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Heal Yourself Podcast
A podcast diving into all aspects of healing; from nurturing your relationship with yourself, to functional medicine insights, to transforming your money story, we're here to empower you with the knowledge and tools to create lasting change.
Heal Yourself Podcast
Episode 67, Throwback: How Stored Emotions Impact Your Body And What To Do About It
Emotions don’t disappear when we ignore them—they take up residence in the body and start running the show. We dig into how suppressed feelings become physical symptoms, why the nervous system can’t tell the difference between a memory and a moment, and how traditional Chinese medicine maps specific emotions to organs like the liver, lungs, kidneys, and spleen. Along the way, we share a powerful remission story that links chronic anger with autoimmune hepatitis and the multi-pronged path that brought lasting relief.
We also get practical. You’ll learn a simple emotions audit to spot your daily patterns, plus tools to move stuck energy: 60-second box breathing to reset stress, journaling prompts that reveal meaning without judgment, EFT tapping for targeted relief, and somatic options like yoga, intuitive movement, and myofascial release. We challenge “toxic positivity” and offer a more honest approach—name the feeling, let it move, then reach for a better feeling thought that is believable and calming. Small shifts compound: from “What if everything goes wrong?” to “I’ve handled uncertainty before.” That’s how you reclaim power without bypassing what’s real.
If you’re tired of being “right” but not well, this conversation invites you to choose relief over rumination, embodiment over avoidance, and agency over waiting for a savior. Track your top emotions this week, experiment with one tool, and notice what changes. Ready to keep going? Subscribe, share with someone who needs it, and leave a review to help others find the show.
We just reopened our retired programs, the ones that changed so many lives. If you’re ready for deeper healing work to pair with the podcast, this bundle is your next step.
These three programs were originally valued at $700, and now we’ve bundled them for just $97, over 85% off. It gives you real tools to support your body, calm your nervous system, and move forward on your healing path.
Click on this link to start today.
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Welcome to the holiday season. We know December gets busy, so this month we're sharing throwback episodes. This is one of our most downloaded. Enjoy the episode. Welcome to the Heal Yourself Podcast, where we dive deep into all things healing. I'm Denise, a speech language pathologist and a self-love coach for adults and teens.
SPEAKER_01:And I'm Kira, a traditional naturopath and functional nutritionist, and we are here to guide you through the transformative process of healing your body, mind, and soul.
SPEAKER_00:From the latest in functional medicine to nurturing your relationship with yourself, healing trauma, and even transforming your money stories. We're here to empower you with the knowledge and tools to create lasting change.
SPEAKER_01:So whether you're looking to heal physically, emotionally, or spiritually, join us as we explore the many paths to wholeness and wellness. Welcome back for another episode. And today, Denise and I are chatting all about emotions. I'm gonna say this every episode, but I love talking about this. Um just because right, I really am. Um, emotions are just energy and motion, and they have to move through us. And when we look around us, there's a lot of people suppressing emotions. I mean, Denise, I'm sure you can relate, you know, it's something that all of us deal with, but we all do, we all have, and we still do. We do. It's it's a work in progress. That's why we say healing is the journey, like it's there's not an end. But suppressing those emotions over and over and over leads to a buildup of energy in the body. And then we start getting gut issues, hormone issues, like all the things. And that's why I think it's so important that we have this conversation today, because many people just ignore emotions, right? Or they let them pop up or they suppress them, but they don't know how to move through them appropriately. So we're gonna talk about that.
SPEAKER_00:The other thing I want to- We analyze them way, sorry, or we analyze them way more than we need to, yeah. Like we get into the story of analyzing the emotion. Like, why am I feeling this way? What's going on?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, yeah, I totally agree. Well, and the body doesn't know the difference between like real life and a thought, which is so crazy. The first time I heard that, I'm like, what do you mean the body doesn't know the difference? But it doesn't. So if you're consistently getting yourself into an emotional state that's not serving you, the body's gonna put itself in spider flight or freeze because it doesn't know the difference between real and imaginary. Um, and that's where it goes back to the body keeps the score. That's the name of a book, which we highly recommend. But it's also a good reminder, you know, the body is keeping the score. It's not just the physical things that you're doing to it, it's those emotions that have either run rogue or you're suppressing, or you're like Denise said, overanalyzing. And the body is keeping the score, those things store in the body.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I mean, because everything is energy. Where are they gonna go? They're gonna go somewhere if you don't express them healthy, you know, healthily, they're gonna go somewhere. So um, according to traditional Chinese medicine, um, each negative emotion gets stored in an organ. So it's we really wanted you to know so you kind of are more aware. And later on, how we're gonna give you a tip how to, you know, some ways to move those emotions. Um, so for example, anger is stored in the liver. Okay, so every time you are angry and overly angry and you're not and you're suppressing it. So we're talking about suppressing, not like you know, expressing. So anger is stored in the liver and it's associated with frustration, irritability, and rage. And what does it do? It leads to headaches or high blood pressure.
