5 Somatic Exercises to Release Anxiety and Regulate Your Nervous System
- Rebecca Rinnert
- 3 hours ago
- 3 min read
Have you ever felt your heart race in a calm room? Or noticed your jaw clenching when nothing’s “wrong”?
Your Body Remembers What Your Mind Tries to Forget
This isn’t weakness. It’s your nervous system whispering: “I’m still holding on to something.”
Anxiety doesn’t just live in the mind—it’s often stored in the body. That’s where somatic exercises come in: they help you gently reset, unwind stored tension, and teach your body what safety feels like again.
Why Somatic Exercises Help Heal Anxiety
When we’re stressed, our nervous system can get stuck in fight, flight, or freeze. Over time, this keeps your body on high alert—even when danger has passed.
Somatic practices bring you back to balance by:
✔ Activating the vagus nerve and calming the stress response
✔ Improving body awareness (interoception)
✔ Helping you release “trapped” energy from past overwhelm
🌸 Think of it like teaching your body a new language—one of ease, connection, and flow.
5 Somatic Exercises to Calm Your System
1. “Animal Shake & Shimmy” (Playful Release)
How: Pretend you’re an animal shaking off water. Start with your hands, arms, then legs, and let your whole body wiggle and jiggle. Add little hops or shimmies.
Why it’s great: It’s silly and fun, but it helps discharge trapped fight-or-flight energy from your fascia.
Bonus: Try adding sound—growl, sigh, or laugh as you shake.
2. “Facial Play” (Unlocking Tension)
How: Make exaggerated facial expressions for 1 minute: open your mouth wide, scrunch your nose, stick out your tongue, wiggle your eyebrows.
Why it’s great: Your face is directly connected to the vagus nerve—this resets tension patterns in the neck and jaw.
Playful Tip: Pretend you’re an actor warming up for a performance.
3. “Sound Bath Breath”
How: Lie down and hum to your favorite song. Focus on feeling the vibration in your chest and belly.
Why: Humming stimulates the vagus nerve while also engaging your breath and voice.
Playful Twist: Hum as loud, soft, high, or low as feels good—experiment!
4. “Spiral Walk” (Dynamic Grounding)
How: Slowly walk in a spiral, letting your arms sway gently. Once in the center, stand still and notice your breath and the ground beneath you. Then spiral back out.
Why: Spirals soothe the nervous system and create a sense of flow in the body.
Playful Twist: Pretend you’re tracing a snail shell or a labyrinth.
5. “Push & Pull” (Playful Boundaries)
How: Find a wall and press your hands against it with increasing pressure, then release. Next, pull on a resistance band or even tug gently against a friend’s hands.
Why: Builds proprioception and creates a felt sense of strength and boundaries.
Playful Twist: Make it a game with a partner—see who can hold the push/pull the longest.
BONUS: Humming or “Voo” Sounding
How it works: Inhale deeply. On the exhale, make a soft “vooo” sound, feeling the vibration in your chest.
Why it helps: Stimulates the vagus nerve and brings a sense of calm.
Your Nervous System Can Learn Calm Again
If you’ve lived with anxiety for a long time, it can feel like this is “just how you are.” But that’s not true. Your body isn’t broken—it’s protecting you the best way it knows how.
With gentle, regular practice, you can teach it something new: that you are safe, here, and now.
Download Your Free Somatic Healing Guide
Get my free PDF: “5 Somatic Exercises to Calm Anxiety”
Step-by-step instructions
Calming illustrations
Bonus: A daily practice tracker
Want to Go Deeper? Let’s Work Together
I help people with anxiety, trauma, and nervous system dysregulation reconnect with their bodies and find peace.
FAQs About Somatic Exercises
❓ What are somatic exercises?
Somatic exercises use gentle movement, breathwork, and awareness to release tension and regulate the nervous system.
❓ Can I do these at home?
Yes. These practices are safe to try on your own. For deeper trauma work, a somatic therapist can support you.
❓ How long before I feel results?
Even 5 minutes can create a shift. With consistent practice, your body learns to access calm more easily.
Remember—Healing Happens in Small Moments
You don’t need to “fix yourself” overnight. With every breath, every gentle movement, you’re already showing your body the way home.
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