Somatic Therapy in Santa Barbara
&
Telehealth Across California
My Approach
My intention is to support individuals in connecting with the lived experience of the body and the ways it informs mind-body healing, personal growth, and relational development. While my approach is holistically grounded, it is deeply inspired by somatic and relational psychotherapy, yoga and movement, intuitive energy healing, neuroscience, and nature’s transformative power. In this work, I support clients in identifying, exploring, and transforming stuck patterns and energy, creating space for more balanced and fulfilling lives.
I offer somatic therapy in Santa Barbara, with secure telehealth therapy available throughout California. In essence, I specialize in somatic-relational psychotherapy, intuitive healing, and spiritually focused counseling, working with adults and young adults of all ages.
Growth often requires us to challenge our edges—both in therapy and in life. My style is empathetic, nurturing, intellectual, and direct. While I am clinically trained and licensed, my approach is not that of a conventional psychotherapist. I bring over twenty-five years of combined experience in the healing arts and psychology, viewing my work through the dual lens of a somatic psychotherapist, a yogi, and an intuitive healer. My approach aligns well with individuals who are curious about body-mind connectivity and motivated to gain emotional, intellectual, and spiritual insight.
Somatic-relational therapy can support individuals navigating a wide range of concerns, including anxiety, stress and nervous system dysregulation, depression, relationship and family conflict, attachment, codependency, self-esteem, trauma and complex trauma, sexual abuse, and grief and loss. I also work with clients experiencing symptoms associated with ADHD and neurodivergence, executive functioning challenges, caregiver burnout, spirituality and faith exploration, life or career transitions, sleep disruption, and chronic pain through a somatic and relational approach. Scroll down to learn more about somatic therapy.
Somatic Therapy In-Network with Anthem Blue Cross
In-network with Anthem Blue Cross
Romi Cumes Somatic Therapy, P.C. is in-network with Anthem Blue Cross in Santa Barbara, with telehealth services available throughout California. Due to increasing demand for somatic psychotherapy and integrative behavioral health services, new clients may be placed on a waitlist depending on availability. In some cases, telehealth appointments may be available sooner than in-person sessions.
To explore current availability, click the “Request Therapy” button above. If availability is limited, you will have the option to join our waitlist. Please confirm your behavioral health coverage with Anthem prior to submitting an inquiry.
What is Somatic Therapy?
To begin, somatic therapy may sound abstract at first, yet its meaning is simple and deeply connected to the mind and body’s lived experience. The word somatic means “of the body,” emphasizing direct awareness of bodily sensations and their relationship to cognition, behavior, and emotional well-being.
Somatic psychology and body-centered psychotherapy recognize that the body often holds psychological experiences such as anxiety, trauma, and relational attachment wounds. By working with sensory awareness and observing restriction or movement patterns, we begin to open pathways for healing. Somatic-relational approaches support nervous system regulation, cultivate self-compassion, and encourage deeper mind-body integration.
I draw from both clinical training and intuitive healing skills to inform the therapeutic process. When working somatically, I integrate mindfulness through breathwork and body awareness, while also facilitating energy healing and visual imagery. With guidance, clients learn to identify and describe their felt experience—naming sensations and emotions and noticing where they arise in the body. Within a relational therapeutic framework, somatic therapy helps cultivate a deeper sense of emotional safety, connection, and attunement.
Somatic work is guided by the body’s wisdom, the therapeutic relationship, and each client’s unique intention and capacity for healing.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach.
"We aren’t trying to achieve a state—we are revealing the wisdom of the body that is already there"
Body-Centered Psychotherapy & the Nervous System
Somatic therapy helps us understand how the nervous system processes stress, trauma, thoughts, and emotional experiences. Over millions of years, the nervous system has supported survival by activating the fight-or-flight response when danger arises. This response is essential and designed to activate only when needed.
Howev
er, when we experience trauma or prolonged stress, the nervous system can become dysregulated. Instead of returning to balance, the body may remain in a heightened state of alert or an immobilized shutdown response. As a result, we may experience overwhelm, disconnection, and difficulty navigating relationships or everyday life.
Over time, body-centered psychotherapy helps us recognize, understand, and transform self-protective emotional patterns. With consistent practice and relational therapeutic support, somatic work can help restore nervous system balance, build resilience, and support us in meeting life’s challenges with greater clarity and ease.
