The more I learn about the nervous system, the more I see the effects in the body when it’s stressed. Every single person I work with needs some sort of attention to their nervous system. Most need help hitting the reset button, which is why I created the nervous system reset years ago. Some need the physical manipulation and reminder to be easy with the parts of their body where they tend to hold stress.
The pace of life makes it easy to disconnect from what we’re feeling, or push past what we might need. Other characteristics like being a people pleaser or needing to keep the peace and avoid hard conversations, often create holding patterns or tension in the body that we can be totally unaware of. The stress of meeting unrealistic demands (whether it’s work or personal doesn’t seem to matter in the body) can also disconnect us from what’s going on in our human home. And let’s not forget the coil that happens inside us when we don’t communicate how we feel when we’re hurt.
I’ve noticed in therapy sometimes, where space is being held for me to go through my process, I can be unaware of how my body responds to what I’m saying. When we’re in a situation where we’re being heard and validated, we don’t always feel what’s happening in our body because our emotional needs are being met. If we haven’t been meeting them ourselves, and we notice how good it feels for someone else to, that’s a good cue to spend some time alone with as few distractions as possible.
Things that work for me are drinking bone broth on my fire escape first thing in the morning while looking at the clouds, walking in the park, taking 10 breaths through my belly, journaling to get out what’s in my head, speaking a voice note to get clear about what I’m going back and forth about. Coloring, paining or drawing can be a helpful outlet too.
I had acupuncture yesterday before I went into work. I mentioned that I keep getting signs that I need to slow my pace and retain my energy for myself. While she was putting the needles in, I was sharing about a conversation that happened over the holidays that I’m still sitting with. My acupuncturist reminded me that this subject is not a good use of my energy. It was so nice to have the reframe that my energy and wellness are more important than whatever is stressing me out.
It’s so easy to get distracted when we’re passionate about something or can’t understand why something happened in the way it did. The exercise in this month’s video is great to refocus on you, slow down, and start to relax your nervous system. It’s simple and takes about a minute. You can do it laying down or seated, so it will move with you no matter where you are.
When I looked at the astrology for this year, it’s really clear that January and February are a time to get back to basics. That means getting enough sleep, drinking enough water, eating nourishing foods, and moving our bodies in supportive ways. If we’re able to prioritize our wellness, once March hits, things will really be able to take flight and open up more for us. I know January can tend to be a time where people push and put expectations on output and actions. I encourage you (like I’m encouraging myself) to keep it slow and steady.