Real Food Stories
The question of "what to eat" can feel endlessly confusing, especially when we contend with our own deeply ingrained beliefs and stories around food. Blame social media, the headline news, and let's not get started on family influences. Passed down from generations of women and men to their daughters, it's no wonder women are so baffled about how to stay healthy the older we get.
As a nutritionist and healthy eating chef, combined with her own personal and professional experience, Heather Carey has been connected to years of stories related to diets, weight loss, food fads, staying healthy, cooking well, and eating well. Beliefs around food start the day we try our first vegetables as babies and get solidified through our families, cultures, and messages we receive throughout our lifetime.
We have the power to call out our food beliefs so we can finally make peace with what we eat and get on with enjoying the real food and lives we deserve. Listen in to find out how to have your own happy ending to your real food story. Connect with Heather at heather@heathercarey.com or visit her website at www.heathercarey.com or www.greenpalettekitchen.com
Real Food Stories
136. When Your Body Knows Before Your Mind: The Power of Somatic Healing
Feeling stressed, disconnected, or stuck in your head? In this episode, we explore how somatic healing, breathwork, and movement can help women in midlife calm the nervous system, release stored emotions, and come back home to their bodies.
I’m sitting down with Brittany Cessar, a guide and practitioner of Somatic Activated Healing (SAH) — a movement-based practice that combines breath, music, and gentle gestures to help you feel emotions rather than overthink them.
Brittany shares how this work carried her through years of painful eczema and emotional burnout, teaching her to find relief through safety, choice, and presence. Together, we unpack what “somatic” really means — and why it’s more accessible than it sounds. Think body scans, audible sighs, shaking off the day, and mantras that keep you anchored in the here and now.
She walks us through a typical SAH class, from mindful check-ins to “body keys” that invite states like compassion or courage, and the optional free-form movement that helps release stored energy without reliving old stories. The result? A calmer nervous system, a wider gap between trigger and response, and more steadiness in midlife when hormones, caregiving, and overwork collide.
We also explore how safety and consent are built into the practice — eyes open or closed, camera on or off, small movements or big — and how SAH can complement therapy when deeper emotions surface. Expect simple, practical takeaways you can use today: three slow, audible breaths, one minute of shaking, and radical single-tasking that turns ordinary moments into anchors.
If you’ve ever been told you’re “too much,” consider this your permission slip to feel fully, move freely, and let your body lead.
Where To Find Brittany and the SAH Classes
SAH class information click HERE
On Instagram Click HERE
I would love to hear from you! What did you think of the episode? Share it with me :)
Let's Be Friends
Hang out with Heather on IG @greenpalettekitchen or on FB HERE.
Let's Talk!
Whether you are looking for 1-1 nutrition coaching or kitchen coaching let's have a chat. Click HERE to reach out to Heather.
Did You Love This Episode?
"I love Heather and the Real Food Stories Podcast!" If this is you, please do not hesitate to leave a five-star review on Apple or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Hi, everyone, and welcome back to the Real Food Stories Podcast. Today I'm joined by Brittany Sesser, a guide and practitioner of somatic activated healing, a movement-based practice that helps people come back to their bodies through breath, dance, music, and meditation. Brittany's path to this work came from personal experience, a time when on the outside everything looked fine, but inside she was living out of alignment. Saying yes when she meant no, pushing through when her body needed rest, until that inner disconnect finally showed up on her skin as painful, relentless eczema. So through the SAH method, Brittany found a new way to process emotions, not by thinking her way out of them, but by moving through them, allowing her body to complete emotional patterns and return to a sense of safety and connection. Now she helps other women, especially those in transition or navigating chaos, learn how to regulate their nervous systems, reconnect with their bodies, and cultivate compassion for themselves, even in the hardest moments. So we're going to talk today about what somatic activated healing really looks like. So, Brittany, welcome. I'm so happy to have you here today and just talk to you about your story. And, you know, you described a time when everything looked fine on the outside, but you felt completely misaligned inside. So take me back a little bit, you know, give me a little bit about your background and what was the turning point that brought you to this practice of somatic activated healing.