Your Body Is on Your Side: Here’s How to Work With It

Have you ever noticed how your body seems to have a mind of its own?
Maybe your heart races in a meeting, your stomach tightens when you see a certain name pop up on your phone, or your thoughts spiral even when you tell yourself to calm down.

It’s easy to think your body is overreacting, or worse, betraying you. But here’s the truth: your body isn’t against you. It’s protecting you.

🌿 Your Nervous System’s Job: Keep You Safe

Your nervous system is wired to detect and respond to anything that might feel unsafe.
It doesn’t wait for your conscious mind to analyse the situation - it reacts first, fast, and automatically.

If you’ve had a negative experience with someone or something in the past, your body remembers.
So, when a similar situation appears, it sends a signal:

• Your heart might race

• Your stomach might tighten

• Your mind might flood with protective thoughts like “Ignore them” or “Get out of here”

You’re not overreacting, you’re experiencing your body’s built-in protection system saying,

“Pay attention. Something matters here.”

💫 These Signals Aren’t Flaws - They’re Messages

Your body communicates through sensations, not words.
Tension, restlessness, or a racing mind aren’t mistakes — they’re your body’s way of asking for care and awareness.

When you start to recognise these cues, you can respond rather than react.
That’s the moment where choice begins.

✨ A Mini Self-Check Exercise

Next time you feel that familiar wave of tension or overwhelm, try this simple three-step check-in:

1. Pause and Notice
Take a moment to sense what’s happening in your body.
Where do you feel it? Your chest, stomach, jaw, or hands?

2. Breathe and Acknowledge
Take one slow breath in through your nose, and exhale slightly longer through your mouth.
Silently say to yourself, “Thank you, body, for looking out for me.”

3. Choose with Awareness
You don’t have to follow the impulse to fight, flee, freeze, or fawn.
With awareness, you can respond from the present moment, not the past.

These small acts teach your body that safety can exist within you, even when things feel uncertain.

🌙 Learning to Feel Safe Within

Regulation isn’t about forcing yourself to be calm, it’s about building a relationship with your body that feels trustworthy.
Each time you pause, breathe, and listen, you’re showing your nervous system that it no longer has to do the job alone.

This is the foundation of emotional regulation, self-soothing, and true inner safety.

Need help with this? Book in a free discovery call for online or in person sessions in clinic. We are here to support you and your calm.