The Best of Somatic Exercises: Body Mapping
What if emotional intelligence doesn’t actually begin with words? Many have heard the phrase “name it to tame it,” teaching children to label feelings as a way of supporting regulation. While this can sometimes be helpful, it skips the deeper process of learning to feel, process, and express emotions through the body first.
That’s where somatic awareness, body mapping (or somatic mapping), and somatic exercises come in. These practices help children (and adults) notice what their body is telling them — so they can move through emotions instead of getting stuck.
What You’ll Learn About Somatic Exercises:
Understand what somatic awareness is & how it shows up in the body
The importance of developing somatic awareness to foster resilience & prevent overwhelm
How to begin body mapping (or somatic mapping) to empower children & adults
Practical somatic exercises parents can use with their children & for themselves
Scroll down if you prefer to explore with me on YouTube!
Why “Name It to Tame It” Isn’t Enough Without Somatic Awareness
The popular phrase suggests that once we name emotions, we can manage them. But here’s the truth: you can’t truly name what you can’t fully feel.
Think of it like describing the taste of a fruit you’ve never eaten. Without the sensory experience, you have no words. Emotions are similar — they don’t start in the head, they begin in the body.
When children are asked to label feelings without first building somatic awareness, they may:
Get frustrated and shut down
Default to “I don’t know"
Mask their true experience to please adults
This isn’t because they’re unwilling. It’s because they literally don’t have access to the full experience yet, and when we are in a heightened or activated (sympathetic) state, we are not able to access our whole brain to make sense of the experience. We first need to access the parasympathetic state (rest, digest, connect), so we can begin to process in our body. This is where grounding activities and co-regulation are essential.
So it's part nervous system state, developmental phase, and experience. Body mapping or somatic mapping help bridge this gap between feeling and words. They give children the tools to notice first — and then name.
What Is Somatic Awareness?
So, what is somatic awareness? Simply put, it’s the ability to notice what’s happening inside the body - our physiological sensation.
Somatic awareness includes sensations like:
A racing heartbeat
Butterflies in the stomach
A lump in the throat
Tingling hands
Tight shoulders
It’s the language of the body.
Most of us weren’t taught this skill. Many adults struggle to sense their body’s signals because they were raised in a culture that values logic and words over feelings. For children — especially neurodivergent or highly sensitive individuals — building somatic awareness is an essential step toward emotional resilience.
Through somatic mapping, children learn that these physical cues are signals to help us understand our experiences, not something to fear. When we can understand what our bodies are saying to us, then we are better able to express what we feel, move through the experience through somatic exercises or practices, and eventually put words to the experience which can support us in seeking further support.
For example: A child may express they have a tummy ache before school and say “my tummy hurts” and avoid school. With somatic awareness as a parent, we can explore this with them:
Getting curious around how it feels - pain, butterflies etc
Do they feel anything else in their body
Why do they think it hurts?
What might help - a movement, breath, imagining it's their favourite colour and it melts away
We can help them learn that this sensation is connected to nervousness for example, and support them with somatic exercises and practical steps to empower them. In this process we are also deeply attuning to them, showing we really care - which often can be enough. We are fostering safety and connection.
What Is Body Mapping or Somatic Mapping?
Body mapping or somatic mapping are practices that help children visualize and track where emotions live in the body - this is an amazing practice for adults too!
For example:
Sadness may feel like heaviness in the chest
Anger may feel like heat in the face
Excitement may feel like tingling in the hands
Fear may feel like a knot in the stomach
By practicing body mapping, children begin to recognize their own emotional patterns. Over time, they learn that emotions are not random — they’re signals from the nervous system.
How to Begin Body Mapping:
Draw an outline of a body (think gingerbread cookie cutter) on paper (or see resource below)
Choose 1 emotion to begin with - maybe excitement. Where do you feel it in your body? What colour is it? Colour it in on the body map
What sensations show up in your body with excitement? Butterflies, tingles, lots of energy? Write this down.
How do you process or move through this emotion? A hug, jumping up and down, a sound etc? (This becomes more important with the more challenging emotions like sadness, anger, guilt etc)
This playful approach makes it accessible even for young children who don’t yet have words for complex emotions. Over time, children discover that their body carries wisdom. What once felt overwhelming becomes manageable — because they can see, track, and share it in concrete ways.