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, of course. So um I found the practice before I actually developed eczema. But um, and thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited to be here. Of course. So um I found the practice uh actually because I was already teaching an emotional, like I was already an emotional wellness coach. And I found this practice um because I felt like I was uh, you know, supporting women, but it felt so like analytical or all in the head. Like it didn't feel like we were really feeling the emotions. It was just like learning about them. And so when I found this practice, uh, it clipped like a light bulb went off. And I was like, that's it. We need to bring this practice into our bodies and actually feel these emotions and learn and teach how to feel them, not just what they are and you know, what they're doing, but also like how to just be with them, even when it's really hard. And so I was so grateful that I had learned this practice, got, you know, trained in this practice before I started um really developing eczema. But the other thing that's really great about this uh practice is that it had helped me heal other emotional things that I was building up. So I was building up resentment towards my roommate. Um, I had had a long, difficult relationship with my mom. And so I was working through those things. But um, when you ignore emotions for too long and they had kind of just been stacking up, and I was just going along life like normal, like uh there's nothing wrong with me. Like, you know, I'm going to work, I'm doing this, you know, filling the day with uh, you know, your regular life stuff, but not actually taking the time to be with the emotions. So when I started learning this practice, I started stepping into it. However, my body I think had already built up too much. And so during it's almost like coinciding with it. And I really sometimes think that I had to go through all of that so I could understand and teach even better what it's like to be in a really uncomfortable body.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, that well, that's a that's a really great point. I mean, sometimes, right, the the teacher kind of comes to you, right? And so probably having your own personal experiences makes you a great teacher because you know exactly how it feels, right? And and then how it feels to have something like eczema, you know, and right, when we don't process our emotions, it's gonna come out somewhere.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:So it might be eczema, it might be back pain, it might be a million different, you know.
SPEAKER_00:Any kind of like, you know, disease, you know.
SPEAKER_01:Right. So, okay, so for listeners who are new to this somatic practices, yeah. Can you just give a little background on that? On what does somatic even mean? You know, and then somatic activated healing. And how is it different from other mindfulness practices or movement practices, or you know, just going to yoga class, or just give me a little, yeah, okay, yeah, absolutely on what that is exactly.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. So I feel like somatic has become like this like super big like buzzword right now. And so uh, but all it really means is like bringing things back into the body, like a body-based practice. So there's lots of different somatic practices, just like even being with your breath is being somatic. Yoga is a somatic practice. You're moving your body, you're, you know, um, there's different like nervous regular regulation moves that you can do. Honestly, just like swinging your arms heavy is a somatic move. So um I think because it's so buzzed, it sounds like, oh, it's like, how I don't know how to be somatic. Like you're doing it, just take a walk. Like that's a somatic practice. So it's it's not um a tricky move or anything like that. And then um the guy, uh Saudi Simone, he's the gentleman that created somatic activated healing or the saw method. And he, you know, did lots of training in Tibet um with meditation teachers. And so he took all of these traditional uh modalities that we've done for, you know, since the beginning of time, like, you know, doing a trance dance, doing a dance where we come together and we move our bodies as a tribe, you know, so bringing dance together, bringing meditation that has been taught for years, and um bringing breath work, coming back to the breath and you know, using it in different ways. And then he just sort of made it more contemporary and we do it to a musical playlist and we kind of move through all the modalities, um, switching it up. And the main point of our practice is to just keep you in the present moment. So to not really give your mind a moment to go wander off into story. And so sometimes that's very easy if you're just trying to sit in meditation still for a long time. It can be really hard practice for someone who's just starting. So we do that by doing like a little bit of a body scan, and we're really just trying to connect with our inner world so that we can, you know, show up in the outer world like with less reactive and that kind of stuff.