SPEAKER_01:And I'm gonna chime in here because I I knew this one just because I I don't even think I shared my husband's story, and I I won't right now, but he was diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis years and years and years ago. And that's when I started looking at alternative medicine also, and I was like, anger, and it was it was so true. There was a lot of anger that was just again, I'm gonna use the term running rogue. It's not that he just had a moment where he got angry. That's fine. You want to feel that emotion, but when you're sitting in it, when that anger has not been resolved and you're holding on to it for years or for decades, it's storing somewhere. And I do firmly believe that was a big driver behind his autoimmune hepatitis diagnosis. And yes, we did stuff from uh nutrition and a functional medicine standpoint, but he also started getting into that, you know, Chinese medicine and worked with someone to release anger, and his autoimmune disease has been in remission ever since. So just throwing that one in there.
SPEAKER_00:Wow, yeah, no, I mean, and we've talked about it in the previous episode, you know, self-love is the foundation of healing, and self-love requires you to look at those emotions and what am I holding on to and what is serving me? Do I really need to hold on to this anger for this long? Yeah, so yeah, wow, okay. Give us more, give us more. Yeah, more. All right, so grief and sadness, they're stored in the lungs. So we're talking again, grief and prolonged sadness, like you said, prolonged anger that you keep harboring, that you keep dwelling, that you keep it keeps running road. Um, and then it can um obviously, because it's stored in the lungs, it weakens the respiratory system and it can cause things like asthma and chronic fatigue. So it's grief and sadness. Uh, fear is stored in the kidney, okay, chronic fear, right? Constantly being afraid. We're not talking about like you're afraid of something and then you know here and there. Again, every time we're talking about those emotions, it's the chronic that you consistently hold on to. And what does it do? It weakens the kidneys, obviously. And it is also linked to willpower, believe it or not. So this, so again, fear, it is stored in the kidneys. What is it gonna lead to? Adrenal issues, ladies, problems or lower back pain. Aha.
SPEAKER_01:I know like adrenals. We always hear adrenal fatigue, adrenal fatigue, and maybe we'll do an episode on that one day, but I think that's huge. There's a fear piece, and I'm also gonna chime in here too. And I don't know traditional Chinese medicine um in terms of the fear piece, but I will say just uh in my research also in other aspects, fear also just is linked to digestive issues. So I mean, kidney is you know, I'm just gonna say gut issues in general. Fear can be a big one there too.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Uh, worry and overthinking, that's me. And I remember when I started doing acupuncture, she would tell me spleen, spleen, spleen. So worry and overthinking, yep, gets and she would see it from my tongue. Um is stored in the spleen. Excessive worry and overthinking affects the spleen, which is responsible for digestion and nourishment. What does it lead to? Again, digestive problems, fatigue, or poor appetite. So by now, if you do have digestive issues, we do recommend that you definitely listen to this episode and see how you can navigate and heal some of those emotions. I feel a repetitive pattern happening here. Well, you know what that's interesting.
SPEAKER_01:Sorry, you know, I'm just gonna interrupt you, but the it's interesting to think about that too, because it can be one or the other. Like I've never been a warrior, but let me tell you, I've been an overthinker, probably coming out of the womb. So that makes sense with digestive issues.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, yeah, yeah. Exactly.
SPEAKER_01:Okay, sorry, go.
SPEAKER_00:Uh so no, no, don't be you're dead. That's the thing. That's how that's our podcast, right? It's a conversation. You can stop crying, and then I can interrupt you. Uh so shock, shock is stored in the heart and the kidneys. Um, it can disturb the heart rhythm and it can lead to anxiety, and um, yeah, so it can lead to anxiety. So that's constantly being shocked, you know, and then perceiving everything as a shock.
