Somatic Psychotherapy Today

Subsequently, the challenge lies in
developing the capacity to become a
professional without losing the ability to feel
touched at the same time. To be involved,
yet not dragged in. Our boundaries like a
solid, though permeable membrane.
Our clients, in particular our traumatized
clients, are true artists in detecting whether
our reactions as a therapist are true and
bounded at the same time.
In the afore-mentioned novel we see
relationships becoming affected by the
traumatic memories and reactions of the
protagonists. This is what I often encounter
in relational therapy sessions: patterns of
dealing with trauma intervene in the daily
communication and the partners cease to
understand each other, they start to
become mistrustful and defensive.
I wonder how this plays a part in the
relationship between Greece and the other
EU countries. These partners seem to
misunderstand each other. They seem to
live in two different universes. And most of
all, they seem to mistrust each other
deeply.
I hope this marriage will be saved, because
the EU needs Greece and vice versa.
Within the EABP, the relationship between
our Greek colleagues and the other
nationalities is fortunately of a better
quality. As we have written before, the
EABP’s 15 th congress will be in Athens,
October 13-16, 2016. Our Greek National
Association PESOPS and EABP cooperate in
organizing this event.
The title is: The Embodied Self in a Disembodied
Society.
We body psychotherapists see a person as a
complex whole of experiencing, thinking
and expressing him- or herself. This
provides us with an access to areas that
normally lie outside of conscious
experience, like early childhood or
traumatic events. By engaging the body we
gain the benefit of a large toolkit for
resourcing ourselves and our clients.
Experiencing oneself through sensations
and movement is crucial in overcoming the
influence of traumatic events and in the
working through of traumatic memories to
such an extent that the survival mode can
be switched off and normal living can begin.
Somatic Psychotherapy Today | Fall 2015 | Volume 5 Number 4 | page 15