SPEAKER_01:So is this a way of just getting your emotions out? I mean, you described it as like guided emotional an emotional healing practice. So what kind of emotions, you know, during the the session, what kind of emotions normally come up? Yeah. Is it hard for because a lot of people don't like emotions, right? They get very scared of of emotions. And and if you if you are saying to people like you might start crying, you might like and you're in a group study, a lot of yeah, right? I mean, it might like that people get a little bit more.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, so I think you're you're gonna like you're not going to do anything that you're not gonna allow your body to do. So, right, you're gonna show up at the level of comfort that you're going to put yourself into. So you're not just gonna show up and then like just start crying, you know. It's like you'll uh it's letting go and just shaking and all this stuff. It it may come up if you feel like you're you're okay to allow it. So there's um all these practices. We try to be very trauma-informed, you know, we give you choices like you can close your eyes or lower your gaze, you know, things like that so that you feel safe. And when you feel safe enough in the room that you're in, then I think you'll allow yourself to be in this practice to process your emotions. So most times if you show up to this class, that's kind of your intention. You're like, I'm finally ready to just get this out. So I haven't had anyone show up to class. I mean, I have had people that are like, I don't know what this is, but they're coming to a yoga studio, they're coming somewhere where they're like, I want some sort of healing. So typically I haven't run into someone who's just like, I haven't given this practice to someone who is not even um remotely ready for any healing. So, but uh yes, you can cry, but it's not like it will happen. We could also like, I've seen people like bust into like, you know, different, like like laughing because we do bring out joy and stuff too. We bring up that um, we do bring up anger, but I have had students like have a breakthrough and just cry and they just feel so much better. They're like, I just moved so much from my body and I didn't even know. So it will bring things up, but again, if you're staying in your comfort zone through the practice, it probably won't, you know, bust you through.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. Well, that's a really good point. I guess no one's gonna show up to this class, not right, with being completely naive and like I don't you they don't know what's gonna, you know, come up for them. And I think that right, they're they're there to for this purpose to sort of activate some emotional response or just to move some energy. Yeah, exactly. Right. So, what do you feel like, you know, for the most part, like what begins to shift with with people when someone learns to just regulate their nervous system? And like, why don't you share your story about maybe your eczema story, you know, about how so you're you're using this practice, you develop, I think, really painful eczema. Yeah, how has it helped you?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, so having this practice really helped me because um, if you've ever experienced eczema or if you haven't, it's just it's almost like impossible to want to be in your body. I mean, just imagine having like your whole legs and arms covered in insane mosquito bites or something, but then these mosquito bites like leak, and there's just yeah, there's a lot to eczema that I don't think like is really known if you don't have it. Because I never knew anything about it. So I was like, oh, you have dry skin, like that sucks, you know, put some more lotion on it, you know. But it's really not that at all. It's a complete gut issue. So it all has to be healed with your with food and you know, obviously removing uh emotional baggage from your body also helps process this. But beyond just trying to heal whatever ailments out there, being able to be in your body when it's uncomfortable and not um, you know, feeling like you have to fix it. Like I need what's the next thing? What what else can I take? What else can I do? How can I numb this? How can I, you know, take some sort of drug to do a quick fix? Because you're gonna try all of those things and then you're still gonna have to, you're still gonna have to be in your body. Like after the, you know, the dust is settled, you're still in your body. So how it helped me was um because in our class, we we don't just shake and dance, we also go back into meditation and we scan our body and we also take moments to feel the the emotions that are happening right there. And take, you know, technically emotion just stands for energy and motion. So what is moving through my body right now? So being able to sit and be with whatever is here, and so having that practice, I was able to sit with really, really uncomfortable um sensations that were happening in my body, like an insane itch. And I still have to do that today. Like I haven't completely healed my eczema, but I'm no longer in the like debilitating, I can't wear clothes because everything sticks to my skin. So um, but I still have to do that. And I had to practice it the other night. I was like, you know, I haven't done it in a while. So I'm like, oh, I don't want to do that. And I'm like, okay, nope, just listen to your body. It's just really wanting you to listen and tune in and it will pass. That's the beautiful thing, is even when I had my tooth pulled, this was like a really um crazy experience for me. I had my tooth pulled, it was like excruciating pain for days. I was, you know, taking the pain meds and um I had run out of pain meds and it's like late at night, and I'm like, okay, I can't get a prescription filled, like nothing's gonna happen tonight. So I just had to sit there and be with the throbbing, insane pain until I fell asleep. And I woke up and it just was never painful ever again. It just was like gone. And so sometimes I think there really is magic in being with your body and just listening to it and like giving it a moment of your attention, your love, and just letting it know, like, hey, I'm here with you. So that is more the beauty that this practice has given me than necessarily um just like you know, a cool somatic practice.
