The nervous system is the body system concerned with transmitting signals to and from the brain through cells called neurons. This system can be divided into two main subsystems called the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system. Within the peripheral nervous system, another division can be made into the autonomic and somatic systems. The somatic system is the system responsible for voluntary skeletal movements. This allows us to be able to control how we move our skeletal muscles whenever we decide to move them. The sensory neurons within this system are responsible for carrying information from sensory receptors located mainly in the tissues of the body back to the central nervous system. The motor neurons are the cells that take information from the central nervous system back to the skeletal muscles, which is what enables us to voluntarily move in one way or another.
The somatic nervous system differs from the autonomic nervous system in the way that it is voluntary, versus the autonomic system which functions involuntarily and controls the internal organs and glands in the body as opposed to the skeletal muscles. These differences are further shown in the following illustration:
A time where I definitely feel the somatic system in action is during dance rehearsal. While we are rehearsing, we are expected to be able to quickly learn and repeat steps and movements that are taught to us at a fast pace. Our muscles have to move quickly, precisely, and at the right timing. While many different parts of the brain and nervous system are all working together at the same time to make this happen, the somatic system is the system responsible for sending signals from the brain to the skeletal muscles through motor neurons, creating these desired quick and precise movements. There are many times where some of the movements involve something as small as a head tilt or hand placement that have to be identical between a team of 20 individuals. Without the somatic system, we would not only lack the ability to make these fine tuned movements, but we would not have the ability to move at all whether that includes dancing, walking, or even opening your mouth to speak. This is why the somatic system is extremely necessary for human survival.
Staff, E. (2017, December 3). Difference between the Somatic and the Autonomic Nervous System. Retrieved from https://difference.guru/difference-between-the-somatic-and-the-autonomic-nervous-system/