Somatic therapy for chronic pain and nervous system healing
Serving Durham and the Triangle
A mind-body approach is often the
essential missing piece
for people who have been struggling with persistent pain and stress patterns.
It’s no coincidence that pain and stress patterns so often go together; they arise – and persist – within a deeply interwoven mind–body system.
Yet many healing approaches focus on only one layer of this system, leaving you feeling frustrated, confused, or even blamed when relief doesn’t last.
I've been there.
Maybe it feels like you’re already doing everything “right,” yet no one can give you a clear answer for why your struggles continue. Or you’re simply tired of dealing with something that keeps stealing your energy, your joy, your peace, and your freedom to live fully.
First and foremost, you’re not alone: many have found themselves in this place that can feel impossible to shift. And the story doesn’t end there. Many – myself included – are living proof that there is a way out, and that
healing is possible.
Somatic Practitioner · Bodywork Therapist · Mind-Body Coach
Sarah Hey Cooper
Sarah supports people on their healing journey towards greater wellness of body and mind. As a somatic practitioner specializing in chronic pain and nervous system healing, she works with people who:
Are looking to experience more ease in and connectedness with their bodies – and in their everyday life.
Experience chronic pain, tension or other persistent symptoms that may be medically mysterious and/or resistant to treatment.
Sarah’s priority is to get to the root of your symptoms — working deeply, never forcefully, in body and in mind
Her somatic approach draws on hands-on bodywork, mind-body coaching, and pattern-level work in the nervous system, helping clients move beyond managing symptoms toward something that actually lasts.
Let's explore...
Is This Work for You? 🌿
You might be drawn to this work if you feel your body asking for something beyond another temporary, incomplete, or invasive solution.
I specialize in supporting chronic pain recovery, nervous system capacity, and mind–body integration – helping people reconnect with their bodies’ natural intelligence and resilience.
Any of these sound familiar? 👀
You live with persistent or unexplained pain and/or tension – such as neck or back pain, migraines or headaches, IBS, fibromyalgia, or pain that has lasted more than a couple of weeks.
You experience patterns of stress or nervous system activation that make it harder to feel as much ease as you’d like – whether that shows up as trouble slowing down or turning your brain off, vigilance, overwhelm, fatigue, or a sense of “static” that keeps you on alert. 🧘 You may long for greater access to rest, clarity, spacious presence, unhurriedness, steadiness – and simply enjoying your life.
Your symptoms can leave you feeling limited, frustrated, confused, stuck, hypervigilant, or hopeless – and you’re ready for that to change.
You may describe yourself as highly sensitive, easily affected by your environment or other people’s emotions.
What you’ve already tried either hasn’t helped or has only helped somewhat.
You may have already consulted one or more medical providers, without finding the answers or relief you were hoping for.
You’re ready to get to the root of what’s going on – to understand and shift out of what’s keeping your system in distress.
Are you open to exploring how your symptoms might relate to: 🔍
How you respond to challenging sensations, emotions, or stress in your body 
Your relationship with your breath 
The energy and attitudes beneath how you approach healing or self-care
Habits like perfectionism, worry, pressure on yourself, or self-criticism
Getting stuck in modes that leave you disconnected from your body, like pushing through, rushing, busyness, or analyzing
Feeling pressure to hold it together, appear a certain way, or suppress emotion
How past experiences have shaped your body’s responses
A high level of sensitivity or empathy
Disconnection from your natural sense of peace, joy, and what deeply matters to you
Who tends to get quicker results: ✨
Interest in self-reflection, such as through therapy, journaling, or spontaneous introspection.
Willingness to explore beyond the linear thinking mind and into the felt, sensing intelligence of the body – the deeper, often nonverbal layers of awareness.
Prior experience with mindfulness or embodied practices, like yoga, dance, qigong, breathwork, meditation, or active imagination.
Openness to creative exploration, through art, music, writing, movement, or other forms of connecting with your inner landscape.