Even though exercise has the potential to help reduce stress and boost mood, it can be hard to find the time and energy for consistent workouts — especially when you’re feeling overwhelmed.
That may be one reason why brief bursts of chaotic movement known as “somatic shaking” are trending on TikTok as a quick way to relieve stress.
Somatic shaking can look a little different from one person to the next, but usually involves a few minutes of wildly uncoordinated jumping, arm flapping, and foot stomping. Music optional.
One content creator, @natelkhouri, says somatic shaking looks and feels weird “until it starts working and your body finally starts releasing everything it’s been holding onto for years.” Another creator, @theworkoutwitch, says it “calms down your nervous system, lowering the stress level in your body.”
Somatic shaking may help some people manage mild, everyday stress, according to Per Erez, a certified yoga therapist and somatic educator at First Person Healing Arts in Palm Springs, California. “It can help, but it’s not a full replacement for deeper work,” Erez says.
Somatic shaking is best as part of a layered approach that also includes both regular aerobic exercise and slower, mindfulness-based activities like yoga and tai chi, Erez says. “For longer-term mood benefits, consistency matters most,” he adds.
What Is Somatic Shaking?
“Somatic therapy is less about talking about your problems and more about helping your nervous system feel safe enough to settle when you’re with them,” Erez says.
It’s based on the idea that intense, chronic stress or severe trauma can shape default patterns in the body like breathing, muscle tone, posture, digestion, and levels of alertness and emotional engagement, Erez says. “Those patterns don’t automatically change just because we understand them intellectually,” Erez says.
Gentle shaking and changes in postures are designed to help the body notice what tension it’s holding and where, complete physical responses to stress that might have been interrupted, and regulate the nervous system.
These movements support work the mind needs to do to heal, Ezra says.
Somatic shaking won’t help resolve complex trauma or long-standing stress or break the nervous system out of a chronic state of hypervigilance, Ezra notes, “but for mild, everyday stress it can be surprisingly effective.”
A few minutes would be most likely to have temporary benefits like an improved mood or reduced muscle tension, Ezra says.
Is There Any Research to Show That Somatic Shaking Works?
“There are no studies or research to support the use of rapid shaking movements to affect mood or anxiety levels,” says Gail Saltz, MD, a clinical associate professor of psychiatry at the NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center and a psychoanalyst with the New York Psychoanalytic Institute in New York City.
“In fact, there is evidence to support the use of slow rhythmic movements and muscle contraction to decrease anxiety levels — for example, things like tai chi or yoga.”
“Movement and exercise can be helpful, but nothing clinically supports this idea of rapid flailing movements, except maybe TikTok,” Dr. Saltz adds. “Unless it is actually sustained aerobic exercise done for 30 minutes, three to four times per week, there is no evidence to back it up.”
Somatic Shaking Could Help Open You Up to Other Forms of Stress Management
The biggest benefit to somatic shaking may be that it could help make stress management more approachable as a daily habit, says Scott Langenecker, PhD, a psychiatry and behavioral health professor at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus.
“I think somatic shaking could be a good start to a routine that could include other elements,” Dr. Langenecker says. After trying somatic shaking, people might be open to other stress-busting activities like mindfulness, yoga, or regular exercise, Langenecker says.
Who Should (and Shouldn’t) Use Somatic Shaking
Trying out somatic shaking on your own is fine if you’re healthy and you’re only aiming to manage mild stress, Erez says. But people with a history of severe trauma or post traumatic stress should be cautious, as should people dealing with injuries, joint problems, seizures, panic disorder, bipolar disorder, or psychosis.
That’s because somatic shaking could in some instances trigger flashbacks, intensify panic, or overwhelm someone’s capacity to self-regulate, Erez says.
“Individuals with back and or lower limb injuries might want to be careful not to exacerbate existing injuries or work with a physical therapist to strengthen muscle groups before beginning,” Langenecker says. “Individuals who use this as a form of trauma release or exposure will potentially benefit from doing this in guided sessions with a therapist.”
How to Try Somatic Shaking
Somatic shaking works best when you do it barefoot in a private place with plenty of room to move around, according to Erez.
While it’s fine to improvise your movements based on what feels best, Erez offers these steps to get the most out of the experience:
- Stand with soft knees.
- Start a gentle bounce through the heels.
- Let the movement travel upward naturally.
- Keep arms loose and your jaw soft.
- Go with the flow and don’t force any specific movements.
Doing one or two minutes initially, and scaling up to about five minutes if you don’t feel any dizziness or overwhelm, is the best approach. You only need to aim for two to four times a week. “More is not necessarily better,” Erez says.
The Bottom Line on Somatic Shaking
It may be best to think about somatic shaking as one potential tool in the kit when it comes to managing stress and taking care of your mental health.
It could become part of a broader somatic therapy approach, Erez says. And it could also be combined with other stress-busting activities like jogging, yoga, or meditation, Langenecker says.
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