SPEAKER_01:So you use the word magic. So is it magic or is it that you have been practicing this and that you know how to calm your body down and you know, regulate your nervous system? I mean, right, because I mean magic, I I I'm with you. I I like, you know, I'm I like magic and all that stuff, but I I also like science. So I I think I want to know like Yeah, that's perfect. When you say, like, oh my toothache just went away, like I want to know what happened, why, you know, and uh so it sounds like you probably I mean are confident that you can calm yourself down.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, you can exactly there's different um ways to calm your nervous system. Uh, but one way is obviously to just be with the sensations and feelings. There is, you know, it's a traditional medicine uh meditation called the body scan. So doing that over and over and over again, you're teaching your body how to regulate and how to, you know, be with the sensations. You can sometimes pull energy from a calmer part of your body. So you can tune into the calmer part of your body and then kind of focus back again on like where you're feeling dysregulated, where you're feeling the tension, where you're feeling the tightness, and just kind of like notice going back and forth until you can use the breath as well, right? Using the breath to sort of imagine pulling some of the calmer energy into the more tense energy. And, you know, the more and more that you practice these like different uh modalities, you will of course get better at them and be able to do them when things are really, really tough. You know, if you can do it when it's okay and semi-comfortable to be in your body, then if it's really uncomfortable, then you'll have uh yeah, the toolbox there. Of course, it's not like actual magic, but it felt like that. And it felt like I had like discovered, like, oh my gosh, I can't believe this is happening, you know?
SPEAKER_01:And so again, like you did the practices and it worked, right?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, exactly.
SPEAKER_01:You know, if I work with a lot of women, my and my listeners are women in midlife, so we're going through menopause transition hormones, a lot of stress. Um, there's a lot of stuff that goes on this at this age, and and years of being disconnected from our bodies. So it's just been like kind of ingrained. So and overriding body, your body's signals and just ignoring things, pushing through, staying busy, wearing busy as a badge of honor, you know. And I know. So I think that's probably true for just a lot of women, no matter what the age. You just mentioned, you know, just when you had your severe toothache. Is what is that a good way to start? What's one like gentle way that you can just begin, you know, as a beginner to tune in and start listening to your body?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I would say, you know, connecting to your breath, you know, slowing down your breath. I mean, that's very easy and very accessible, and it doesn't cost any money and it doesn't take like, you know, training. Like, of course, there are modalities of breath work that get more and more complicated, and you do want to have a facilitator, but you know, just the general, I need to call my nervous system, like, let's connect to the breath. You know, we just kind of want to discard that because it just sounds so easy. And like, why isn't it more complicated? It has to be, it really doesn't, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Right, just like that, right? Just take three deep breaths. I know it sounds like, but I it can be really effective, I guess, right?
SPEAKER_00:Definitely, yeah, absolutely. Of course, immediately. I mean, we could do it right now. Like, we could all just, you know, take a moment, take an uh, if you want to lower your gaze or close your eyes, whatever feels safe, take a nice long deep breath. Imagine it starting at your stomach and then pulling it through your chakras, imagining it like a long straw coming to the top of your head. And if you can hold it there for three, two, one, and if you can audibly sigh it out. Doing an audible sigh also really, really helps um just move that energy out of the body. So, you know, like that was pretty simple. And I'm sure you semi-feel a little bit lighter. Absolutely.
SPEAKER_01:I know it's like something it's so simple, yeah. And it's doesn't cost anything. And I know there's a many, many times that I can I definitely catch myself. I'm like, I'm not breathing. Like, I don't even know how I've like taken like a full breath in the past hour. Like you can like almost feel yourself, you know, when you're like getting yourself stressed out or tensed up, that like you're almost like not you're not breathing fully. So that's a great first, I think.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, that's a good first step. The other thing I would say is try to be more present in everything that you're doing, no matter what it is. Like if you're writing a paper, write that paper and just really be with it or you know, whatever you're doing, brushing your teeth, like feel what it feels like, the sensations of brushing your teeth, you know. Notice what the water looks like as you're, you know, letting it drain down the sink. Like just trying to be like so crazily present and doing one thing at a time that will really help your nervous system calm down and be able to just take in what you're doing in those moments. And all of these things are are free. They just don't sound fancy and fun. You know, it's like, what? I have to slow down, I have to breathe, I have to pay attention to what I'm doing, you know.
