Body Soul Spirit
314 Laycoe Lane S7S 1H6 Saskatoon, SK, Canada

When feeling unsafe doesn’t match our present situation. The aftermath of trauma left unresolved, can superimpose the past into our present years even decades after it has happened. It can feel very confusing or as if we are broken in some way when feelings inside of us don’t match with what is happening around us. Trauma is caused when we are unable to release the overwhelm of stimulation in our bodies from an event. Trauma is not an event. It is not what happened to us... but what we hold inside without an empathetic witness. When unresolved trauma is activated in our bodies it feels like it is happening in the present moment. The cognitive memory piece is not attached to the uncomfortable felt sense of fear. As meaning making beings we create a story to try to rationalize why we feel this way. It is normal to try to make sense of the mismatch of emotions with an experience. To release the traumatic energy bound up in our system it is important we experience safety. Safety internally, safety in our relationships and safety in our environment. Having safe support and relationships helps re-establish trust. Feeling calm and safe is important in healing unresolved trauma in our bodies. Here to empower you, Xox

We are unable to access compassion when we are in active self protective states of survival. When our system is activated by a cue of danger our biology automatically takes us out of safety into an emergency response of fight/flight or a dorsal (collapsed) state in service of survival. It is normal to feel more critical, judgmental or a sense of hopelessness towards ourselves and others in activated states of self protection. If you find you are talking to yourself in a crit...ical tone or feeling indifferent or numb with yourself or others, this is a human response when your system is triggered into a survival state. You are not a bad person. The amygdala (part of your brain) has been hijacked and it plays an important role in our emotions and behaviour. The active amygdala also immediately shuts down the neural pathway to our prefrontal cortex, the rational thinking part of our brain. The ability and capacity to access compassion returns when we are feeling safe and our system comes back into regulation. Be gentle with yourself and know that you make sense. As you cultivate more safety within yourself, in your relationships and your environment, you will begin to notice more self love and compassion towards yourself and others. Here to empower you, Xox

Difficult emotions and experiences like anger, anxiety and depression are uncomfortable to talk about. We may feel judged or viewed as though we are weak in some way. So it is normal to hide or try to bypass how we are feeling, with a think positive approach. We cannot rationalize our way into how we should feel. 80% of nerve fibres send information from the body to the brain, only 20% is brain to the body.... So 80% of unsafe messaging is coming from our bodies, we have to address our body to change our experience and to feel safe and present. Here to empower you, Xox

The saying What happened in the past, stays in the past is a misbelief that can further carry wounding and pain not only in ourself but in our lineage. When trauma or a disconnect from safety happens without an empathetic witness to process and integrate the experience. It becomes stored in our bodies, stuck and frozen in time, as an emotion, a felt sense, an image, a sensation, a thought. It becomes internalized and disrupts safety in our self, in relationships with othe...rs and in union with our own spirit. It has the capacity to affect us our entire lives if left unresolved. Life goes on, we adapt and the trauma is stored on a cellular level and categorized unconsciously without our awareness. When we bump into related stimuli to our original core wounding we reactivate it just as if it is happening in the present moment. It triggers a stress response from the unresolved trauma, the overwhelm and flooding of emotion and sensations can cause our system to automatically adapt into a survival state to protect us. Survival states ensure our survival not our wellbeing and vitality. Our bodies are amazing and adapt to cope in such incredible ways to survive but truly dampen our human experience in relationship to self others and spirit. Hiding our pain or making ourselves small to appease others or even spiritually bypassing by forgive and forget does not bring healing to our bodies and community. (I know because I tried all of the above.) Surround yourself with safe support, with people who are trauma informed and educated. Friends, family, doctors and pastoral staff can have good intentions but not be skilled and resourced with the necessary toolbox for healing unresolved trauma. When you feel your system get activated and your biology takes you into a protective survival state. It is normal to want to disconnect or even want to disappear and not feel or deal with the pain inside. You are not alone. Hand in hand we heal together in a relationship of safety. Here to empower you, Xox

Accessing emotions can lead to the release of memories related to those feelings. Experiences that overwhelm us and cause us more harm if felt fully in the moment are relocated to our unconscious until our capacity to fully feel and digest them are established. The unconscious plays an important protective role. It is a reservoir of feelings, thoughts, urges, and memories that are outside of our conscious awareness. It stores experiences that we are not able to digest in th...e moment. Our capacity to process our unconscious experiences shifts with. -willingness. -innate guidance of Spirit. -degree of safety and stability. -grounding. -awareness. -curiosity internally. -safety & consciousness within immediate environment. If you are experiencing overwhelm and finding yourself operating more in protective states than presence, I want you to know that you make sense. How you are functioning does make sense with scientific proof through a polyvagal lens. One tolerable step at a time you can begin to show your system you are safe now. Healing is possible. Thinking of you, Xox

Healing leads to a greater capacity of intimately understanding ourselves with compassion. We truly are a masterpiece, designed to survive. When we don’t understand how we are wired it is easy to feel frustrated or even angry when our mind & body goes into a self protective mode. With both cognitive (mind) & somatically (body) awareness of how our autonomic nervous system manages our safety internally and in connection with others, we begin to see ourself through a lens of ...compassion and great love. Building more capacity in our system can be healthy or stressful and potentially re-traumatizing if encountered without the appropriate resources and capacity for self regulation and containment. I am here to help resource you as you build capacity to process unresolved experiences. You are not alone in this journey. Xox

The tree said, Lean into me. It is safe to surrender.... It is safe to be supported. It is safe to let go. It is safe to trust your body. When we trust ourself and surrender in the safety of support to let go of what we thought would overwhelm us from pain...a miracle happens. We make room for the unexpected. Love is forever in spirit. No matter what we loose or is taken from us in this lifetime. Love remains and is forever. She is His. Here to empower you, Xox

Stillness. Pendulating between the reclamation of the soul and walking in freedom of the birthright of spirit there is a corridor. A space to integrate and alchemize the pain with purpose.... Introspectiveness and grounding to embody our power. This is a necessary space for our body to be able to contain our history in presence. To disarm our coping mechanisms and eject buttons and embody our truth. Savour the space, to digest and to adjust. Don’t rush through the corridor, opening doors and crossing thresholds without time to honour the pace needed to process. Here to empower you, Xoxo

Wiggle your toes... Remind yourself where you are today, in this moment. You are safe.... You survived. The more you learn about yourself and your history the more empowered you become. The past doesn’t own you anymore and your body and mind are working through the trauma. There is a way through. You don’t need to be strong all the time, we can do this together. Sending your heart so much love and compassion. Breathe, You are not alone. Here to empower you, Xox

Flourish. What do I need to flourish in this human experience. If I compare myself to a plant, what do I need to be healthy and blooming?... 1-Room to grow. 2-Right temperature. 3-Light. 4-Water. 5-Air. 6-Nutrients. 7-Time. An integral part of moving from surviving to thriving in my own life is deconstructing what I need. To thrive in this human body as a human I need to tend to my whole being. Body. Soul. Spirit. Flourishing is a state I create as I tend to each dimension of my whole being. This is not a static place or achievement but one that is dynamic and has an ebb and flow with life and the environment I live in. Flourishing is not the opposite or absence of something. Flourishing is a process that involves me actively choosing what I need to be healthy and bloom. If you apply the 7 elements a plant needs to be healthy and blooming, what do you need to flourish? I would love to hear from you, leave me a comment. Here to empower you, Xox