I’ve been talking a lot about wintering this month of January.

Not as a metaphor only — but as a real, lived invitation for the nervous system.

Because winter doesn’t just happen around us.
It happens within us.

And rather than adding one more thing to do, winter quietly asks a different kind of question:

How am I actually giving myself rest right now?

Not the idea of rest.
Not what rest should look like.
But what rest looks like for you — and how your body is responding.

For me, the last few days of rest have looked like active rest.

Walking in nature.
​Talking with friends.
​Laughing out loud from the pure joy of a new puppy walking alongside us.

It has also looked like sitting in a hot tub, listening to the morning birds, breathing in cold winter air — letting my body soften without trying to fix anything.

And at times, rest has been a quiet after the storm:
A few big sighs.
A self-hug after a lot of emotional work.
And a conscious commitment to take a break from trauma work for a few days — not because something is wrong, but because integration matters.

This is what nourishing rest can look like. It's what my system has needed.

How about for you - What does your system need?

Our nervous system has two primary gears:

• Sympathetic — mobility, productivity, action, problem-solving
• Parasympathetic — rest, digest, restore, repair

Most of our culture lives in sympathetic dominance year-round.
Even in winter.
Even when our bodies are clearly asking for something slower.

And that pace simply isn’t sustainable.

Wintering invites parasympathetic dominance.​
Not as laziness.
Not as giving up.
But as nourishment.

I want to pause here and offer a little clarification — because this part matters.

When I talk about leaning into the parasympathetic nervous system,
I am not talking about the trauma side of it — freeze, shutdown, dissociation.

I’m talking about the healthy, regulating side of parasympathetic:

• Cortisol levels decreasing
• Immune systems strengthening
• Creativity quietly restoring
• Capacity expanding — so spring can actually bloom

This is the part of rest that fills the tank.

Because we cannot pour from an empty one.

Wintering is not about doing nothing.​
​It’s about restoring what has been depleted.

I invite you to explore these few gentle inquiries — take or leave anything that doesn’t fit:

• What has rest looked like for me lately — even in small moments?
• Where does my body soften, sigh, or settle?
• What kind of rest leaves me feeling more resourced afterward?
• Where might I be pushing when my body is asking to integrate?

Winter is not a pause button on our life.

It’s a repair cycle.

And when we honor it — when we truly let ourselves restore — we don’t lose momentum.

We build the capacity for expansion.

When we allow rest and integration now, we’re quietly preparing our body, heart and mind for spring.

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Remember, ❤️

You Matter. Your Healing Matters. You Are Worth It!

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