Here is a Gentle Way to Check In, Learn, and Nourish Your Body.

The days after a holiday can feel… complicated.

Sometimes things go beautifully—better than expected.
Sometimes the old dynamics show up.
Sometimes we show up in ways we didn’t plan.
​ And sometimes it’s a mix of all of it.

This is why aftercare matters.

Not to judge yourself.
Not to analyze every moment.
Not to ask, “What’s wrong with me?” or “Why couldn’t I just hold it together?”

Instead—aftercare is a compassionate way to help your body integrate what happened…
so you can grow, repair, and actually feel more resourced going forward.

Today, I want to offer you a simple, gentle 5 step Holiday Aftercare Ritual you can do anytime this week. Each step can take as short or long as you need.

🌿 Step 1: Pause + Sense Your Body (Centering)

First, take a moment to literally feel yourself here.

Place a hand on your heart, your belly, or your thighs—wherever your body welcomes support.

A few slow breaths.
Soft around the jaw.
Drop the shoulders.
Feel the weight of your seat or feet.

Then let the body answer this simple question:

“Where am I right now?”
​ Not in the holiday.
Not in the stories.
Just you, here, in this moment.

This creates enough internal safety to look back without collapsing into old patterns of shame or self-criticism.

🌿 Step 2: A Compassionate Debrief — NOT a Tear Down session

This is an embodied check-in, not a performance review.

Gently explore these questions (choosing just one or 2 so as not to get overwhelmed, you could come back to the others later if you choose):

If it was hard…

• What parts of me were trying to protect me?
• Where did I feel overwhelm, freeze, or shutdown in my body?
• Where did I feel anger, frustration, fight or flee in my body?
• Where did I feel the need to make everyone happy or manage someone?
• What actually made sense about my reactions?
• Did I notice any tiny moment where I stayed with myself, even for a breath?

Even one moment of awareness is progress.

If it went better than expected…

• Where did I feel more resourced or regulated?
• What helped?
• What surprised me—in a good way?
• What does my body feel grateful for?

Let yourself name these without minimizing, dismissing, or rushing past them.

Your system needs to register the nourishment, not just survive the challenges.

🌿 Step 3: Let Your Body Metabolize What Happened

Here’s an embodied practice that works whether things felt good, hard, or mixed:

✨ Pendulation Ritual: “What was heavy?” → “What was nourishing?”

1. Bring to mind one moment that was difficult.
   ​ Notice where it lands in your body—tightness, heat, collapse, numbness.
   No fixing. Just noticing.
   ​
2. Then shift to a moment of support or goodness.
   ​ Maybe small—a laugh, a kind word, a breath outside, a moment you stayed with yourself.
   Feel that sensation in your body.
   ​
3. Go back and forth a few times—gently.
   ​ Pendulate.
   Let your body learn it can move between activation and relief.
   Let it feel the truth:
   I can come back to resource.

This builds capacity.
This rewires your system.
This is how healing happens.

🌿 Step 4: Ask Your Body What It Wants Next

Not what you should do.
Not what would “fix” anything.

Just:
“What would feel nourishing right now?”

Maybe it wants:

• A grounding walk
• Warm tea
• Music
• Silence
• A nap
• A stretch
• A long exhale
• Journaling
• A shower or bath
• To be held by a blanket, pillows or hoodie

I invite you to let your body choose.
Then give it permission.

This rest (even when it’s active rest), helps integrate all this aftercare.

🌿 Step 5: A Gentle Reframe to Carry Into the Week

Here’s a truth I want to offer and invite you to see how it feels in your system:

Whatever happened this holiday—it showed you where your body is in its healing.
And that is valuable information.

Not evidence of failure.
Not proof you’re stuck.
Just information.
Language.
Wisdom.

Your body spoke.​
Now you get to listen with compassion rather than judgment.

And if things went well—let yourself actually take in the goodness on purpose.
​ Your nervous system needs that just as much.

💛 If you want support integrating this…

If you realized during the holiday that your body still needs help feeling safe, regulated, or connected, this is the exact work we do inside my Basic Foundation 1:1 coaching program.

It’s where women learn the healing language of their bodies and finally stop feeling hijacked by trauma triggers—especially in moments like this.

You can learn more or apply by clicking on the button below:

I’d love to walk with you.

Remember, ❤️

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

​​​​

​