SPEAKER_01:Right, exactly, right? Just right, the simple act of paying attention. And I think for so many women, right? We're we're multitasking, yeah, doing three things at one time. And and again, that's another like badge of honor, right? Right. We can get five things done at once, we can, you know, check things off the list. And yeah, I think it's just a really important to back up a little bit and and just practice that mindfulness and like doing one thing at a time and paying attention to everything that you're doing.
SPEAKER_00:I mean, that is a meditation practice, it's kind of like a movement one where you're you're active in the meditation, you're not closing your eyes, but you're just really active and present. And so the more we can stay present, the less we stay out of the stories in our head and we can stop ruminating on things that either haven't happened yet or you know, you happened earlier and that's creating. I mean, it's the thoughts in our minds that are usually causing that stress response and that because nothing, if you can stop and look, is really actually happening in front of you. Of course, sometimes there might be, but in generality, like nothing's actually happening in this moment. And so if you could just be present here, and so sometimes I have to remind myself if I catch myself being lost in stories, I'm like, whoa, whoa, whoa, I'm driving my car right now, everything's good, you know.
SPEAKER_01:Like, yeah, yeah, yes, I know, right? You could you can go drive for 50 miles and like not even remember how you like exactly point B because you're so stuck in your head and like stuck in stories and everything. I totally have been there before. Yes, I know, and you realize you're like, I need to focus and like stay present, just you know, just to like drive safely. But but I mean for every right for just everyday life, it's a good practice to have. Well, so tell me what a typical class, you know, we've talked about meditation, mindfulness, we've talked we've breathing, yeah. So we've talked about a couple of these modalities, but tell me what a typical class looks like.
SPEAKER_00:So we'll um definitely start with checking in with our body, so kind of like a uh a little body scan, and then we'll move into you know, shaking. So shaking is another really easy practice you can do to just like you know, animals naturally do it after something happens and just shake their body really quick. So you can do a full shake, you could just flick your wrists. All of this is helping you move different energy out. And if you can do it, we kind of do it with like, you know, let go of the week, let go of the day, you know, all that. And so we just do that for a minute or two, and that really helps just shift you out of whatever was going on earlier in your day, and you're ready to be more present and in this practice. And then we have these moves called body keys. So each body key kind of taps into a different emotion. And so um, we'll do, we'll mix the body movement. They're typically just with arms and they're very easy movements. Like one of them you can just scoop your hands and take a breath in, and then you're gonna act like you're pouring it over your head, and then you breathe out and allow it to trickle down your body with your hands. So, like that's an example of one move. So that's a body key, and that one's actually for more love. So you would just kind of breathe in and exhale and let it go. So we do these moves to different songs and it's curated, and then we speak mantras out loud while doing the move. Um, and then we move into an aesthetic dance practice, which just means you get to dance however it feels good in your body. Or um, if you're a little more advanced and ready, you can go into like a trance dance. So where you can kind of move chaotically or repetitively, so you can try and get completely out of the mind. That's the point of the entire class is to stay out of the stories, stay in the body and uh the present moment.
