Our Somatic Model of Care
At Collective Being, we believe that wellbeing is a right, not a privilege. Every day, in the spaces we work, we witness the toll that stress, trauma, and systemic pressure takes on people’s bodies, relationships, and resilience. But we also witness what becomes possible when the right conditions for recovery are in place - when people feel safe enough and supported enough to reconnect with themselves and others.
Shaped by these insights, over the past nine years we’ve developed a Somatic Model of Care that supports people in our programs to find a sense of reconnection and steadiness again. Our unique approach to community care centres the body as a source of wisdom, whilst also recognising the vital role that community and systems play in wellbeing.
Our Somatic Model of Care goes beyond individualised notions of ‘fixing’, instead focusing on people's inherent capabilities and resilience, despite the environments and hardships they are navigating. Through our model, we offer support that is sensitive to lived experiences of stress, marginalisation, and complexity, whilst grounding in a sense of community.
The Seven Elements of our Somatic Model of Care
Trauma-informed practice
We honour the intelligence of people’s survival responses and create safe, respectful environments where agency, choice, and consent are prioritised. We acknowledge our organisational responsibilities as a trauma-informed service, including training, mentoring and support for our team.
Systemic understanding
We understand that stress and disconnection do not arise in a vacuum. Our model is informed by an understanding of the broader systems that shape people’s lives, including the impacts of colonisation, poverty, racism, ableism, and gendered violence. We do not treat wellbeing as separate from these realities, but instead support recovery and resilience in the context of them.
Nervous system awareness
We support people to notice how stress and trauma show up in the body. With care and curiosity, we help build language, awareness and insight into embodied patterns that may have developed over time in response to trauma, challenge and adversity.
Somatic and mindfulness-based tools
We share simple, practical tools that support settling, reconnection and rest. These include breath, grounding, movement, and sensory awareness practices that are adaptable for different bodies, experiences, preferences, and environments.
Participatory facilitation
We work with, not on. Rather than directing or prescribing, our facilitators offer invitations, options, and opportunities for people to engage in ways that feel supportive. Our group environments are built on respect, responsiveness, and co-held learning.
Practice-based connection
When we feel connected, we feel less alone, more resourced, and better able to meet the uncertainty of life with steadiness and care. We share practices and create the conditions for people to reconnect with themselves, with others, and with the more-than-human world.
Reflective practice
We embed opportunities for reflection within our programs, supporting participants to integrate what they experience and notice patterns of change over time. Our facilitators also engage in ongoing reflective practice, supervision, and dialogue to stay aligned with the ethics and relational integrity of the work.
This is the model we bring into every room. Whether we are holding a session in a psychiatric inpatient unit or a library, these principles guide how we show up, how we facilitate, and how we care.
Our Somatic Model of Care also continues to evolve. Informed by feedback and dialogue, and shaped by the experiences of our participants, facilitators, and partners, our model reflects our ongoing belief that our collective skills in recovery, rest and reconnection are vital for sustained community wellbeing.
If this approach resonates with you, we’d love to stay in touch. Join a training, explore a partnership, or reach out to connect. We are always open to conversation.
With care,
Jo (Director of Collective Being)
