You had me with the words..."too activated to journal"...so good! Thank you for sharing this practice with us! And thank you even more for showing us the example from your personal journal...incredibly vulnerable and helpful. This is such an excellent idea for when "somatic experience is incongruent with my narratives"...just LOVE that language! Thank you, Emily🥰
I absolutely love this. As someone in the absolute THICK of raising littles rn, and feeling allllll sorts of angst and overwhelm on the daily, I love this idea of “naming” what’s happening in my body visually like this alongside my healing work, too. Thank you for sharing!!
I have spiritual direction tomorrow and the beginning is "How is your soul?" I've been trying to think of how to answer that this month. (My soul is more at peace than last month, but still hard to describe.) This was the perfect practice to give some shape to where I am right now. One of the best things about it is that I can just write a huge cuss word that feels kind of weird in the context of a journal entry. Not wrong, just strange. Thanks.
"As we recover our life, we’re able to connect to the person who we actually are rather than a try-hard version of the person we think we ought to be. " is a very timely message for me as I transition from being a stay-at-home/homeschooling mom to re-entering the workforce.
And, "A person I trusted: We have been fooled." - whew, that hit hard.
Thank you for your vulnerability and for sharing some practical ideas.
How is it that you could write a Substack article that coincides exactly with the timing of anxious butterflies that I’ve had for last several weeks? Thank you for this timely piece! I needed this!
That is a very cool idea. I too have felt the body/ mind disconnect. It’s weird. I will try the drawing. And Emily, thanks for getting me to haiku sometimes. My mom taught jr high English and she absolutely was crazy for haiku and always taught it every year.
Oh I love this!! It’s perfect for when my mind is racing with too many thoughts all at one time. And I want to figure it ALL out Right.Now. Thank you, Emily!
Can’t believe I missed this earlier, but it was just what I needed after a restless, sleep-deprived night. I am both a word nerd and a visual processor - this was perfect when I couldn’t find words for journaling this morning. My head says everything will be fine, but my heart doesn’t get the message and brings the rest of my body along in protest. Thank you - a practice I’ll remember and use.
Have you shared about this before? It feels familiar and so I am wondering if you mentioned it online somewhere or even at Friends? This was really helpful for me today. It can be so easy for me not to track how I really am - which is so much the work of spiritual direction and often other ministry work. As soon as you mentioned sweaty pits, I connected it to an experience today. Anyhow, the reminder to find our lives is a needed and good one. Thanks!
Thanks for the reminder to slow and focus on smaller things. It can be so easy to be overwhelmed and my body easily remembers my past reactions. It has taken a long time and lots of practicing to teach my brain and body to slow and calm.
Emily, thanks so much for this post in connecting feelings to your physical experience! I recall (perhaps on an episode of your pod) you mentioned the benefits you have found from somatic coaching. Do you have any books or other resource recommendations to begin with?
Love this. I am a financial coach and often ask folks to draw out their Frugality Monster that keeps them from spending money they saved to spend for that particular reason like a bike or home or vacation or even debt payoff. They often realize the shape is silly rather than scary even though it is giving them anxiety.
Emily, thank you so much for yet again, sharing a personal experience full of vulnerability and lighted love that I and so many others could relate to in your essay titled Stowaways. I’ve experienced a very similar unexpected weeping when we joined a new faith community after leaving a beloved church where I worked. This new faith community feels like home and is deeply rooted/connected to our own values and hopes for affirming accepting love. My children, simply put their arms around me and held my hands, knowing we all were feeling similarly about this holy spiritual moment, and connection to God. It’s been a year since we’ve joined this new faith community and it continues to feel like home.❤️
You had me with the words..."too activated to journal"...so good! Thank you for sharing this practice with us! And thank you even more for showing us the example from your personal journal...incredibly vulnerable and helpful. This is such an excellent idea for when "somatic experience is incongruent with my narratives"...just LOVE that language! Thank you, Emily🥰
Emily, thanks for this. The next time anxiety makes her obnoxious, fearful appearance, I'm going to grab a pencil and bid her a quicker farewell.
