Remembering We Are Human Beings, Not Human Doings
I had to unlearn (and, truthfully, still am unlearning) the very lesson that I speak about on my podcast and on my social media channels — we are not human doings. We are human beings. We intrinsically possess masculine and feminine energies, and the key to healing is honoring our body as a means to come back to balance. Our bodies hold infinitely more wisdom than we could possibly imagine, and sometimes, being lost and turning inwards is the way.
Reaching the Finish Line and Still Feeling Empty
You see, I thought when I got to the place I was heading, I would finally feel relief and joy – the ever-anticipated exhale that one gets when they finally cross that finish line and can stop running and take some deep breaths. Not me. I felt none of that. I felt nothing really, other than tired, exhausted, and unable to take joy in everything I had built and created over the last decade of my life.
I had just published my first book, Ending the Diet Mindset, which had been a lifelong dream of mine. The written word, and language itself, had always captured my heart and created a sense of connection to the world around me. I just knew I wanted to write. I had created a successful career, and learned a tremendous amount about a subject near and dear to my heart, and so I poured it out into a book in hopes that it could be something in the world that could help make an impact. I completed a personal goal. Check.
So here I was, at the finish line of a very personal and professional milestone, and nothing felt the way it was supposed to. This was new territory, terrifying and chock-full of doubt.
From Thinking About Life To Fully Living In Your Body
Which led me to pausing. Which led me to looking at myself with curiosity and questions. Which inevitably led me back into therapy (yes, of course therapists go to therapy!). Which led me to realize that my relationship with doing would never change if I didn’t change my relationship with being.
Cultivating a relationship with being led me from a career focused on how we think about our life (traditional psychotherapy) to a career focused on how we are present — literally embodied — in our life (somatic psychotherapy).
Cultivating a relationship with being led me to realize I wanted less – much less – of everything but time and space. Cultivating a relationship with less led me to remember my love for creativity, exploration, and being in nature. It has led me to spending time in different spaces and places, both in the world and in my body. It has really changed everything, and I’m ever so grateful.
If you are curious about somatic psychotherapy and how it might help you feel more grounded, connected, and fully alive in your own body, I would love to talk with you.
You can learn more about how I weave body-based work into my therapy services by visiting my Trauma Therapy page, or reach out to schedule a free introductory call so we can explore this deep and lasting change process together.