SPEAKER_01:And I'm chiming in again, sorry, but not even just constantly for something like shock, it can be a really traumatic event. And I think that's important for us to point out too. Like, yes, sometimes these emotions, if you continue to feel them, but if it's a profound one like shock, and I'm talking like what happened in North Carolina with the hurricane, right? Yes, that is shock for some people because they're still living in that state or like a really bad car accident. So thinking through that too, and and we'll talk about this a little more, but I just wanted to point that out and I'll I'll shut up.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, no, that makes a lot of sense. Thank you. Thank you for saying that. And sometimes we I forget, but yeah, absolutely. It is the the you know, the the trauma, or like for example, people living in the war, that is that's a trauma. Um fear of the future is stored in the heart, and we constantly are anxious about the future, constantly afraid of the uh, you know, other things that's gonna happen in the future, that is um basically considered chronic anxiety about what's going to happen, and it leads to insomnia, restlessness, and heart palitation. So as you can see, according to traditional Chinese medicine, that those negative emotions that we harbor get stored in the body again, it is readable that the body keeps the core, and it's time to move the stagnant emotions that you actually don't need anymore. So yeah, sometimes emotions are negative, and that is okay. So I think we have a misconception of like all of our emotions need to be positive, but again, not everything is you know corn and rainbows and daisies, right? So it I mean, we're human beings, we have an array of emotions, and we shouldn't just constantly like oh my goodness. Well, and that was me because you know, I'm I was leading this, you know, I was on this spiritual journey. Like, why am I feeling negative emotions? But negative emotions are telling you something, they're opportunities for us to learn. So I mean, it's a choice, right? So, for example, you can be pissed off at your significant other about something, or you can choose you can choose to remain angry and then ruin your day and give away all of your power to this one incident, or you can be like, let it go. And I know we're gonna talk about um the power of the now in a in a future episode, but just letting it go means you know, yes, I am angry at this moment about this incident, but I'm choosing to let it go. It's a choice at the end of the day, right? So you can choose to keep those emotions going. Yeah, yeah, and that's the and you know what really helps me though? You know what really helps me is that giving it my power away. I'm like, you know what? I need that power, I need me, I need it to last me off weekend day. So why am I giving why am I giving it away for stupid shit?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, well, and that's what I was excited now. I was gonna say too, like, sometimes we get in the well, I I want to stay mad because they were in the wrong. Okay, but is that gonna is that gonna change anything? Like, what is that doing for you staying angry at that person just because you feel right? It's a control issue, and maybe that's another episode, but absolutely it's not worth it.
SPEAKER_00:And what does it not worth it? And what does Wayne Dyer say, our favorite? What does he say? Would you rather be happy or right? Yeah, dude, I'd rather be happy. I don't give a shit about I used to. It was me being right, right, right, wanting to be right. But honestly, when you let that go and you choose to be happy, screw it. I don't care about being right or wrong.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, okay. Well, let's talk about moving some of this and what it means. So, first thing you kind of touched on it, but I want to point out that feeling emotions isn't weak, right? Like it's okay to feel sadness, it's okay to feel frustration and anger and all of the things. Like, we should have you mentioned an array of emotions, like it's a rainbow, right? The issue is when people start suppressing those emotions, they start pushing them down, they don't want to deal with them. Something's too painful, right? Like something traumatic happens, the loss of a loved one, and it's like, I'm not gonna deal with it. I just I want to move on. There's a difference between a quick thing of like, my husband did something and it pissed me off, and I can let it go, versus something like this major event happened and I'm just gonna ignore it. Like that is a totally different scenario, and that is not what we're encouraging. Little things, let it go. Major things, feel into them, you know, get all those emotions going. Um, and those emotions can be great learning opportunities too. So, one of the things that I do with my clients sometimes, if I notice that they're getting into emotions or they're not feeling emotions, I tell them to ask themselves a few things. So, first is what are the top two to four emotions that you're experiencing on a daily basis? Because this can be a clue if you're getting in your crap, right? If you're like, well, I feel anger every single day. Okay, why is that? Like, what's going on in your life where you've got anger every single day? Um, so getting into that, okay, what are those emotions I'm getting into every single day? Jot it down. And then what are the two to four emotions I want to experience daily? Like joy and happiness are in the top for me. Um, it might be something else for you, but if you're not getting there, again, this is work for you. And then write down one to two times when you let your emotions get the best of you and you were angry, upset, depressed, whatever, and come up with some strategies, which we're gonna talk about, where you can shift those emotions, whether it's simply a choice or it's one of these tools we're gonna talk about. But that is a powerful thing because a lot of times we're not even looking at our emotions, like we're not even paying attention. And when you can seriously jot down those emotions that you're going through on a daily basis, you're gonna start to see some patterns.
