What Your Body Is Trying to Tell You

I used to think healing was something I had to figure out with my mind.

If I could just think differently. If I could just reframe my thoughts. If I could just be more positive, more disciplined, more "healed."

But the truth is, my mind was the last place to catch up to what my body already knew.

My body knew that relationship wasn't safe—long before I admitted it to myself. It showed me through the knot in my stomach every time I saw their name on my phone. Through the tension in my shoulders when they walked in the room. Through the exhaustion that had nothing to do with how much sleep I got.

My body knew I was overwhelmed—before I could name it. It told me through the tightness in my chest. The shallow breathing. The way I couldn't sit still, couldn't relax, even when I tried.

My body knew I needed rest—even when my mind kept saying "just push through." It whispered through the heaviness in my limbs. The fog in my brain. The tears that came out of nowhere.

Your body has been trying to tell you something.

The question is: are you finally ready to listen?

The Intelligence of Your Body

Here's what I've learned: Your body holds a wisdom that your mind hasn't caught up to yet.

Your nervous system has been keeping score your entire life. Every experience. Every relationship. Every moment your body decided "this is safe" or "this is not safe."

It remembers:

• The times you said yes when you meant no

• The times you stayed when you should have left

• The times you performed when you needed to rest

• The times you smiled through discomfort to keep the peace

Your mind might forget. Your mind might rationalize. Your mind might tell you "it wasn't that bad" or "I'm fine."

But your body? Your body remembers everything.

And it's trying to protect you—through sensations, through tension, through that gut feeling you keep ignoring.

What Your Body Is Saying

Your body speaks a different language than your mind. It doesn't use words—it uses sensation.

Here's what I've learned to translate:

The knot in your stomach = "Something here doesn't feel safe"

The tightness in your chest = "I'm overwhelmed and need to slow down"

The tension in your shoulders = "I'm carrying too much"

The shakiness, the racing heart = "I'm in fight-or-flight and need to discharge this energy"

The numbness, the fog = "This is too much. I'm shutting down to protect you"

The exhaustion that sleep doesn't fix = "You're not resting—you're just collapsing from depletion"

For years, I ignored these signals. I thought my body was being dramatic. Inconvenient. Weak.

Now I understand: my body wasn't working against me. It was trying to save me.

The Day I Started Listening

I'll never forget the moment I realized I'd been ignoring my body for years.

I was sitting in my car after a long day, and I noticed my jaw was clenched. My shoulders were up by my ears. I was on the verge of tears but I couldn’t even let them out so the feeling just sat in my chest, heavily.

I hadn't even noticed until that moment. I'd been so disconnected from my body for so many years that I didn't realize I was walking around in a constant state of tension. I could always feel it, but I didn’t realize how much damage it was really doing to me.

That's when I understood: I'd been living in my head, completely cut off from what was happening below my neck.

And my body? It had been screaming at me the whole time. I just wasn't listening.

So I started doing something I'd never done before: I started asking my body what it needed.

Not what I thought it should need. Not what my schedule allowed. But what it was actually asking for.

And slowly, I learned to hear it. Listening to my body is an act of radical self acceptance. Tell yourself, it’s OK to slow down even when the world says you’re not enough. Love yourself more than how the world will love you by honoring what you truly need.

Three Practices That Changed Everything

If you're learning to listen to your body for the first time, here are three simple practices that helped me reconnect:

1. The Body Scan (5 minutes)

Find a quiet place. Close your eyes or soften your gaze. Starting at the top of your head, slowly scan down through your body.

Don't try to change anything. Just notice.

• Where do you feel tension?

• Where do you feel open or relaxed?

• What sensations are present?

• Is there tightness, heaviness, warmth, tingling?

Name what you notice without judgment. "I feel tightness in my jaw." "I feel heaviness in my chest." "I feel tension in my shoulders."

This practice teaches you to be present with your body—without trying to fix it.

2. The Pause + Ask (Throughout your day)

Set reminders on your phone (3-4 times a day) that say: "Check in with your body."

When the reminder goes off:

• Pause what you're doing

• Take 3 deep breaths

• Ask: "What does my body need right now?"

And then—this is the important part—honor what comes up.

If your body says "rest," rest.
If it says "move," move.
If it says "I need to cry," let yourself cry.

This practice builds trust between you and your body.

3. The Discharge (When you're overwhelmed)

When your nervous system is activated (anxious, overwhelmed, panicky), your body has excess energy that needs to move through.

Try this:

• Shake it out: Literally shake your hands, arms, legs for 1-2 minutes. It sounds silly, but animals do this naturally to release stress. It works.

• Press and release: Press your feet firmly into the ground. Press your hands into a wall. Then release. Repeat. This helps you feel grounded.

• Move: Walk, stretch, dance—anything that helps the energy move through instead of staying stuck.

This practice teaches your body that it's safe to release what it's been holding.

Why This Matters for Your Healing

Here's the thing about healing: you can't think your way into a regulated nervous system.

You can understand trauma intellectually. You can know all the right language. You can read every book and listen to every podcast.

But if your body still feels unsafe? You're not healed—you're just more informed.

True healing happens when your body finally believes: "I'm safe now. I don't have to be on guard anymore."

And that doesn't happen through thinking. It happens through feeling, moving, releasing, and reconnecting.

It happens when you stop overriding your body's signals and start honoring them.

It happens when you give your body permission to finally rest, to finally say no, to finally feel what it's been holding.

An Invitation to Come Home

If you've been living in your head—disconnected from your body—this is your invitation to come home.

Your body has been waiting for you. It's been holding space for you. It's been trying to communicate with you.

And it's ready for you to finally listen.

Start small. Start today.

Check in with your body right now:

• Where are you holding tension?

• What is your body trying to tell you?

• What does it need in this moment?

You don't have to have all the answers. You just have to be willing to ask the question.

Your body knows. It's always known.

You just have to learn its language.

A Prayer for Listening

"Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?" — 1 Corinthians 6:19

Your body isn't separate from your spirit. Honoring one honors both.

A Practice for This Week

This week, practice checking in with your body 3 times a day.

Set reminders if you need to. Make it simple:

1. Pause

2. Breathe

3. Ask: "What does my body need right now?"

4. Honor what comes up (even in small ways)

Notice what shifts. Notice what you've been ignoring. Notice what your body has been trying to tell you all along.

And remember: you don't have to have it all figured out. You just have to be willing to listen.

With love and belief in your body's wisdom,
Taylor Rachelle

The Healthy Mindful Girl

P.S. I'm creating a comprehensive guide on nervous system regulation, somatic practices, and embodied self-care—with 20+ practices like the ones I shared today, plus templates and tools to support your healing. If you want to go deeper into learning your body's language, this guide will be your roadmap. I'll be sharing more soon. 

If this resonated with you, I'd love to hear: What is your body trying to tell you right now? Hit reply and let me know. I read every response. 💌