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Learn more about body therapy
Body therapy is an umbrella term for therapeutic approaches that work with the body as a primary entry point for psychological and emotional healing. Rather than focusing exclusively on thoughts and verbal reflection, body therapy attends to physical sensations, posture, movement, and the signals the body holds in response to stress, trauma, or chronic illness.
Body therapy draws on a growing body of research into the relationship between physical experience and emotional states, including work influenced by the fields of psychosomatics and neuroscience. It is practised by a range of trained professionals, including somatic therapists, body-oriented psychotherapists, and physiotherapists with additional psychological training.
In body therapy, the therapist pays attention to both what the client says and how their body responds: shifts in breathing, muscle tension, posture, or physical sensation. These signals are treated as meaningful information, not background noise.
Sessions may involve:
- Guided awareness of physical sensations as they arise
- Gentle movement or posture work to release held tension
- Breathwork to support nervous system regulation
- Tracking the body's responses during verbal or memory-based work
Body therapy is used across a range of conditions where the mind-body connection is central to the presenting difficulty.
Psychosomatic disorders
Body therapy is well-suited to psychosomatic presentations, where psychological distress manifests as physical symptoms. Working with body awareness can help clients identify and shift the patterns that maintain these symptoms alongside appropriate medical care.
Chronic illness
Living with chronic illness affects not just the body but also identity, mood, and relationships. Body therapy can support emotional processing and help clients develop a more compassionate relationship with their physical experience.
ME/CFS support
For people with ME/CFS (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome), body therapy offers a gentle, pacing-aware approach to emotional and physical regulation. It is used carefully, as a support to, not a replacement for, specialist medical management.
Cancer support
Body therapy is used in oncology support settings to help people manage the physical and emotional impact of diagnosis and treatment. It can support relaxation, body image, and processing of fear or grief, alongside medical care.
Choosing an approach isn't something you have to do alone. IC's matching can pair you with a therapist whose approach suits your situation. Get matched
It's Complicated is a therapist-founded mental health platform connecting clients with verified practitioners across Europe and globally, in over 60 languages. We work with over 2,500 vetted therapists, with in-person availability in Berlin, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Lisbon, Vienna, and other major cities, alongside online sessions worldwide. It's Complicated is free to use, and you pay your chosen therapist directly at rates they set.
Finding a body therapist with the right training for your specific situation can be harder than finding a talking therapist, as the field spans a wide range of methods and professional backgrounds. Our matching service is built to remove that friction. You complete a short survey, our psychologists combine data-driven insights with human judgement to identify the right therapists for your situation, and you choose from a shortlist of strong candidates. You can also browse our directory directly if you'd prefer to choose yourself.
Get matched with a therapist who specialises in body therapy, or browse all body therapy therapists in the directory.
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