Somatic Healing for Wellness-Focused Women

(#106) End of The Year Recap Through a Somatic Lens: 2025 Reflection & Journaling Practice for Growth, Courage, and Creativity

• Rae The Somatic Coach • Episode 106

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Feeling the pull to reflect on this past year in a way that’s intentional, embodied, and grounded? In this cozy and contemplative episode, Rae guides you through a somatic end-of-year practice to help you integrate the lessons of 2025 and gently prepare for the energy of 2026.

✨ Using the lens of the Chinese Zodiac, Rae explores:

  • The meaning of 2025 as the Year of the Snake and the Wood element
  • Why this year may have felt more quiet, inward, and transformational
  • What to expect in 2026: the bold, adventurous Year of the Fire Horse
  • The power of personal shedding, integration, and spiritual growth

Plus, you’ll receive 4 guided journaling prompts to help you:

  • Reflect on your growth, self-soothing, and identity shifts
  • Acknowledge where you’ve shown courage
  • Recognize the inner and outer strengths you discovered
  • Celebrate creative expression and nervous system resilience

🎧 Whether your 2025 felt spacious or sticky, tender or transformational, this episode will support you in closing the year with presence, intention, and compassion.

📌 Mentioned in this episode:

🌱 Core Values Discovery Sessions – book yours via this link

🧘‍♀️ Free Breathwork & Meditation Resource Library – access when you join the monthly newsletter

✍️ Want more reflection prompts? Sign up for Rae’s newsletter to receive monthly somatic tools, writing prompts, and updates

If this episode resonated, please leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts to help others find this work!

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Disclaimer: Please remember that the information shared on this podcast is intended to inspire, educate, and support you on your personal journey. It does not substitute for professional mental health advice. I am not a psychologist or medical professional. If you are experiencing distress, mental health challenges, or medical conditions, please seek help from a qualified professional.

SPEAKER_00:

Welcome back to the podcast. If you are new here, I'm Ray. I'm a somatic coach and breath work facilitator. And if you aren't new here, welcome back. I'm so glad that you are tuning into today's episode. So for today's episode, I wanted to dive into the end of the new year. So kind of reflecting on 2025, what that experience could be like. Personally, I really love this time of year, just that like the end of the year and the beginning of the year in general. And I know that there are some challenges that can come up around this time of year as well. The holidays can bring up a lot for a lot of different people. I know for my for me personally, I've also had a lot of loss around this time of year. So there are, you know, waves of everything, but generally speaking, I do really love this practice of reflection, this practice of looking ahead, connecting with your values, and then kind of like seeing what is in store for you. I also really love that this time of year is like cocooning. It's so nice where you kind of like retreat inwards. And I actually talked about this idea of what's called wintering in uh another episode around this time last year, episode 59, if you want to check that out. Um, but it's really a time to, yeah, like slow down, be present, rest. It's it's really nice. So I did do some research for today's episode and today's topic around the Chinese zodiac, and I wanted to use that as a way to reflect on 2025, and I was really curious about what 2026 is all about too. So that's kind of what we're gonna dive into today. And I'm also going to share some journaling prompts at the end that you can use to reflect on 2025. So I'm really excited. So giving an overview of 2025, and again, this is from like a Chinese zodiac perspective, uh, that was the year of the snake. And the snake is all about your intuition, transformation. It's like a shedding, it's like a letting go, and it's more gentle and inward, so it's not necessarily this like loud, chaotic year. And it was also a year of the wood element, and I've talked about all the different elements in previous episodes, uh, more towards like flower essence, because that's something that I really love too. Uh, but the wood element is all about growth, healing, renewal. So, really, this year of the snake and that energy would bring a lot of like personal inquiry, clearing and letting go of old beliefs, relationships, identities. Uh, it's a year of focusing on your education, your spirituality, your emotional intelligence. And it's also a year of these more quiet, gentle inner changes and shifts rather than maybe anything really kind of like dramatic happening externally. So, after doing this research and reflecting on my personal year, in general, so far, what I can say is that for me, a lot of things just make a bit more sense now. So I have been working with a practitioner who has a background in RTT, energy work, breath work, hypnotherapy, hypnotherapy for about a year now. And I've talked about it a little bit on the podcast. And yeah, it's been like really impactful for me. So this year, reflecting on 2025, I just feel more grounded, I feel more confident with less of like that fixing energy. So less of that like um that like anything needs to like change or be different. Things feel a lot uh quieter internally for me, and that feels really nice. And it's also just generally for me been a quiet year. Like, I don't know if I have any, you know, crazy uh achievements or anything really like crazy, all that crazy that has happened. Um so it's really been a year of like, yeah, recalibrating, integrating, and yeah, it's been really, really nice. I'm like really grateful for this year. I've really enjoyed it. I feel like I've had a lot of fun. I've tried a lot of new different things. Um, and that's been like really nice for me. And I really resonated with this idea of the shedding, like the letting go, like how a snake sheds its skin. Um and I've let go and released a lot of old beliefs, old ways of being, friendships, resentment. So so much feels like it's been lifted, and that feels really good too. And then I also was really curious about yeah, what's the deal for 2026? Like, what's what is that year? What is the energy? And so I was excited to dive into this. So 2026 is the year of the horse. And the horse, well, first of all, I just love like the symbol of um symbolism of a horse in general, like they're so beautiful, but anyway, besides that, the meaning of a horse year is all about freedom, adventure, passion, independence, leadership, like totally encapsulate encapsulates a horse. I love it. So horse years are fast, they're expressive, and they're bold. So this could look like having more passion, more visibility, more confidence, more drive. So it's definitely um works also. I don't know if I already mentioned this, but it's also the element of fire. And yeah, fire like is intense, it's passionate, it's creative, it's bold. So the combination of the horse and the fire in 2026, it can bring about big leaps, new adventures, travel. It can bring about career shifts, uh, also burnout. That was like the first thing that I thought of. I was like, oh my gosh, so much fire energy. So uh if you are prone to burnout, definitely allowing yourself to pace yourself through this next year. Um, it can also bring about a lot of creativity and leadership, and it tends to be more of an outward energy, whereas 2025 was more of an inward energy. So I thought that was really cool too. So if you also identify with kind of that like more quiet 2025, uh it should be really cool to see what 2026 brings. So I think I'll do another episode that really focuses specifically on 2026, like as we get closer. But for right now, I wanted to, yeah, work with that reflection and uh stick with 2025, the year of the snake and the year of the wood element, and provide you with some journaling prompts. So these are questions that you can journal on, you can answer them, you can come back to them later. But just generally speaking, I would invite yourself to intuitively move through the closing of 2025 and the opening of 2026 and what those chapters look like. I know for myself, my my reflection kind of likes to linger, you know. I towards the end of December is when I really start feeling it. And even a bit in the beginning of 2026, or I guess this year it'd be 2026, but in the beginning of January too, sometimes I'm still like reflecting on the year that's passed. And then as January continues, then I really feel like this feeling of like a new year, and then maybe that's when I'll start with like the vision of what you know I want the next year to look like. So there's no right or wrong way to do it. It's just a matter of like what feels good for you and your pace. And I feel things so like deeply in my body, so I just really like listen to my body and I'm like, okay, like, is it, you know, what do I feel like doing and what's speaking to me most? What's pulling me in what direction? And then and then I go from there. So I'm gonna read through these questions and I'm also gonna share a little bit as I read them too. So the first one is in terms of your identity, who did you outgrow this year? And I really like this because um, yeah, it's like what did you let go of? It works with that shedding of the snake. And for me, I think I really was able to work with that people-pleaser part of me. I feel more able to like advocate for myself now, and not so much in a way where I feel like I'm forcing things, but in a way where I feel like I'm able to express myself and share more about like what I might need. Something also that I outgrew this year was the best way I can describe it is around comparison. So, like really feeling like now that I understand myself better in a deeper way and in a different way, really understanding like what works for me might not work for somebody else, and what works for somebody else might not work for me. And that like I understand that from like the work that I do from like a trauma perspective and like nervous system regulation