Does somatic therapy work online?
When I first started offering online sessions, I expected it to feel like a compromise.
Somatic psychotherapy, body-based therapy, felt like the kind of work that needed to happen in a room. That required physical proximity. That would somehow lose something essential when translated to a screen.
I was wrong. And I've been surprised enough times now that I want to talk about it honestly.
The question I get asked most
Can body-based therapy actually work over a screen?
It's a fair question. Core Energetics, the modality I work with, uses breathwork, movement, body awareness, and nervous system regulation. These are embodied practices. It seems reasonable to wonder whether a screen gets in the way.
What I've found, after working with clients online across Australia, is that the answer is yes, more than I expected.
Some clients have done their deepest work from their living room. I no longer see online as second-best.
What works better than expected
The breathwork translates completely. Breath is breath, it doesn't need a room. Grounding practices and body awareness exercises are just as effective on a screen. Nervous system regulation, the foundational work of helping the body find safety, works beautifully online, partly because the client is already in their own space.
That last point is significant. For many people, being in their own home actually makes the work more accessible. There's no drive, no waiting room, no unfamiliar environment to navigate. They're already settled. Already in a space that feels safe. That can actually support the depth of the work.
I've had clients in Sydney process grief they'd been carrying for decades. I've had clients on the Gold Coast do some of the most courageous emotional work I've witnessed, from their living room, on a Tuesday afternoon.
What I've adapted
I'm not going to pretend online sessions are identical to in-person. There are genuine differences.
I rely more heavily on verbal guidance for the body-based work. I'm more explicit about what I'm noticing and what I'm inviting. I ask more questions about physical sensation because I'm working with what the client reports rather than what I can observe directly.
I also spend more time at the start of online sessions on grounding, helping the client settle into their body and their space before we move into anything deeper. This has actually become a practice I've brought into all my sessions, because it works.
Who online sessions work best for
Online sessions suit most people well. They're particularly good for:
People who aren't local to Murwillumbah or Tweed Heads, maybe Sydney, Gold Coast, regional NSW, anywhere in Australia
People with busy schedules who find the logistics of in-person sessions difficult
People who are new to therapy and find the idea of going to a physical practice daunting, starting at home can lower that threshold
People already working with a somatic approach who want to continue while travelling or away
In-person sessions may be preferable for people who are working with significant trauma history, very early developmental material, or who simply prefer the grounded experience of being in a room with another person. We can always discuss what's right for you.
If you've been assuming you needed to be local
You don't.
If you're not local to me, but you've been looking for somatic therapy, I work online. If Core Energetics has caught your attention, I work online. If you're in regional Australia and you've struggled to find a body-based therapist near you, I work online.
Online sessions are available now, bookable directly here. The first step is a free 15-minute discovery call where we can talk about what you're looking for and whether this feels like a good fit.
Ready to try it? Online sessions are available now, book a free discovery call below.