I absolutely love this. As someone in the absolute THICK of raising littles rn, and feeling allllll sorts of angst and overwhelm on the daily, I love this idea of “naming” what’s happening in my body visually like this alongside my healing work, too. Thank you for sharing!!
I have spiritual direction tomorrow and the beginning is "How is your soul?" I've been trying to think of how to answer that this month. (My soul is more at peace than last month, but still hard to describe.) This was the perfect practice to give some shape to where I am right now. One of the best things about it is that I can just write a huge cuss word that feels kind of weird in the context of a journal entry. Not wrong, just strange. Thanks.
The strange things usually have the most energy.
I LOVED this little practice!!! Really helped me this morning. Grateful.
Oh, I can't wait to try this!
"As we recover our life, we’re able to connect to the person who we actually are rather than a try-hard version of the person we think we ought to be. " is a very timely message for me as I transition from being a stay-at-home/homeschooling mom to re-entering the workforce.
And, "A person I trusted: We have been fooled." - whew, that hit hard.
Thank you for your vulnerability and for sharing some practical ideas.
How is it that you could write a Substack article that coincides exactly with the timing of anxious butterflies that I’ve had for last several weeks? Thank you for this timely piece! I needed this!
That is a very cool idea. I too have felt the body/ mind disconnect. It’s weird. I will try the drawing. And Emily, thanks for getting me to haiku sometimes. My mom taught jr high English and she absolutely was crazy for haiku and always taught it every year.
I don't think the footnote links for #1 are working fyi.
Yep- I just tried also…nothing 😕
Blerg. Just fixed it!
Thank you! Working! 🙂
Oh I love this!! It’s perfect for when my mind is racing with too many thoughts all at one time. And I want to figure it ALL out Right.Now. Thank you, Emily!
Can’t believe I missed this earlier, but it was just what I needed after a restless, sleep-deprived night. I am both a word nerd and a visual processor - this was perfect when I couldn’t find words for journaling this morning. My head says everything will be fine, but my heart doesn’t get the message and brings the rest of my body along in protest. Thank you - a practice I’ll remember and use.
Have you shared about this before? It feels familiar and so I am wondering if you mentioned it online somewhere or even at Friends? This was really helpful for me today. It can be so easy for me not to track how I really am - which is so much the work of spiritual direction and often other ministry work. As soon as you mentioned sweaty pits, I connected it to an experience today. Anyhow, the reminder to find our lives is a needed and good one. Thanks!
I shared it one cohort at Friends. It must have been yours!
Thanks for the reminder to slow and focus on smaller things. It can be so easy to be overwhelmed and my body easily remembers my past reactions. It has taken a long time and lots of practicing to teach my brain and body to slow and calm.
Emily, thanks so much for this post in connecting feelings to your physical experience! I recall (perhaps on an episode of your pod) you mentioned the benefits you have found from somatic coaching. Do you have any books or other resource recommendations to begin with?
I would also be interested in books about somatic practices
Love this. I am a financial coach and often ask folks to draw out their Frugality Monster that keeps them from spending money they saved to spend for that particular reason like a bike or home or vacation or even debt payoff. They often realize the shape is silly rather than scary even though it is giving them anxiety.
Emily, thank you so much for yet again, sharing a personal experience full of vulnerability and lighted love that I and so many others could relate to in your essay titled Stowaways. I’ve experienced a very similar unexpected weeping when we joined a new faith community after leaving a beloved church where I worked. This new faith community feels like home and is deeply rooted/connected to our own values and hopes for affirming accepting love. My children, simply put their arms around me and held my hands, knowing we all were feeling similarly about this holy spiritual moment, and connection to God. It’s been a year since we’ve joined this new faith community and it continues to feel like home.❤️