Understanding Your Body: The Language of Sensation

Many of us were taught to ignore our bodies or view them as "unreliable" machines. However, your body is your most honest communicator. Trauma isn't just a story in your head; it’s a series of physical patterns—tension in the jaw, a fluttering in the chest, or a "heavy" feeling in the limbs.

Interoception: The Inner Sense

Interoception is the ability to feel what is happening inside your body. To practice this, take a "Body Scan." Start at your toes and move up. Instead of judging what you feel (e.g., "This pain is bad"), try to describe it neutrally: "There is a tightness here," or "I feel a pulsing sensation."

The Body as a Container

Your body has an incredible capacity to hold emotion. When you feel a "big" feeling, try to locate it physically. Is it a knot in your stomach? A heat in your face? By identifying the sensation rather than just the emotion, you make the feeling smaller and more manageable. You aren't the anxiety; you are the person feeling the tightness in your chest.