Child Somatic Movement Therapy
“I want my daughter to feel happy and safe.”
When Sarah* called me, she was at her last wits.
She loves her 8-year-old daughter Reilly* so much and knows what a sweet child she can be, but she kept fighting and arguing with the kids and her friends at school.
Sarah’s daughter met with the school counselor, who referred her to a psychiatrist who diagnosed her with anxiety.
Reilly was prescribed medications and felt better, but it wasn’t enough.
Sarah wasn’t sure what would happen without the prescription. Reilly was worried that her anxiety would return, keeping her and everyone in the family on edge. They all felt exhausted and wanted to help Reilly feel happy and safe. They didn’t want her to depend on medicine forever but didn’t have the tools to teach Reilly and themselves how to change the patterns.
I started seeing Reilly and began to teach her Somatic (bodily) tools to deal with her anxiety, her anger, and the sadness that her condition caused her.
We also worked on social skills and how to create better communication with her friends, family, and teachers.
Working with your child
I will meet your child at my cozy sun-lit studio, where I teach Capoeira and movement classes.
The floor is soft, and there is plenty of room for free movement and games.
Balansa Studio is a safe place for your child to be themselves and talk about their feelings, thoughts, fears, and hopes.
Twenty years of working with children (and raising 3 of my own) have taught me that when we create a safe place and listen without judgment, children will tell us what they need and how they want to get there. They use words, body language, and actions to express their needs.
After listening to your child, I can choose between different approaches and methods to create the best plan for them and their condition.
What do we do in somatic movement therapy sessions:
We play, dance, roll on the floor, jump, talk, make sounds, meditate, paint, and more.
I specifically design these activities for each child, so they can safely express themselves and simply be themselves.
Balansa Center is where your child can take a break from constantly struggling to “keep it together.”
Here they can “let go” without fear of judgment.
I will always treat your child with compassion and encouragement.
Through the different activities, I will educate your child about their condition in ways they can understand. I will also teach them the tools to deal with it.
Movement-based approaches and techniques, specifically Balansa Method, are so effective with kids because children are naturally more embodied (connected with their bodily sensations) and less verbal than adults.
What are some of the skills that your child will learn?
1) Identifying Sensations and reactions that create and increase Anxiety, stress, and fear:
Your child will learn to identify specific bodily sensations that they tend to associate with anxiety, trauma, fear, sadness, avoidance, and anger. Once identified, Your child will learn how to disconnect the sensation from its negative association and representation.
Your child can gradually replace their reactions and response to these sensations with more supportive patterns.
At ten years old, Mike felt anxious whenever he had to deal with a minor conflict. If someone told him he lost a game, Mike wouldn’t argue his case even if he knew he didn’t lose. When participating in group work at school, he preferred to sit back and avoided expressing his opinion.
One day, another student asked him to give away his role in the school play. That child told him that it was essential to him and that he wanted this role. Mike didn’t say anything. Instead, he cried alone in his room after school. Luckily, Mike’s parents and the teacher knew how much Mike wanted the role, and he kept it, but what happened signaled to all of them that Mike was not just being shy but suffering. That’s when I started seeing him once a week after school.
Mike identified two sensations related to dealing with conflicts. He felt unable to breathe and was about to vomit. He knew something terrible was happening, and he got scared. It increased the “can’t breath” sensation and nausea.
Mike became frightened of what fear felt like, and he spent much of his day avoiding any situation where he might have to speak up for himself.
First, Mike had to learn to deal with the sensations he associated with conflict. Only then could he practice and learn communication and social skills.
I also found that he suffers from repeating throat pain.
Through different games and activities, mike learned that he could identify the “can’t breathe” sensation in different situations, such as positive excitement and anticipation.
For example, when waiting for the rollercoaster and riding it at the amusement park.
Once Mike understood that the “can’t breathe” sensation didn’t necessarily mean something terrible was happening, he could break the cycle of fear.
Then he could focus on learning new social and communication skills and grow his confidence and self-esteem.
2) Identifying sensations your child associate with positivity.
Your child will learn to Identify bodily sensations that they associate with positive feelings, such as happiness, joy, confidence, and safety, to empower and increase them.
3) Your child will learn tools and tricks to deal with anxiety attacks when they come.
4) Your child will learn and practice social and communication skills, such as phrasing sentences, intonation, eye contact, and posture. They will learn to recognize social cues and gain awareness of the signals they send to their environment.
Somatic Awareness and practice are a gift that will support your child forever.
Success with speech therapy for children is limited because many children struggle with verbal expression.
The movement therapy and practice meet the children where they already are, in their bodies. They become comfortable in it, learn about its boundaries, about their relationships with their environment, and gain confidence and self-esteem.
Working With You
Remember Reilly? I had a few sessions with her parents. I taught them about the physiology of anxiety and guided them on how to teach Reilly and support her.
I know your sadness and worries.
I know how hard it can be to see your child suffering, how frustrating it is that you are unsure how to help, and how guilty you sometimes feel when you run out of patience while dealing with another tantrum or getting another call from the school.
I get you. This is why I will never judge you.
The clinic will always be a place for you to find support.
I will meet with you a couple of times at Balansa Clinic (next door to the studio where I will work with your child) to help you support your child and ensure we create the best path and the safest journey for them.
I will meet you once without your child to hear about your experience with the situation and collect all the information you can give me about your child in different situations and environments.
What will I teach you?
1) Somatic (bodily-based) techniques that can help you support your child when they need you.
2) How to help them feel safe, grounded, and centered with guided imagination and mindfulness practice
3) We will practice excellent communication skills such as phrasing, intonation, and body language.
4) We will work on locating and exhausting all the resources you can lean on through the process
5) Breathing, grounding, and centering on supporting yourself and maintaining your well-being as you care for your child
You are not alone.
It will be my pleasure to help your child and support them on their wellness journey.
Call me today at (201) 399-5899 for your FREE 30-minute consultation.