Essential Somatics

Essential Somatics Essential Somatics is a revolutionary approach to eliminating muscle pain. It's safe, easy, and common sense. Learn to move without pain!

It goes to the root of most chronic muscular pain: the brain and its control of muscles and movement. Since 2010, Essential Somatics® has grown from a small solo practice to a team of highly skilled and devoted Clinical Somatic Educators who teach multi-day introductory courses, clinical certification trainings, and embodied movement for corporate leadership. The trainings we provide are offered in the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Europe. The teachings of Somatic Education have helped thousands of people worldwide to return to a more vibrant life of movement, self-agency, and awareness.

Before diving into the expected busyness of the new week, take a moment for yourself.Pause.Close your eyes.Notice where ...
11/17/2025

Before diving into the expected busyness of the new week, take a moment for yourself.

Pause.

Close your eyes.

Notice where you feel tension in your body right now.

Is it your shoulders? Neck? Lower back? Somewhere else?

Comment below with the area of your body that feels most tense, and we’ll recommend a simple movement you can try to release it.

11/05/2025

“The biggest shifts happen when you give yourself permission to fully immerse.”

Martha has been teaching Clinical Somatic Education for over two decades. She’s guided many people out of chronic pain and back into comfortable, joyful movement.

And if there’s one thing she’s learned, it’s this: being immersed in your own learning changes everything.

In this video, Martha shares why practicing Essential Somatics movements in a focused environment – away from daily distractions – can create transformation that simply can’t happen the same way during the busy work week.

It’s not about working harder. It’s about creating the conditions where your nervous system can actually let go.

When you’re immersed, away from daily distractions, practicing multiple times a day, surrounded by others on the same journey, guided by expert hands, your brain and body can finally do what they’ve been trying to do all along: release the patterns that have been holding you back.

This is the power of immersive learning. And it’s why we continue to lead retreats after all these years.

Watch to hear Martha’s perspective on why some lessons can often be learned and absorbed best when you step away from your daily life and step fully into the practice.

How do you learn best?When it comes to Somatic Movement, there’s no single right path, just the one that meets you where...
11/04/2025

How do you learn best?

When it comes to Somatic Movement, there’s no single right path, just the one that meets you where you are.

Our online courses are perfect if you want to learn at your own pace, revisit lessons, and gradually integrate the practice into your daily routine. You’ll gain a deep understanding of the principles of Clinical Somatic Education, all from the comfort of home.

But if you’re craving immersion, personal connection, and in-person, hands-on guidance, our retreats offer something different. They’re a chance to step away from daily life, feel fully supported, and experience profound change in real time.

Both paths lead to the same goal: more awareness, less tension, and a renewed sense of ease in your body.

So ask yourself: what kind of learning experience do you need right now?

Why does a week away create change that lasts for years?It's not magic. It's neuroscience.When you practice Essential So...
11/03/2025

Why does a week away create change that lasts for years?

It's not magic. It's neuroscience.

When you practice Essential Somatics movements once or twice at home, your brain starts to pay attention. But when you practice multiple times a day, for several days in a row, in an environment designed for healing? That's when real rewiring happens.

This is immersive learning, and it's one of the most powerful ways to create lasting change in your nervous system.

In our latest blog, we explore:

✨The difference between learning a movement and embodying it

✨Why your environment affects how deeply you can learn

✨What happens in your brain when you're fully immersed in Clinical Somatic Education

✨Why community and connection accelerate your progress

Thomas Hanna understood that sensory motor amnesia doesn't release with a single session. It requires focused attention, repeated practice, and the space to truly feel what's happening in your body.

It requires a new perspective on your body and your movement.

That's exactly what an Essential Somatics retreat offers.

Whether you're curious about retreats or simply want to understand how to deepen your own practice, this article will give you insights into how transformation actually works.

Read the full blog here: https://essentialsomatics.com/the-power-of-in-person-learning-in-clinical-somatics/

“The location was stunning, and the hands-on aspect was invaluable.”That’s how Betty described her experience at an Esse...
11/02/2025

“The location was stunning, and the hands-on aspect was invaluable.”

That’s how Betty described her experience at an Essential Somatics Retreat, a week that changed how she felt in her body and how she approached movement altogether.

