What Is “Resourcing” in EMDR and Somatic Therapy?
Resourcing in trauma therapy: what it is, why it matters, and how it supports deep healing
What is “resourcing” in EMDR and somatic therapy?
Resourcing is one of those therapy terms that seems basic and obvious, but is actually quite a rich practice. Put simply, resourcing is the act of intentionally identifying, selecting, and nurturing resources, which are internal and external assets that offer support through difficult times.
A resource could be a recent positive memory, access to a car, the plant in your office, or 4-count box breathing. Resources are everywhere once you start looking for them, which is what makes resource curation for your current needs so important. Resource curation is selecting a just a handful of resources that are particularly beneficial for whatever you’re going through or preparing to go through (like EMDR therapy, surgery, etc.).
Think of it like packing a bag to go on a trip. You can’t fit everything you own in there. Instead, you anticipate what would be helpful based on the climate, activities, length of the trip, etc. and pack a selection of items. We’ll come back to this metaphor later as we explore what happens when something unexpected happens for which you didn’t pack a resource.
Types of resources used in EMDR and somatic therapy
Internal resources
Internal resources are resources that exist within you. You don’t need anyone or anything else to access them.
These could be:
Memories, visualizations, awareness, attention
Thoughts, mantras, affirmations, lyrics or poems you’ve memorized
Personality traits, characteristics, strengths
Behaviors, skills, and capabilities
External resources
External resources are resources that exist outside of your internal world and therefore require some level of access.
These could be:
People - friends, neighbors, communities, groups
Places - a room, a home, a city, a park bench, a bed
Activities - therapy, yoga class, dinner with your roommate, vacation
Nature - trees, water, air, earth
Physical and material goods - money, supplies, food, shelter, clothes
Somatic resources
Somatic resources are usually internal resources but may be supported by the external environment. Somatic resourcing is the process of gathering internal resources through the five senses: sight, smell, hearing, touch, taste. By turning inward to observe various felt sensations and experience them with open awareness, you can learn to access safety within your own body.
Examples include:
A body scan from head to toe
Targeted breathing into areas of pain and tension
Grounding into the seat and floor beneath you
Stretching, shaking, releasing, sighing, humming
Why resourcing is crucial in trauma processing
Your body is expertly designed to protect you from harm, so when you access your trauma, your nervous system might respond with various defense mechanisms such as fight, flight, freeze, and fawn. This is your body saying “this is too much to handle” as it takes you out of your window of tolerance. Trying to conduct any kind of trauma processing in these states is generally ineffective and risky.
This is where resources come in. Resources can moderate or even prevent these defense mechanisms. In EMDR and trauma work in general, resourcing helps:
Regulate the nervous system
Increase tolerance for strong emotions and sensations
Reduce the risk of panic, dissociation or emotional overwhelm
Build trust in your ability to cope
Build trust in the therapeutic container
It’s crucial to use resourcing before, during, and after trauma reprocessing. One specific goal of resourcing before trauma work is to determine your body’s level of readiness. Sometimes clients come in feeling mentally motivated and logically ready for deep trauma work, but through our initial resourcing sessions, we might discover their body is not quite on board yet.
Does this mean we “can’t” do trauma therapy? Absolutely not! Many people incorrectly believe they have to be explicitly talking about their worst memories in order for it to “count” as trauma therapy. Resourcing is trauma therapy. It’s not a modification or alternative – it’s a necessary component.
During trauma processing, we use resourcing to pace ourselves and help you stay in your window of tolerance. After trauma processing (or at the end of any therapy session), we use resourcing to help you ground before transitioning into whatever comes next.
Other ways to use resourcing in daily life
There are many ways to use resourcing in your daily life.
You can actively resource as you prepare for an expected difficult experience, such as a big work presentation, a meeting with your ex, or a long flight. What might you need to “pack” for for these particular contexts? What internal and external resources will be available to you?
Another way of resourcing is to think about eternal resources that you pretty much always have at your disposal in case of emergency. Even if you packed your best resource bag, life will find a way to surprise you with unexpected challenges. In this case, you may need to rely on things like:
Your ability to breathe
Your ability to choose what you pay attention to
Belief in yourself and your ability to adapt
Faith in humanity and the possibility of receiving help from others
For example, I used to get debilitating panic attacks while riding the subway. As much as I resourced before and during the experience, it would sometimes feel like I was going to pass out in a crowded car. I started looking around at the people around me and chose to believe that someone would be kind enough to help me if that happened - even if I was unconscious. It was surprisingly helpful!
Resourcing in intensives
One of the many reasons I love EMDR intensives is that there’s plenty of time for resourcing without any rush, which ultimately makes the deep trauma work more tolerable and more effective. We have 1-2 resourcing sessions before the intensive day to assess your body’s unique trauma responses and curate your resources accordingly. During the intensive day, we move through a gentle progression into the trauma work, freely take breaks to access resources inside & outside the office, and have a long, slow wind-down to help you feel prepared to leave.
Final thoughts
Even if the term “resourcing” feels new to you, I imagine you’re already doing some version of this. I invite you to continue the work by identifying 2 resources from each category (internal, external, and somatic) that will help you get through your upcoming week.