SPEAKER_01:Is this a practice? Because I know that for me, when I've been in workshops over the years, they were like, and then they'll say at the end, we're gonna do like a kind of something like that, you know, like a movement thing, and like everyone get up and and I know for me, the for I'm like, oh, there's no way I am dancing in front of people or you know, like, or show that feels very vulnerable. I guess it's like you know, you get definitely out of like my comfort zone at least. So for someone who's like, you know, a beginner at this, what do you what do you suggest? Or or is it is it not something for me? I mean, maybe it's it's something I have to uh, you know, maybe I just go and do meditation and breathe breath work rather than dancing. But do you feel like the dancing part is the significant part of the class?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and also keep in mind this whole class, you're never like, oh, we've been sitting and journaling or oh, we've been doing this really uh calm practice on the mat and then get up and dance. So the whole time we're all together looking crazy throughout the whole class. We're shaking together, we're we're moving our arms and active breath work, like we're doing this over and over again. So then after you've already loosened your like comfort zone, you are then asked, go ahead and move your body now however you want. So it can some people dance, some people like kind of slowly stretch, some people kind of go back into a shake. It's whatever you're comfortable with. We don't make it like that. That's the one part where there is no rules. So, like, yeah, if you would move as much as you're comfortable, I have definitely seen people come into my class who are not comfortable with dancing and they kind of just, you know, do what they want to do. Now, when you're ready to like actually have the breakthrough and freedom, you're gonna move your body so you look insane because this is not a dance practice. This is not a dance to like look pretty. Like that's you, it's really just like a wild body movement practice. Like, can you look as I try to tell people to can you look as crazy as you can? Because that's where the emotional freedom comes. When you can like get into a trance state and literally like move your body, that's when you're gonna have big breakthroughs. You're gonna like I've seen like different visions of people have, you know, you know, that's where they start crying and breaking down and like moving all these things. Is this a typical class every single time? No. But I have been to classes like that as not the teacher, but the guy that created it, where we all come who are teachers and we're really, really ready to move to the next level. So, of course, my first class, if it's your first class, like this kind of stuff isn't happening usually yet. It's just really like, can you just get comfortable moving your body? You know, that's really where we start. So I wouldn't like want to detour anyone being like, oh my God, I'm never going to that wild class. But if you come to them weekly, then you'll be more and more ready to move through more of your stuff. It's like a fast track instead of having to go and talk about all of your traumas and stuff, which I'm not, you know, saying to go to therapy is not good. That is a good uh thing to do as well. But instead of having to just keep looping on the stories and talking about it over and over again, you're coming here and you're basically taking out the trash without digging through it. You're just moving it out of your body and moving on, and we don't actually even care what was in the trash can. We're just letting it go. So when you want that, you'll do it. If you're showing up and you're just like, I don't really want to do a practice, I'm too scared, I'm not doing this. It'll probably take you a while, but you know. But if you once you're like, no, I want healing, I want this stuff out of my body, I don't want to keep ruminating on you know my relationship with my mom over and over again. Like, I want change. So if you're like craving change and you're ready, then like you'll show up for class in yourself. I believe it.
SPEAKER_01:Right. That's a really good point. And I and I love the analogy of just taking the garbage out and like getting moving it out and not having to sift through it and dig through it.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Because we could get caught up in therapy, right? If we didn't loop around in therapy and our stories and and so it yeah, I like I like that that's it's a an action step, right? Rather than a thinking, a thinking step. So, but beyond like your, you know, just back to you for a second, you know, beyond your your eczema and stuff, how has this work just on a daily basis helped you like meet challenges or triggers that just come up on a daily basis? Have you seen, have you noticed, you know, from just being a master at this practice, you know, that when like things come up? I mean, you've mentioned your mom, you know, that in that relationship and and your physical eczema. What about those little just micro triggers that come up on a daily basis? Like someone honks at you or swears at you on the str on the road, or like oh yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Totally. Yeah. So I I think it's given me uh like, you know, a longer reactive uh length, you know, where I'm not like as like flipping my lid if something happens so fast. I can uh take that back in a moment and see that there's like no time for reflection later and be like, hmm, what sort of old story in me uh happened in my childhood where this is, you know, still affecting me today? And it creates more of this like uh space, I would say, more of like a gap between my what's happening and my reactions. So the more you practice and the more you regulate your nervous system, the less you're just gonna start flipping your lid whenever something happens. And then it also this practice has just taught me so much more compassion for, of course, myself, but for others. And so when I can look at someone and see like what they're doing is also just their inner child, like, you know, reacting and freaking out and in in a different um, you know, seeing a different emotion, they're just scared, they're just depressed, they're just feeling grief, you know. The more you can attach those, like, oh, they're going through these emotions right now, and not that they are bad or what they're doing is them, you know, they're just also being reactive. And so when you can see others that way, then you can uh not be as reactive in yourself. True.
