Services
Somatic (adj.) From Greek sōma, meaning body - not as object, but as living, sensing presence
Maps (noun) Plural of map: a guide, a sketch of terrain, a way through the unknown.
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“Integration is the heart of healing.
Where there is trauma, there is dis-integration - chaos or rigidity.
Where there is integration, there is flexibility and coherence.”
- Dr Daniel J. Siegel
SOMATIC PSYCHOTHERAPY - Individual sessions
SomaticMaps™ offers one-on-one somatic psychotherapy and touch-based work to support reconnection with your body, the reorganisation of patterns shaped by trauma, and a return to your natural life force.
Sessions are grounded in body-based and systemic approaches including Somatic Experiencing®, NeuroAffective Touch®, and Somatic Constellations™ (a unique blend of somatic work and family constellations).
This work recognises that healing happens not only within you, but also in relationship: to others, to place, and to the wider field.
Together, we can work with shock trauma, such as falls, accidents, or medical interventions), as well as developmental trauma including neglect, physical and emotional abuse, chronic stress, and long-held patterns shaped by early experiences.
“By fostering safety, trust, and curiosity, we can rewrite our life stories. When we bring talk and touch together, we access our innate wholeness and cultivate the heart-centered connection that supports post-trauma growth.”
—Aline LaPierre, NeuroAffectiveTouch
Curious about working together? Please make contact or a free 15-minute phone chat to see if we’re the right fit.
TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT - Organisations, Agencies & Teams
SomaticMaps™ offers tailored, trauma-informed training and development for organisations, agencies, and teams - large or small.
Workshops and programs can focus on a range of areas, including:
Understanding trauma and its impact on individuals and systems
Body-based practices that support regulation, healing, and integration
Safeguarding staff against vicarious trauma, overwhelm, and burnout
These offerings can be delivered on-site or across agencies, and are available as standalone sessions or immersive packages, with the option to include individual consultations.
Consultation is also available for organisations seeking to embed trauma-informed principles into their culture, policies, and everyday practice.
Not based in Melbourne? Get in touch to discuss travel options.
Travel has been part of SomaticMaps™ heart and soul for well over 15 years.
SUPERVISION & CASE CONSULTATION
SomaticMaps™ offers PACFA-endorsed clinical supervision to support therapists and practitioners in deepening their somatic and trauma-informed skills.
Supervision is collaborative, embodied, and reflective - focusing on clinical growth, ethical practice, and nervous system regulation. Together, we explore key domains of your work:
Learning - theory and models
Practice - application of theory and models
Client cases
Relational field
You - your wellbeing as a practitioner.
Flexible sessions are available in person or online.
SOMATIC EXPERIENCING® STUDENT SUPPORT
SomaticMaps™ offers Somatic Experiencing®
Personal Sessions; and
Case Consultations
for SE™ students working toward certification with Somatic Experiencing® International (SEI) as an SE™Practitioner (SEP).
These sessions support :
Your own somatic / embodiment journey
The development of SE™ clinical skills
They provide space for reflection, growth, and guidance when working with complex cases, supporting you integrate your learning and deepen your practice.
About individual sessions - also check out Info & Resources
“The body is not just a container for our experiences — it is the ground of our being. Trauma recovery is about re-establishing the natural flow of life energy.”
Dr Peter Levine, Somatic Experiencing.
An invitation into the intelligence of your body
Somatic therapy is a form of psychotherapy that includes the body as well as the mind.
Rather than focusing on ideas alone, it explores how emotions, sensations, and patterns live in the nervous system, and how, through attention and presence, the mind and body can begin to find one another again in compassionate connection.
What a Session Might Include
We slow down and listen to the body’s language - tracking sensations, movements, and impulses as they arise. These may show up as waves of sensation, sighs or yawns, trembling, or a sense of settling. When met with curiosity, the nervous system may begin to complete something that was previously left unresolved.
You may be guided into gentle embodied exercises, visualisations, or symbolic placements of objects to represent relationships, internal parts, or ancestral dynamics. This kind of work can offer surprising clarity and relief.
Sessions may also involve:
Sitting together in conversation
Movement or sound
Exploring developmental themes and attachment patterns
Reconnecting with inner and outer resources
Psycho-education about the nervous system
Lying on a treatment table or sitting in a chair for somatic touch
Touch
Sometimes, talking isn’t enough - especially when early or developmental wounding is involved.
SomaticMaps™ sessions can include respectful, consent-based touch as a way of reaching the parts of us formed before words or hurt beyond words.
With supportive touch to areas such as the back, head, or feet, we invite a sense of contact, safety, and co-regulation. This kind of touch can awaken deep layers of the nervous system that are longing for repair and recognition. You remain fully clothed and in charge at all times.
The body is wise.
We work with what’s ready - no forcing, no fixing - just listening to what’s unfolding and trusting our body’s innate healing mechanisms.
Please also see Info and resources for more
Why Touch Is Included in Somatic Therapy
SomaticMaps™ offers gentle, consent-based touch informed by Somatic Experiencing® and NeuroAffective Touch as part of somatic psychotherapy.
Our earliest experiences - especially those involving safety, connection, or stress - are stored in our body’s memory - the implicit memory. These patterns often form before we have language, and they can shape how we relate to ourselves, others, and the world around us.
In somatic therapy, gentle, consent-based touch can support integration at this deeper level. Touch can bring life back into areas of the body that feel numb, tense, or disconnected. It can help the nervous system to settle, support grounding and provide a secure base, especially if we have experienced neglect or times of feeling alone or overwhelmed.
Touch supports rest instead of collapse.
This type of touch is not the same as massage or other forms of bodywork. It is subtle and relationally focused, offering the body–mind the opportunity of co-regulation, rather than manipulating muscles or tissue.
Therapeutic touch is about creating a space where your body feels met, supported, and listened to in a new way. You are always in charge, and touch is only included when it feels right.
For many people, this kind of attuned, non-intrusive contact can open up new pathways of repair - when words just aren’t enough.
Please also see Info and resources for more
Feel free to get in touch if this work speaks to you
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SomaticMaps H Q
Carlton, Victoria
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“With each breath, I clear from my cellular memory, the energetic impact of traumatic disempowerment.
I reclaim my trust in myself” - Juliet Carter