the image of breath as water moving over rocks. Water can’t penetrate stone, but it can surround it completely, tracing its form, its weight, its place in the stream. That contact, sustained over time, is what smooths the surface. Each breath works this way: not forcing change, but washing over sensation, meeting what’s there through gentle presence.

When I work with patients carrying complex trauma histories, I rarely begin there. I start with the surface of life as it is right now, knowing that whatever is difficult in the present has roots that run deeper. By meeting what arrives first at the surface — fear, anxiety, grief, the body’s response to life’s challenges — we begin to touch the deeper roots these contractions often carry. This process also helps the client build the capacity to tolerate and metabolize activation, each session allowing the client to touch a little further into what’s been held.

What I want people to know is that this work can make you feel more before you feel better. As the surface begins to soften, what was held beneath it starts to move. Emotions that had lived below the conscious threshold begin to stir. Anger might surface. Grief might arrive from previously unacknowledged wounds. Relational patterns that were unnoticed before might become visible. As the capacity to tolerate and metabolize activation grows, so too does what becomes available to feel. While this can sometimes feel a little concerning, this increased sensitivity can be a sign of thawing, not falling apart.