Sensorimotor Psychotherapy for Attachment and Trauma
In my last post, I wrote about how birth trauma can leave imprints not just in the mind but also in the body. That same truth applies to another kind of wounding many people carry: the quieter injuries that come from early attachment and family of origin experiences.
Not all trauma is what used to be called “big T trauma,” like a car accident, natural disaster, or life-threatening medical crisis. Trauma can also be developmental, arising when our earliest relationships did not provide safety, attunement, or emotional holding. Growing up with emotionally immature parents, confusing double binds, or the pressure to override our own needs to maintain closeness leaves its mark, too. These experiences may not look dramatic from the outside, but the body and nervous system register them as deeply shaping.
How Attachment Wounds Show Up Later
Take, for example, the developmental stage when a child is learning to express their own will — saying “yes,” “no,” and “I want.” It is normal, and even healthy, that a child cannot always get what they want. But sometimes the messages are confusing. A parent might say, “Of course you can choose,” yet when the child chooses differently, love or approval is pulled away and or shaming or punishment is applied. Over time, a child may learn that it feels safer to silence their will, overriding their own needs to keep the bond intact.
As adults, these strategies can echo in ways that feel painfully familiar. You might notice yourself smiling and nodding in agreement even while your stomach clenches in protest. You might freeze the moment someone disagrees with you, as if disagreement itself were dangerous. Some people startle quickly at even mild criticism, or feel a wave of shame when they consider asking for help, as though having needs is risky.
These patterns are not flaws. They are strategies your younger self used to stay safe in connection when connection was essential for survival. For a child, closeness with a caregiver is life itself. The nervous system remembers what it took to preserve that bond, even if those same strategies now make adult relationships painful or confusing.
How Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Helps
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy offers a way to work gently with these embodied strategies. Instead of focusing only on retelling the past, we pay attention to what happens right now. The stomach that clenches when you want to say no. The breath that stops when disagreement appears. The smile that shows up even when part of you wants to cry. These are the body’s ways of showing where the old story still lives.
In therapy, we explore these signals slowly and safely. Someone who always says yes might experiment with feeling their feet firmly on the ground while saying no. Another person who freezes at disagreement might notice their breath and posture as they hear a different perspective, discovering that they can stay present. Sometimes it is as simple as letting a held breath release. Sometimes it means re-experiencing the genesis of these beliefs for emotional processing - contained by the therapeutic relationship. These experiments teach the nervous system that needs can be safe and new options are possible.
What Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Feels Like in the Therapy Room
People often wonder what SP is actually like. While it is not a rigid formula, the process often feels something like this:
1. Building safety and connection. Therapy begins with trust. We start by finding anchors that help you feel steady and present, like noticing the ground under your feet or the support of the chair.
2. Mindful attention. Instead of rushing into the entire story, we slow down and pay attention to what arises in the present moment, especially in the body.
3. Exploring the body’s story. Small shifts in posture, gestures, or impulses are noticed as meaningful. They are like the body’s own way of speaking.
4. Completing what was interrupted. Protective responses that were cut off in the past can be given safe space now. A hand can push, a voice can say no, a breath can be released.
5. Integration. As the body experiences these completions, old beliefs soften and new truths emerge. The nervous system learns it is no longer stuck, and a deeper sense of choice becomes possible.
6. Moving back and forth. Perhaps most importantly, therapy is not a straight line. We move fluidly between grounding and exploration, between settling uncomfortable or overwhelming feelings and facing the difficult meanings that arise. This back-and-forth is how compassion and safety grow alongside new experiences, making the work both tolerable and transformative.
Why Consider a Body-Oriented Approach
Talk therapy can be profoundly helpful, but sometimes words alone do not reach the body’s memory or the attachment strategies carried from childhood. Sensorimotor Psychotherapy offers another doorway. It is not about reliving the hardest moments, but about noticing what lingers now and gently giving it space to move, transform, and resolve.
Author’s note: I am a Registered Psychologist, Certified Sensorimotor Psychotherapist, and SP Certified Consultant, listed with the Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute. My perspective is informed by this training and affiliation.
Somatic psychotherapy has its roots in Hakomi, a method developed in the 1970s by Ron Kurtz that centered mindfulness and the body as gateways into unconscious experience. Pat Ogden was one of the co-founders of the Hakomi Institute and later developed Sensorimotor Psychotherapy integrating somatic awareness with trauma and attachment theory. Around the same time, Peter Levine was developing Somatic Experiencing, another influential body-based trauma approach.
This post is for general educational purposes only and does not constitute psychological advice or therapy. It is not intended to replace personalized care from a licensed mental health professional in Canada. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, speaking with a trained professional may help you better navigate this experience and protect your own well-being.
Suggested Reading for Clinicians: Trauma and the Body: A Neurobiologically Informed Approach To Clinical Practice by Pat Ogden, PhD; Kekuni Minton, PhD; and Dr. Claire Pain,
This article was authored by Penelope Waller Ulmer, a verified therapist in our network. Learn more about their expertise and approach below.
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