Somatic Exercises to Lean into the 4Fs of Stress Responses
Our nervous system responds to stress through four natural responses: fight, flight, freeze, and fawn (the 4Fs).
Fight might feel like tight fists, a clenched jaw, or a burst of energy
Flight may feel like jittery legs or a pounding heart
Freeze can feel like numbness, a lump in the throat, or zoning out
Fawn (people-pleasing) often feels like a knot in the stomach or tension in the chest
These responses are natural survival instincts. The problem isn’t that we have them — it’s that they often don’t recognize what’s happening or why, and even worse, we have been socialized to repress them.
Through somatic awareness and body mapping, children (and adults) can learn to notice these responses in real time, recognize the signals early, and learn healthy ways to process by leaning in. This is important to learn to honour and work with our bodies, rather than against them. When we repress these natural responses, they become stuck in our bodies and over time lead to chronic anxiety, pain, and illnesses, reducing our resilience.
So instead, when your child feels:
Fight - Would stomping or hitting a pillow release this?
Flight - Run as fast as you can around the block or shake it out
Freeze - Perhaps noticing the feet, breath or the Earth helps
Fawn (people-pleasing) - Connect and let them know you see and understand them
5 Somatic Exercises for Children and Adults
Here are some accessible somatic exercises parents can bring into daily life:
Breath Exercises: Encourage long exhales or playful “jellyfish breaths” where we lay on our back and allow our arms and legs to move in the air/ up and down as we inhale & exhale
Body Mapping Art: As explained above to bring feelings to life, in our bodies and help us to find healthy ways to process these very natural and normal emotions (e-motion = energy in motion)
Movement-Based Releases: Try shaking, stretching, yoga, or dance to move through it!
Sound-Based Releases: Animal sounds (for under 4 is great) or signing are powerful!
Creative Visualization: Invite children to imagine the sensation as a coloured balloon floating away as they exhale, or their anxiety as a wave that rise and falls
These practices help us connect with our bodies in order to understand our experiences more fully. Co-regulation practices also help to get into the body to process. Think hugs, being in nature, or sensory grounding - 5 things we see, 4 we can touch, 3 we hear, 2 we smell, 1 we taste... then what do we feel in our body. These practices not only reduce anxiety in the moment but also build a lifelong habit of tuning into the body.
Somatic Awareness & Body Mapping to Raise Emotionally Intelligent Children!
Do we keep relying on “name it to tame it” and wonder why children still struggle, or guide them to listen to their bodies first through somatic awareness, body mapping, and somatic exercises then add words once they’re ready?
Naming emotions has its place, but true self-awareness starts with the body.
When children practice somatic awareness through body mapping and somatic exercises they:
Learn to trust their body's signals
Build resilience against stress and anxiety
Gain tools to release energy safely
Strengthen communication with parents and teachers
Feel more confident in situations that used to overwhelm them
Instead of focusing only on regulation (which can sometimes mean suppressing feelings), we’re teaching children how to recognize their body's innate wisdom, process and move through emotions. This leads to deeper confidence, less overwhelm, and a stronger connection with themselves.
This is also a guide for navigating more challenging situations as we grow - such as peer pressure, safety, and relationships.
Supporting Parents in Building Somatic Awareness
Children don’t learn somatic awareness in isolation — they learn it through and with us.
When we model noticing our own body signals (“My chest feels tight, I think I’m a little worried”), we normalize the process. As parents, our calm nervous system becomes their anchor.
That means taking time for our own somatic awareness and exercises — whether through breath, movement, or mindfulness — is not selfish, it’s essential.
Parents who practice body mapping themselves often discover surprising insights: where they hold stress, how long it lingers, and what truly helps them let go. Sharing these discoveries with our children builds trust and models emotional courage.
Emotional intelligence doesn’t begin with words — it begins with the body.
Want to Learn More?
Go here to explore Heart Centred Parenting
Sign up to get science, promos & tools in your inbox!
🌺 Katie
Resource: https://www.therapistaid.com/therapy-worksheet/where-do-i-feel
Please note that this information is intended for educational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional for personalized guidance.