SPEAKER_01:Yes. That that that sounds like right, it reverberates then kind of out. But now what if um something comes up that's just triggering that you really weren't prepared for? You know, there's one thing to say, like, I just want to get my like baggage like out, but what if there's things that like come up that I was I wasn't even realizing, you know, we're sort of stuck in there? And how do you you know you know what I mean? Like, you know, yeah, uh the my relationship with my mom then really goes ties back to something else in my past, and and I'm having some pretty like deep emotions. I mean, how how does the class help that?
SPEAKER_00:So is it like you're saying you're Having like deep emotions like by yourself and they're just like coming up, or like you're having a reaction with your mom and she's triggering you really bad in that moment? Is it more of a that type of thing?
SPEAKER_01:Or uh I think what I'm um asking is you know, things that are kind of buried deep inside of you that you really just didn't realize and like through the practice, it sounds like it can move a lot of energy. Yeah. And and how do you just I I guess how to how do people deal with that, or how do you handle clients who then come up with like some bigger emotions than they had thought that they were going to come up with?
SPEAKER_00:Like in class, is that what you mean?
SPEAKER_01:In class, yeah. I mean, do you then do you see people then beyond that, or is it is it just your class, or do you recommend that they do go to therapy or you know what?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, absolutely. We do recommend that. I'm not a therapist, so I don't um necessarily go into any sort of stories with people. Like if they have something coming up and they want to explain what's going on, absolutely. Like we'll hold them in that space. Um, I personally haven't had anyone yet get to the point where it was just unbelievably awful. I've had people break down and cry, but they almost felt more relieved afterwards versus like this stirred up some insane trauma because again, we're not actually like talking about it. So we're not reliving the trauma in that moment. We're just moving out these old emotions that are stuck in there. So they're not attaching it, as long as they're not attaching it to a story in that moment, they're typically not like gonna be looping and spinning out. Like they're just going to actually have that energy release. Um, however, it decides to come out. Um, typically, you know, it's crying or laughing or screaming or whatever. And we actually invite you to like scream sometimes too, if if that's what we're doing in the class. Not every class is this intense, you know. So, but these things come up, of course. Um, but if someone were ever to come to me and be like, wow, I don't have a therapist, this was really strong for me, you know, of course, we would recommend that they go and um, you know, seek additional support. Um, I am highly recommend that. Now, if you're just talking about like um what happens if you get triggered by your mom and you weren't just chill, you know, about it. Uh, I would say in any uh conflict or whatever, you're you're quicker to repair. So like you're quicker to come back to the situation, even if in the moment you freaked out, you can uh you can come back. Because I mean, like, I'm a mom, I have a 10-year-old, you know, if she's nagging and nagging and nagging, I only have so much gap there where I'm just gonna be like, ah, you know, like stop it or whatever. So, but then if you can repair and go back and be like, look, you know, I was stressed out, I was thinking of 10 other things, and then you came in and I wasn't prepared for your energy. Like, I'm so sorry, this had nothing to do with you. Um, I apologize. And sometimes that can happen with your, your, your mom too, or anybody, really, your boss, whatever, whoever's um you feel like is, you know, attacking you or whatever. Once you have a moment to reflect on the situation, you'll have uh a quicker repair time, I would say. Like you're like, oh, I can go and fix this. I don't have to not talk to my my sister or my mom for 10 years because they did one thing. You can go back and fix the relationship sooner, I think.
SPEAKER_01:Through the class, that all feelings are allowed, even if you were needing to scream it out and cry and laugh. And I love that because I think in this day and age, big feelings are not allowed. I mean, they're just right, they're too scary looking. People might think you're weird, especially for women, right? We're not allowed to have these like giant feelings. And no, even in midlife, you know, going through like menopause, I just I see a lot on social media, a lot of joking about women being like bitchy or or just you know, being too emotional. And and I I and it just annoys me so much because it's like because we're not we're just never allowed as women, I think, to have like big feelings, right?
