Somatic Therapy with a Registered Nurse Psychotherapist in Ontario

Gentle, Body-Based Support For Stress, Burnout, And Trauma

If stress, tension, or overwhelm have become your “normal,” your body is asking you to listen. At Healing With Love, somatic therapy is offered by a Registered Nurse Psychotherapist who understands both the science of the nervous system and the lived experience of burnout, anxiety, and trauma.

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Start Healing with A Registered Nurse Psychotherapist In Hamilton

As a Registered Nurse Psychotherapist in Ontario, Laura offers Registered Nurse Psychotherapy with a focus on somatic therapy. Drawing on 13+ years of nursing and mental health experience, this work blends somatic psychotherapy, somatic stress release, and trauma-informed talk therapy. You’ll explore how stress and trauma live in your body, not just your thoughts. Sessions gently guide you through somatic practices—such as awareness, somatic movement, and breathwork—to help release stored tension and restore balance to your nervous system.

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No Waitlists

No Experience Needed

In-Person Stoney Creek Studio

Virtual Across Ontario

No Waitlists • No Experience Needed • In-Person Stoney Creek Studio • Virtual Across Ontario •

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How Somatic Psychotherapy Supports Your Mind And Body

As a Registered Nurse Psychotherapist, Laura offers evidence-informed psychotherapy that integrates traditional talk therapy with somatic approaches. This includes Somatic Stress Release™, a body-based method that helps you identify and release stress patterns stored in your muscles, breath, posture, and nervous system.

    • Clinical mental health expertise

    • Nervous system education

    • Body-based awareness practices and somatic work

  • Rather than focusing only on thoughts or stories, somatic therapy helps you notice what’s happening inside your body—heat, tightness, restlessness, numbness—and provides somatic healing techniques to support release and regulation. Over time, this somatic approach helps the body complete stress cycles, making space for more calm, clarity, and resilience.

    As the practice evolves, RN Psychotherapy will grow from Somatic Stress Release™ into a broader blend of somatic psychotherapy and somatic experiencing–informed therapies—offering a deeper mind-body connection and a fuller spectrum of healing tools.

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Why Somatic Therapy Can Be So Transformative

When we only work with the mind, we can sometimes feel like we’re “spinning” in insight without real change. Integrating Somatic Stress Release™ into psychotherapy helps the body and mind work together to complete stress cycles and restore emotional balance. Through this form of somatic release therapy, clients often notice:

    • Reduced anxiety, tension, or emotional overwhelm

    • Improved nervous system regulation and a deeper inner calm

    • Increased self-awareness and self-compassion

    • More energy, focus, and ability to cope with daily stressors

    • A renewed connection to their body’s natural wisdom

  • Somatic psychotherapy at Healing With Love is especially supportive if you’ve tried traditional talk therapy and still feel stuck in your body—like your nervous system hasn’t caught up with the insight you’ve gained. By combining the expertise of a Registered Nurse Psychotherapist with somatic healing techniques, this work offers a grounded, compassionate way to process what’s been stored rather than simply manage it.

Challenges Registered Nurse Psychotherapy Can Support

Burnout

Chronic Stress

Anxiety

Compassion Fatigue

Depression

Trauma

Nervous System Dysregulation

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Inside A Somatic Psychotherapy Session At Healing With Love

Each session typically begins with a grounding conversation about what feels most present or challenging for you that day—stress at work, a triggering interaction, ongoing tension, or numbness. From there, you’ll move into an embodied process that may include Somatic Stress Release™, movement, and breathwork, helping you notice how emotions show up as physical sensations and how your body wants to respond.

The therapy environment is designed for calm and comfort: soft lighting, gentle music, and grounding elements to promote ease. All emotions are welcome in this space—rage, sadness, fear, relief, and everything in between. During a session, you may experience:

Awareness Practices: noticing sensations, breath, or areas of holding

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Natural Movement or Impulses: stretching, shaking, pushing, or breathing deeply as the body releases tension

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Emotional Shifts: sadness, anger, relief, or joy as energy moves

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Grounding and Integration: time to settle your nervous system and digest what you’ve experienced

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Deep Relaxation: many clients leave feeling lighter, calmer, and more connected to themselves

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FAQs About Somatics Therapy at Healing With Love

  • You don’t need prior experience with somatic psychology, experience with somatic therapy, or any other somatic practices. Each session is guided step by step. You simply bring your awareness; your body does the rest.

  • Somatic therapy at Healing With Love is rooted in Somatic Stress Release™, nursing practice, and psychotherapy. While it may share similarities with somatic experiencing practitioners, somatics coaches, and somatic healers, it’s offered within a regulated Nurse Psychotherapist framework in Ontario, integrating clinical training with somatic work.

  • Somatic therapy at Healing With Love is always trauma-informed. Sessions are paced to respect your emotional and physiological safety. You’re in control at all times—you can pause, slow down, or change direction whenever needed. This makes it a gentle option for those who are curious about somatic healing but unsure if they’re “ready.”

  • Wear comfortable clothing that allows for gentle movement, and limit caffeine or heavy meals beforehand. This supports your nervous system as you move through somatic practices.

    Allow a few minutes of quiet before your appointment to center yourself and arrive. Bring an open mind and gentle curiosity about your body’s signals—no expertise is required.

  • Wear comfortable, non-restrictive clothing that allows for gentle movement. You may be sitting, lying, standing, or engaging in light somatic movement during your session.

  • Yes. Somatic stress release and somatic psychotherapy can be effectively guided online. Many clients appreciate the option to access a nurse psychotherapist in Ontario from the comfort of their own home, especially when dealing with burnout, anxiety, or a demanding schedule.

  • Somatic psychotherapy with a Registered Nurse Psychotherapist at Healing with Love is offered as:

    • 60-Minute Registered Nurse Psychotherapy Session

    • 90-Minute Extended Session

    Sessions are available virtually or in-person from Stoney Creek, Hamilton, Ontario, and can be accessed by residents anywhere in Ontario for online care. Availability includes weekdays and limited evenings/weekends by request.

  • You’re always the expert on your life. When beginning somatic psychotherapy, many clients find it helpful to come regularly to build trust, safety, and momentum in the work. Over time, some move to less frequent or monthly sessions depending on their goals, nervous system capacity, and readiness.

    Rather than a strict formula, this is a collaborative process. Together, you and your Registered Nurse Psychotherapist will decide on a frequency that feels supportive and sustainable for you.

  • Before your first appointment, you’ll complete intake forms that help identify any limitations or adaptations needed for your sessions. As a Registered Nurse Psychotherapist, Laura is trained to consider both physical and emotional safety in every aspect of the work.

  • After your session, it’s helpful to:

    • Drink water and move slowly as your body integrates the work

    • Give yourself permission to rest, reflect, or journal

    • Notice any emotional, physical, or mental shifts over the next few days

    • Choose gentle practices like short walks, stretching, or mindful breathing

    These simple somatic healing techniques help your nervous system maintain the regulation you’ve begun building in session.

Start Creating a Positive Shift in Your Life Today

Somatic therapy led by a Registered Nurse Psychotherapist can help you move from simply coping to truly feeling more grounded, present, and at home in your body. If you’re ready to explore somatic psychotherapy in a safe, compassionate space, you’re warmly invited to reach out.