To explore somatic practices and practical resources, scroll down to Somatic Therapy & Healing Articles tab.
The Power of Somatic-Relational Psychotherapy
Somatic-relational psychotherapy is a body-centered and intuitive approach that integrates presence, therapeutic connection, and nervous system awareness. By gently exploring the roots of trauma, attachment patterns, and character defenses, this work supports the release of stuck emotional or somatic energy while strengthening the body’s natural capacity for safety and regulation.
Through somatic awareness and a mindful therapeutic relationship, both brain and body are engaged in real time. Through somatic awareness and a mindful therapeutic relationship, both brain and body are engaged in real time. With continued practice, somatic-relational psychotherapy can foster resilience, deeper emotional safety, and a more authentic connection to self and others.
EMDR – A Trauma-Informed Somatic Therapy
Romi Cumes, LMFT, is a certified EMDR therapist (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). EMDR is a well-researched, somatically informed approach used to treat stress, anxiety, depression, trauma, PTSD, negative beliefs, substance use challenges, and a wide range of related concerns. This method uses bilateral stimulation—such as guided eye movements, tones, or handheld sensors—to engage both hemispheres of the brain and support the reprocessing of distressing memories.
Through this process, clients are able to reprocess distressing memories and the negative beliefs associated with them, allowing past experiences to be integrated in a way that supports greater adaptive healing and resilience. Many clients report increased self-confidence, emotional stability, and a renewed sense of personal empowerment through this work. Watch this video to learn more or visit the FAQ page of the EMDR Institute.
Recommended Somatic Therapy Articles & Resources
Newsletter & Practice Updates
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Somatic Therapy & Healing Articles
The following articles explore somatic-relational psychology, trauma-informed care, embodied self-reflection, and stress and anxiety patterns. Many include brief, accessible practices that can be explored individually or shared with loved ones.
A simple, effective practice to support nervous system regulation and healing. By combining sensory awareness with self-inquiry, this three-step process helps you notice emotional distress, name sensations, and explore underlying needs—cultivating resilience and somatic insight.
Managing Trauma Fatigue and Stress Response
Trauma fatigue stems from chronic activation of the stress response, which elevates cortisol and weakens immunity. Through somatic psychoeducation and regulation practices, we build awareness of how thoughts, emotions, and sensations shape physiology. This awareness helps interrupt fear-driven cycles, restore brain–body balance, and foster long-term resilience.
Somatic Tracking invites us to notice and follow bodily sensations without rushing to change them. Just a few minutes of tracking can ease tension, support nervous system regulation, and create space for natural reorganization through sensation, emotion, and imagery.
Somatic reflection helps us pause, check in, and honor our deeper needs for rest and resilience. In a culture that prizes productivity, this practice offers a path toward self-love, mindful presence, and sustainable embodiment—even when life feels overwhelming.
Reflections on Healing, Culture, and Consciousness
Romi’s Substack and Blog includes articles on somatic-relational psychology, trauma-informed care, nervous system awareness, integrative mental health, and yoga-informed movement. These reflections are intended for practical reference and ongoing learning.
Follow on Substack: Read Public Articles Here
The Somatic Therapy Blog: Explore the Full Blog
Mindclay Platform: Creative & Somatic Practices
Much of the therapeutic work happens between sessions, and that time can be difficult to structure or sustain. Mindclay, an online therapeutic platform, offers a way to support continuity of care through self-guided creative and somatic practices—including art, music, movement, and writing—that encourage reflection and skill-building in daily life. Clients receiving ongoing care are offered the option to use Mindclay between sessions. 
Explore Mindclay
When you confront the fear through breathing, you reclaim the frightened child. When you confront the grief by reaching, you reclaim the abandoned child. When you confront the inadequacy by vibrating and allowing the life to come from the ground to you, you reach down and reclaim the vulnerable child. When you let yourself feel the protest of the inadequacies and the ways you were mistreated, you reclaim the connection to that child that could never be free.
Please note: if you are seeking therapy specifically for symptoms related to an eating disorder, we recommend working with a licensed eating disorder specialist who can provide appropriate clinical care.
For individuals seeking nutritional guidance and emotionally focused support for food-related mental health challenges, I recommend Elise Liu, founder of ‘Craving Food Freedom.’ Elise and I discuss the connection between food-related struggles and somatic psychology in this Craving Food Freedom podcast episode.