SPEAKER_00:And yeah, no matter what it is, it's too much, right? You're either you're too like uh you know, in your masculine, you're too in your feminine, you're not doing this, you're you're should be doing more of this. Like, yeah, we we never can get it right, according to society. So it is this really cool space. And when you do feel safe, then you do feel like I can let this out. I mean, I've heard of other, you know, practitioners out there like doing like rage retreats where women can just go and literally, you know, scream and beat things out, like in nature, because they're not allowed to like get any of this out of their body. And a lot of your emotions that you have in your body aren't necessarily just yours. They can be ancestral, they can be from your lineage, they can be from you know, epigenetics say that like these emotions are not just yours or like these uh these traumas and things that you're holding in your body. So that's why we say like you can go to therapy and you can talk it out, but it might be your great-grandmother's problem that's still in your body. So if you can move it out, and like um, you know, tribal culture always was doing the tribe dances and they were moving the stuff out of their body, and they were singing and they were doing mantras and they were doing this stuff to get this energy out of their body. So sometimes digging, like we were saying, through the trash, uh, it doesn't necessarily move it somatically. Like you're still like that's what I was saying when I found this class. I'm like, we can talk and learn about anger, and like, yes, anger is here. It's here to show you there's a boundary that's being probably overstepped. But what do I do about that? How do I get this anger out of my body?
SPEAKER_01:So yeah, I think that I mean it's it sounds like such a great way to do that, you know, in a safe way, right? Where no one's gonna judge you and exactly laugh at you while you're dancing, you're not dancing right and you're screaming and that person's not. So I think, yeah, it sounds great. So, how do people work with you? How how do they attend one of your classes and get into this practice?
SPEAKER_00:So, the other thing I was gonna say is a lot of it, I do teach classes online. So, a lot of this can be done in the comfort of your home. You can be like, hey guys, go away. I have an hour class or a 45-minute class, like, you know, family. I'm gonna be in my room screaming and stomping and dancing. And you don't have to worry about anyone being there. That's the beauty of them. That's how I originally learned how to do it was um online. And then, of course, I do teach live classes, which have a completely different feeling and vibe, and it depends on who you're with and your comfort level, but you can get a lot of breakthrough healing when you're doing it in your own bedroom. So I do have an online membership. Uh, I have a bunch of recorded classes in there and I teach it live in the membership, either once or twice a month, kind of depends on the month. And then um I do teach a free class at the beginning of every month. So if you're like, okay, this is interesting. I just want to kind of dip my toe in. I want to see what this is about. So we do it um on the first of every month. I kind of do it as like a refresh. So it's the new month. We can let go of whatever stories you had from last month. This is a fresh start. Let's, you know, it's called second bloom. Let's bloom again. This is your time. So that's my free class on the first of every month. And we just do it on Zoom. So um, you know, you can have your camera on. I love it if you do, but if you don't, you know, you're in your room by yourself. So you can look as crazy as you want and no one's gonna know.
SPEAKER_01:So that's great. I love it. I love it. I mean, that's a great like intro and to and just and it maybe even feeling safer if you feel exactly me, more intimidated by like exactly.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, no one has to watch you, girl. Do it in your room.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, no, that's great. And where are you for in-person classes?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, so I'm in like the east coast of uh Florida. I'm in Melbourne, uh, is the actual city. So I have local classes um here right now. They're like Tuesday night at 6:30 p.m. Um at a place called Soul Journey. Um, I am looking to probably in the new year, kind of maybe find some more places to teach. But right now it's kind of just whatever pop-ups sound about right events that I want to do. And then uh consistently right now at Soul Journey. So okay.
SPEAKER_01:Well, Bernie, this has been a very enlightening conversation for me, and I know for a lot of people, because I I just know that most women who I speak to who are listeners are just on the move. We're like pushing our feelings aside, yeah, in in lieu of like, you know, just being busy, busy, busy, and I'll get to that later. And and I think this is so needed and necessary to um just move our energy and just feel regulated and like peace inside of our bodies. I think that, yeah, I think it's a really great uh modality. And I and I'll I'll definitely link you in the show notes so people can find your classes.
SPEAKER_00:Perfect.
SPEAKER_01:And thank you so much. I appreciate your time and and um educating us about it.
SPEAKER_00:I really hope that you guys take a deep breath today.
SPEAKER_01:Thank you. I definitely will, I know.
SPEAKER_00:Good reminder. Thank you. Okay, thank you. Have a good day.