Last week - I was nudged, not so gently, by my body. It was a reminder that sometimes, the body knows what we’ve been avoiding, and when healing calls, it asks us to slow down and listen.
I was bogged down with what was likely pneumonia. I had known I wasn’t feeling well, but it wasn’t until I sat with it and looked deeper that I began to understand what my body was trying to tell me. I turned to the work of Michael Lincoln in his book, “Messages from The Body: Their Psychological Meaning.”
I referenced pneumonia which he links to suffering, suppressed grief, and the feeling of being stifled or restricted by certain relationships or situations. The inability to let people in or out, feeling emotionally “stuck”.
Some of this deeply resonated with me. Other parts, not so much. But it was enough to spark a reflection on my own repressed sorrow - especially around how I sometimes feel like I can’t let people in or out and truly be myself. Michael Lincoln describes it as a survival strategy, comparing it to walking around with a plexiglass phone booth around you. That image made me chuckle, but it also struck a chord because, for so long, that’s how I felt - emotionally cut off, protected, yet isolated.
As I reflected on this, I realized this “protective” strategy was likely shaped by my own journey with emotional abandonment, and was up for conversation to transmute. It’s something I’ve carried for a long time, and this pneumonia was my body’s way of saying it’s time to release it.
Before this, I had been asking Spirit for more love, more joy, and more fun in my life. And here I was, hit with pneumonia - a frustrating but powerful reminder in order to make space for joy, we first need to clear out the old beliefs and wounds that block it. It wasn’t what I expected, but sometimes the healing process works mysteriously.
For a quick moment, I went into frustration; I was supposed to be driving to Arizona in a one-on-one session with clients, and all of it was being forced to a delay. It took me a moment to shift but I did. Instead of frustration, I was able to shift into patience with myself and with my body’s process.
When healing is needed, we have to go in - we have to slow down and allow our emotions to surface.
It became clear how much emotion I had been hanging onto. Particularly grief, and how necessary it is to let it move through me.
Heavy emotion, like grief, isn’t something to avoid; it’s something to honor, to feel, and to allow to flow, so that it can heal us.
As we navigate an ebb and flow of collective energy, and as we approach the holidays, I know many of us may be feeling that collective grief - the weight of emotions we haven’t fully processed.
Whether it’s loss, disappointment, or simply the heaviness of this time of year, I want to offer a gentle reminder: feel what you feel. Don’t force yourself to rush through it or “be okay” if you’re not. Grief has its own rhythm, and when we allow it to move, it can transform us.
So to help Unmanic your Monday, here is a simple practice you can use if you’re feeling heavy with grief this week:
Find a quiet space where you won’t be disturbed. Light a candle or play soft music if that feels right for you.
Sit comfortably and take a few deep breaths. As you inhale, imagine and / or feel a light within helping you opening to whatever emotions need to surface. As you exhale, release any resistance to feeling.
Bring your attention to the area in your body where you feel the grief most. Is it in your chest? Your throat? Simply acknowledge its presence without trying to change or fix it.
Allow yourself to fully feel the grief, without judgment. If tears come, let them flow. If there’s tightness, sit with it. If it wants to move, do some energy work to shift it if that calls. Stay present with whatever arises.
When you’re ready, close the practice by placing your hands on your heart. Give thanks to your body and spirit for allowing you to feel and heal.
Grief is an important part of our emotional landscape, and when we give it space to move, we create room for joy and love to enter.
If this resonates with you, I encourage you to try this practice, and if it feels right, end it with a moment of gratitude for yourself and the journey you’re on. We are all healing, one breath at a time.
Sending love to each of you as we navigate the emotions of this season together.
