🪷 Tools for the Journey: My Favorite Somatic Therapy Essentials
SHAKSRA'S FINDS
4/14/20252 min read
Somatic therapy has transformed the way I care for myself — mind, body, and soul. For those of us healing from CPTSD, especially in the Black community where this work is often overlooked or underfunded, these tools are more than just accessories. They’re invitations to reconnect with ourselves, soften into safety, and make space for healing.
These are a few of the somatic therapy tools I’ve personally explored, all available on Amazon, and all worth every ounce of intention they bring into your practice.
🧘🏾♀️ 1. Somatic Therapy Workbook: Exercises to Treat Trauma, Complex PTSD, and Dissociation
📘 By Catherine Cook-Cottone, PhD
This workbook offers practical exercises designed for those navigating trauma recovery and body awareness. Each section helps you tune into different parts of yourself — the anxious thoughts, the avoidant patterns, and the longing for peace. It’s gentle but direct, and it meets you where you are.
✨ Why I love it: It makes the invisible visible. CPTSD symptoms can feel chaotic, and this workbook offers clarity.
🧩 2. The Somatic Psychotherapy Toolbox: 125 Worksheets & Exercises to Treat Trauma and Stress
📘 By Manuela Mischke-Reeds
This toolbox is a therapist’s go-to, but I use it solo. It gives you body-based strategies to calm your nervous system, release tension, and start building trust with your body again. Whether you're doing breathwork, emotional mapping, or grounding meditations — it’s all here.
✨ Why I love it: It’s like having a somatic therapist on your bookshelf.
📒 3. Somatic Therapy Toolbox: A 28-Day Mind-Body Connection Guide
📘 By Danielle McKinnon
This is a structured, 4-week deep dive into body-mind reconnection. It’s perfect if you need a plan — something you can stick to daily. Each day has bite-sized practices, insights, and journal prompts that keep your healing grounded and intentional.
✨ Why I love it: I used it to structure my mornings when everything felt too heavy. One day at a time.
🌿 Final Thoughts
Healing is not linear — and it’s not always easy. But having tangible tools like these makes the process feel possible. Whether you're dealing with social anxiety like me, navigating grief, or just beginning your trauma recovery, these books and workbooks can be anchors along the way.
Crown and Canopy was born from my desire to heal out loud. And if these tools can help me take even one breath with more ease, then maybe they can help you too.
Let me know at shakara@crownandcanopy.blog if you've tried any of these.
With grace,
Shakara Anne Graves