Our retreats aren’t just about learning Somatic Movements. They’re about slowing down enough to listen to your body, reconnecting with yourself, and rediscovering what ease truly feels like.

Surrounded by nature, you’ll have the time and space to unwind long-held tension – physically, mentally, and emotionally. Each day combines guided movement sessions, reflective discussions, and plenty of time for rest, laughter, and connection with others on the same journey.

By the end of the retreat, participants often tell us they leave not only with less pain and more freedom, but with a sense of clarity and calm that stays with them long after they return home. They're motivated to move forward in a new way.

If you’ve been craving a deeper reset, one that helps you move, breathe, and live with greater awareness, join us at an upcoming Essential Somatics Retreat.

We're next heading to Mexico, find out more using the link in our bio👆

What are retreats all about?They’re not about escaping your life, they’re about returning to yourself.Our retreats creat...
10/31/2025

What are retreats all about?

They’re not about escaping your life, they’re about returning to yourself.

Our retreats create the space to slow down, reconnect, and rediscover how it feels to move with ease. Through guided Somatic Movement sessions, reflection, and time in nature, you’ll begin to release long-held tension and rediscover the freedom your body has been missing.

People often arrive feeling exhausted, stiff, or disconnected, and leave with a sense of lightness, clarity, and calm they didn’t think was possible.

If you’ve been craving rest that truly restores you, this is your invitation to join us in Mexico.

The Essential Somatics Mexico Retreat is coming soon!If your body’s been asking for rest, awareness, and renewal, this i...
10/19/2025

The Essential Somatics Mexico Retreat is coming soon!

If your body’s been asking for rest, awareness, and renewal, this is your chance to listen.

Join us in beautiful Mexico for a retreat designed to help you reconnect with yourself, release long-held tension, and rediscover what it means to move with ease.

Over the course of the week, you’ll:

• Learn powerful Somatic Movement lessons to restore comfort and freedom in your body

• Explore how stress, habits, and unconscious tension shape the way you move, and how to let them go

• Experience the joy of slowing down, tuning in, and truly resting

• Enjoy the beauty of Mexico’s coastline, nourishing food, and meaningful connections with others

Whether you’re new to Clinical Somatics or already practice regularly, this retreat offers the time and space to deepen your awareness and return home with a sense of calm and balance that lasts.

Sound like exactly the start to 2026 you’ve been dreaming of? Register using the link in our bio👆

A phenomenal group of students - most of them somatic movement teachers, yet coming from a variety of backgrounds.We had...
10/19/2025

A phenomenal group of students - most of them somatic movement teachers, yet coming from a variety of backgrounds.

We had an MD, 2 physios, a dentist, a yoga teacher, former professional athletes, a Feldenkrais teacher and several fitness trainers.

Plus, we’ve already been invited back to Croatia to teach again! Our hosts were so generous and kind. Somatics has taken hold in Croatia.

Congratulations to our newest UK Clinical Somatic Educators (CSET graduates)!My goodness, these clinicians are skilled, ...
10/16/2025

Congratulations to our newest UK Clinical Somatic Educators (CSET graduates)!

My goodness, these clinicians are skilled, and their dedication to helping others move with ease is truly inspiring.

This cohort came together from across the globe - from Finland, England, New York City, Nantucket (MA), the Netherlands, and Scotland - united by a shared passion for empowering others to find freedom from pain.

We couldn’t be prouder of the work they’ve done, and the work they’ll continue to do as they bring this practice into their communities.

Here’s to the next generation of Clinical Somatic Educators, making lasting change one movement at a time.

Address

Manitou Springs, CO
80829

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Website

https://www.unionsquareandco.com/9781454953173/the-mindful-motion-deck-by-martha-peterson

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Essential Somatics posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Practice

Send a message to Essential Somatics:

Shortcuts

Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn
Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share via Email
Share on WhatsApp Share on Instagram Share on Telegram

Our Story

Essential Somatics is grounded in the revolutionary approaches of Hanna Somatics, Moshe Feldenkrais and other modern day somatic pioneers. We teach people to eliminate their own muscle pain and create more freedom and ease in their bodies and their lives. Essential Somatics gets to the root of most physical discomfort and restriction: the brain and the way it communicates with the muscles through movement. Come learn safely and gently to move through life with mastery and joy.