Sistacircle December 9, 2025: Feminist Social

Sistacircle takes place every Tuesday at 10am PST/1pm EST/6pm UTC

Sistacircle is a weekly, drop-in educational support group for women survivors of male violence and/or the threat of male violence. Rooted in feminist theory, this circle is a space for reflection, learning, and resistance. Free and peer-led, it centres survivors in their own liberation. Join us!

Please join us for a virtual social hour. Whether you are a long time member or brand new to Sistacircle, we invite you to show up with your tea (or any non-alcoholic beverage) and a snack to check-in, share, listen and connect in this less structured circle.

Somatic

Somatic refers to anything relating to the body—particularly the lived, internal experience of the body rather than its external appearance or mechanical functions (Price, 2005). In therapeutic or healing contexts, “somatic” emphasizes how sensations, posture, breath, and movement reflect and influence emotional states, stress patterns, and trauma responses. Somatic approaches help individuals tune into bodily cues as a source of information, insight, and regulation (Price, 2005).

Somatic Awareness

Somatic awareness is the ability to consciously notice, interpret, and make meaning of internal bodily sensations—such as tension, warmth, breath rhythm, heaviness, or activation (Taylor, 2025). It includes recognizing how the body responds to emotions, stress, or memories, and developing the capacity to regulate the nervous system through these sensations. For women, somatic awareness can also involve reclaiming bodily autonomy, intuition, boundaries, and safety in a culture where women’s bodily signals are often minimized or dismissed (Price, 2005).

Questions To Consider

What patterns do you recognize in yourself when your nervous system is activated (e.g., fight, flight, freeze, fawn)?
What helps you return to a calmer or more regulated state when you feel stressed or dysregulated?
In daily life, do you notice moments where you unintentionally hold tension (jaw, shoulders, stomach, breath)? What brings that tension to your awareness?
How does reconnecting with your body support your sense of agency or healing?
In what ways can somatic practices help counter messages women often receive about ignoring or overriding our physical and emotional signals?

Circle will end with a closing meditation for those who wish to participate

References

Price, C. (2005). Body‑oriented therapy in recovery from child sexual abuse: An efficacy study. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, 11(5), 46–57.

Taylor, J. (2025). What is somatic awareness? JaneTaylor.net. janetaylor.net/what-is-somatic-awareness.