perspective, but this lesson in particular was more around like like what people want. And so, you know, really having for me, really having more awareness around myself allows has allowed me to really be more comfortable with what it is that I want, even if it doesn't make sense to somebody else. Because again, like what works for me won't necessarily like work for somebody else. So that was a really cool lesson for me to learn this year. Question number two In what ways did you learn to self-soothe? And I love this question because again, I feel like it's empowering you. I feel like it's like a good way to yeah, observe like where did you grow this year internally? And that feels really good. So the first thing that came to mind for me was around boundaries. Again, that goes with that people-pleasing piece that I just mentioned before, but yeah, I feel like my boundaries got an upgrade this year, and that feels really good. When you're not used to navigating kind of like conflict around holding your boundaries, it this can be really, really uncomfortable. So I feel like I did uh a good job in that area, and that was really nice to be able to. I guess why that came to mind, just bringing it full circle, um, to be able to self-soothe through that discomfort was really nice. And then also the second thing that came to mind was working more with my creativity. So this year I got really into writing. I was in a writing club, I was writing poetry. Um, I, you know, I write everything that I put in my newsletters, and that is a piece and a place of expression for me. I create all my podcast episodes, so that feels really good too. Um I also got into drawing and painting. So I took a few drawing classes this year, which was really fun, at a one at a local preserve, and then another, actually, the other one was also at a preserve. Who knew? Who knew that preserves had our classes? I had no idea. But I took two different ones. One was a for doodling, and then one was for like the foundations of drawing 101. Um, I did a painting challenge where I painted for 20 days, and that was super fun. And in both experiences, I was just literally the intention was to just like have fun and like learn something new and just like enjoy it. So I did. And then I also got back into reading this year, which was really, really fun. I read so many amazing fiction books and amazing non-fiction books, and I could probably actually I'm gonna write this down. I will, I should probably do a podcast episode on what my favorite books of this year were what were was, because it was uh it was so fun. I loved them. And if I don't do a podcast episode for the books that I read and like that reflection, I'll definitely share it on my Instagram or maybe in my newsletter. So, question number three: what strength did you discover that you had? And I think for me, two things came to mind. The first is something more literal uh around physical strength. So I've been going to the gym consistently for this this specific gym. I think maybe I've been going there for like a year and a half now, maybe two years. Um, but it's all like lifting weights. And so I put physical strength. I definitely learned that I'm like physically strong, and that feels really good. And the second thing that came to mind was around disagreements. So a strength that I think that I've discovered that I have is more capacity to be uncomfortable in disagreements and being able to hold the space for that to happen, being able to communicate, not shut down. Um, so that also goes with that people pleasing and also goes with those boundaries. And so that was definitely a strength that I discovered that I had this year. All right, and last question, question number four: where did you choose courage this year? I love this question. It's empowering. It feels good when you talk about courage and when you connect your personal lived experiences with courage. That feels, yeah, really empowering, really good for building that self-confidence too. So for me, two things again came to mind. The first is that I started a new job in the beginning of this year where I partnered, or I am partnering. I'm I'm still working there, but I'm talking about it like it's past tense, but it's just because of this practice. Um, I'm working for a private practice where I do somatic therapy. And I was really nervous to dive into this position when I first started. Um, I wasn't sure how it was gonna go, and I felt like I was kind of rolling the die in a few different areas in terms of like uh what working for a private practice could look like and doing that. So I will say that I absolutely love the practice that I work for. Um my supervisor, her name is also Rachel by coincidence. Um, she's lovely. She I've learned so much from her as a practitioner, but also as a business owner. So it was a really good decision, and I'm really glad that I did it and I kind of took the leap, quote unquote. And that was, yeah, that was like really nerve-wracking. Anytime I think you start a new job, you're unsure of how it will go. So I think I chose courage with that decision. And then another, the second thing that I had on my list was around the inner work. So I think anytime that you are tuning inward, you're being curious about yourself, I think that takes courage. I think it's really hard for us to look at our shadows and our shortcomings and be on this path of like personal growth and self-development and all that good jazz and healing trauma. I think that absolutely takes courage. So I hope that you liked these four questions. I'll repeat them all one more time here and now as well. So the first one is in terms of your identity, who did you outgrow this year? The second one is in what ways did you learn to self-soothe? The third, what strength did you discover you had? And the fourth, where did you choose courage this year? So I hope that you enjoyed this journaling practice. You can revisit it, come back to it, allow yourself to intuitively move through it and have fun with it. And that is what we have for today's episode. So I hope that you enjoyed this practice. I had a lot of fun with it, and I hope you have fun with it too. Um, if you would like to stay connected, definitely check out the show notes. There is a link there to sign up for the monthly newsletter. The monthly newsletter comes with a few different journaling prompts, practices, podcast updates, life updates, a little bit of everything in there. And it also gives you access to the resource library, which has about 20 different uh breathwork meditation practices in there that I add to throughout the year. And that's completely free. Um, and then I'll also mention before I sign off here that I am offering uh core values discovery sessions. So this is an opportunity for you to be guided through a really fun practice around discovering what is important to you, what are your core values? And that is really at the root of everything. And so discovering what those are and then using that as a jump-off point to create your vision and your goals for 2026. So you can also check that out in the show notes. And yeah, that is what I have for you today. So I hope you have an incredible rest of your day. I hope you have an incredible rest of your week, and I will talk to you soon. Thank you for being here and tuning in to Somatic Healing for Wellness Focused Women Podcast. If you were moved or inspired by today's episode, please take a moment to leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. It truly helps the podcast grow and helps more people find me on their healing journey. Make sure to check out the show notes to sign up for the monthly newsletter, links to more resources, opportunities to work with me, and ways that we can stay connected. If we aren't already connected on social media, head over to Instagram to follow me at Ray the Sematic Coach. Send me a DM. I'd love to connect with you, and I answer each note that comes in. I am so happy you're here, and I cannot wait to talk with you on our next episode of the podcast.