I am starting to see some of my trees wake up from their winter slumber. Leaves are starting to appear on the limbs that were bare all winter long. As we heal our trauma, we often have moments of awakening. I like to use nature's natural rhythms (like spring) to help me be more present in my own awakenings. These awakenings are powerful in our healing because we go through so many moments of hopelessness while on this journey. Spring offers the hope we so desperately crave and desire. To be more present with these moments of spring in both nature and in my trauma healing, I like to do a variety of awakening exercises using the 3 step process to heal tools. Top Down (mindset) awakenings…. Embodied Bottom Up awakenings… And Sideways (how kind or judgy I am being about the process) awakenings…. These awakenings are ways I am noticing the leaves growing on the winter branches of my soul and in my trauma healing. Here is one example of what these awakenings could look like for each step of healing…. I invite you to try one or more of these... I invite you to trust how your body responds. Top Down: Here is a reframe from Brene` Brown…… “Don’t walk through the world looking for evidence that you don’t belong because you will always find it. Don’t walk through the world looking for evidence that you’re not enough ‘cause you'll always find it. Our worth and our belonging are not negotiated with other people. We carry those inside of our hearts. I know who I am. I am clear about that. And I am not going to negotiate that with you because then I may fit in for you, but I no longer belong to myself. And that is a betrayal I’m not willing to do anymore.” Was anything awakened in you as you read that? For me, I am reminded of the betrayals that used to fill me with despair, dread and hopelessness and how I have healed and no longer betray myself in many of these areas. It’s also a good check in for the areas I might be continuing to self betray. My body and mind reminded me of some of those as well. Bottom Up: Awakening practices are amazing…. Somatic Sensory exercises help me pay attention to my body and offer her some love and awareness. Here and here are some short 1 min examples. And you can even do a full body stretch and breath as if you are just getting out of bed and notice how good it feels to take a moment right now to stretch and be present in your body as you stretch. I did the stretch too and it felt so good to feel my torso and sides of my waist elongate and get out of the crunch space I was in as I am typing this email. How about for you, what do you feel awakening in your body from the bottom up (meaning from within you giving information to your mind)? Sideways: When the trauma my body offers doesn’t seem to make sense and my brain wants to judge it… Here is a Sideways view I can offer myself and see how my body reacts to this new info…. “No matter how chaotic it is, wildflowers will still spring up in the middle of nowhere.” Sheryl Crow And when my body and mind are hopeless, asking what hope actually feels like and I spiral as I feel hopeless and the sideways just offers more hopelessness… “Is the spring (hope) coming? What is it like?....It is the sun shining on the rain and the rain falling on the sunshine…” Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden How about you, how did your body and mind react to these offers from a more kind sideways? (Instead of a judgy, you are doing it wrong or it works for everyone but you sideways narrative). For me, I felt I could stop holding my breath and actually take a big inhale and exhale. I also, appreciated the ideas and creativity these spring, hope filled sentences offered as I was able to create possibilities for new narratives. How are your leaves growing new leaves this spring? What does that mean for your trauma healing? Remember, ❤️ You Matter. Your Healing Matters. You Are Worth It! |
I am a Trauma Informed Embodiment Coach. Healing is possible for women who have trauma. Big T, Little T, Complex, Sexual, Religious, any form of trauma. Check out my content and ways we can work together.
As a child, I used to get in trouble for humming—usually at the dinner table. I often didn’t even realize I was doing it until someone asked me to stop. By the third or fourth time, it wasn’t just about the humming anymore—I was now “being disobedient.” I’d get scolded for being noisy and for not listening. What no one realized—including me—was that I was soothing myself the only way I knew how. It wasn’t until I was in my 40s that I learned how powerful vibration can be for the nervous...
As a child, I used to get in trouble for humming—usually at the dinner table. I often didn’t even realize I was doing it until someone asked me to stop. By the third or fourth time, it wasn’t just about the humming anymore—I was now “being disobedient.” I’d get scolded for being noisy and for not listening. What no one realized—including me—was that I was soothing myself the only way I knew how. It wasn’t until I was in my 40s that I learned how powerful vibration can be for the nervous...
I’ve been hearing two very different things from so many women lately: ✨ “Summer feels slower. The schedules ease up. I finally have a little breathing room.” ✨ “Summer feels even more hectic. Kids are home, vacations are planned, family visits… it’s a different kind of busy.” I’m curious — which one sounds more like you right now? ✨ Or is it somewhere in between? Whether this season feels spacious, a bit overwhelming or both, all these experiences can affect the nervous system in very real —...