Emotions in the Body: A Somatic Invitation to Winter Healing
In Chinese medicine, emotions are not just psychological—they are physiological. They don’t simply pass through the mind like clouds; they settle into the tissues, circulate with the blood, and ride on the breath of qi, our life force.
When emotions are unexpressed—when sadness is swallowed, anger restrained, or grief pushed down—they don’t vanish. Instead, they generate internal heat, a kind of friction that builds quietly over time. This heat begins to dry the body’s precious fluids, the very yin essence that keeps us moist, resilient, and responsive to the world.
As fluids deplete, our internal environment becomes unstable. The flow of qi—like a river in drought—loses its natural rhythm. This can manifest in countless ways: emotional reactivity, insomnia, pain, hormonal shifts, fatigue, or a sense of being disconnected from ourselves.
In somatic work, we recognise that emotions are not "in the way"—they are the way.
They are not problems to be solved, but sensations to be felt, expressions to be met with kindness, and invitations to come home to the body.
Through movement, breath, and presence—especially in the still, yin season of winter—we create the conditions for emotional digestion.
We invite qi to move freely again.
The heat is allowed up and out.
The fluids begin to return.
What was tight or inflamed becomes more spacious.
What felt overwhelming becomes clear and manageable.
This is not about purging or catharsis.
It’s about listening deeply to the undercurrents—to what your body is quietly holding.
So if you find yourself exhausted, aching, or weepy for no clear reason this winter, consider it an invitation. Not to fix, but to slow down. To drop in. To move and breathe in ways that tend to the hidden parts of you.
Because when we meet our emotions somatically, with kindness and awareness, this too is energy - we allow the qi to flow again. And when qi flows, healing follows.
Emotion = Energy in Motion
Emotions are not just thoughts or moods — they are energy moving through the body.
AN INVITIATION
Mini Somatic Practice for Home
A gentle 3-minute check-in.
You can do this tonight, just before bed or anytime you feel numb or emotional.
Put your phone down. Let yourself arrive.
Sit or lie down so you feel comfortable.
Close your eyes, or soften your gaze and turn your attention inside.
Ask yourself:
What am I noticing in my body?
(A sensation with significance - tightness, tingling, heaviness, heat, numbness…)Is there an emotion connected to that sensation?
(Sadness, irritation, anger, grief, confusion, or perhaps something unnamed)Is there a story behind this emotion?
(It might sound like “I’m doing everything,” “I can’t believe that happened,” or “I need to speak up…”)Allow the answers to arise without judgment. This isn’t about solving—it’s about listening, discovering, and allowing more understanding. It’s easy to go days without noticing what’s right there in our bodies. And often, simply acknowledging it can bring immediate change.
Three minutes of presence can shift everything.