SPEAKER_00:Wow, I love that. I love that, Kira. And I know that we're asking you sometimes to jot things down, to write down, but to be honest with you, I mean, that is the awareness is the first step to healing anything. And then how are you gonna aware if you're just not gonna write it down or put it somewhere or really reflect on it? I mean, yes, pen and paper is great and we love that. However, it could also be a quick thing on your phone. All of us have, I mean, I don't know. I know that the iPhone has like the note section, but I'm sure Android has like another tool where you can, you know, write yourself notes. So just take out your phone and then do that in case you know you're busy and you don't have the time to sit down and journal. But it's really important to know that awareness is the very first step. And that's why we we always, you know, one of our tips is always to kind of like journal things out, to write things down, to reflect. Uh, so like we said, the emotions are stored, right? They need to be moved, they're not just gonna stay stagnant, right? So we need to move them. And we're gonna give you a few tips. I already talked about journaling. So journaling is one of them. And it could be as simple as, you know, what is this emotion trying to tell me? Or just ask questions. Why am I feeling anger? Why am I if we are angry every day, why am I angry every day? What's where is this coming from? Is this my emotion? Or is this an emotion I learned from somebody? Is this mine? Where is it coming from? Where is it stemming from? So sometimes just asking these questions can trigger the answer. It doesn't have to be right away, but it can be over time. So journaling, breath work, breath work, breath work, breathing, breathing, breathing. And that's something free, right? That you have, and you don't have to buy lungs or buy some breath. You'll just do it. Or even better, when you go to a breath work class, because they will lead you into also somatic movement and how that breath can, you know, get the emotions up, and then you can let them go with sound and movement as well. I've done some breath work sessions and I really enjoy them. Yoga, there are a lot of yoga poses just aimed for releasing emotions. So you can Google which ones or um if you follow, I mean, just doing yoga and the stretching, it is just moving your body and moving those emotions. But you can definitely uh look up specific yoga poses if you're too much into yoga. Uh EFT tapping, that's my favorite. I do have the Tapping Solution app, and I love it for love. I do it as much as I can. Today I did the tuning the chakras, uh, tapping meditation to align all of my chakras and to clear them. Uh massage or what I love is myofascial release. So they release the fascia. I've done that a few times, and you do feel amazing. Not just the while being amazing, your body feels good. Like I felt a little bit more flexible, like I was able to move my joints better when I when I did that. Um massage, myofascial release. Am I forgetting anything as far as somatic moving? I mean, dancing, yeah, dancing, moving your body, any anything that you get to move your body and to I know that if you have a lot of anger, a good one is to um punch a pillow. I mean, don't punch any, don't punch a person, please. But you know, like expressing that. Um, I do some screaming in the car to let go of rage as well.
SPEAKER_01:Um I think that's it's tapping into what it's what you need too. Like that's the thing is yeah, you're huge fans of intuition. Like, what do you feel like you need in that moment? And listen to it. You always have the answer.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, absolutely. So we give you some of them. Feel free to try or you know, ask us the questions if you want to. Um, but but if you find yourself really angry, really getting upset or emotional over something, we definitely recommend one that's again free because it requires breathing. You put your hand over your heart, you hold your attention with gratitude, and you do the 60 seconds of box breathing. So five seconds in through your nose, you hold for five seconds, and then you let go for five seconds through your nose, and then you hold that letting go for five seconds. It's like a box. And again, you can also Google box breathing. But as a first step, I truly recommend going to a breath work session or doing one online because you'll you'll um because if you have stored a lot of emotions, you definitely want to do something with a facilitator. Don't just like do it all by yourself. And then sometimes they have them online or in the community. And maybe we can interview uh one of my teachers, uh, not teachers, sorry, facilitators that I go that I go to. She does them online and in person.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. So and you know. I I was doing the box breathing with you, but another thing I just didn't even think about would be would be emotion code for those that like emotion code can be a game changer where you're releasing some of those emotions. You got to find a practitioner. Although, I mean, the book emotion code, you can attempt to do it on your own. I haven't seen a lot of success with it, but that's another option too. There, and that's the thing. There's so many modalities. Our big thing is the awareness. Like, are you ignoring emotions, suppressing them, getting stuck in them?
SPEAKER_00:Like what's happening and move from there and numbing them. Numbing them. Let's not let's not forget that we numb them with some liquor. Yeah, or other things. Yeah. Or other things or other things. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. Well, and then the other thing I want to say about this, this is not a tip, guys, but it's it's something for insight is there's a thing called toxic positivity, right? And that's what we don't want. And I do see that sometimes where people will say, like, I'm happy, happy, happy, um, everything's fine, it's gonna be great. And it's like, that's not helpful either, because now you're just pushing away negative emotions. And again, they have to go somewhere. It's energy and motion, they're storing in organs and tissues and other places in the body, then if you're not working through them, so we can't be positive all the time. That's not the goal. The goal is to feel our emotions and then to recognize when we're getting stuck in them, you know. So, like I start my day, and if I'm in a foul mood when I wake up, I have to ask myself, why is that the case? And I can choose now to move those emotions versus I'm just gonna continue to ignore everything negative that ever happens to me and try to smile through it. That's not gonna be helpful, trust me.
SPEAKER_00:Um, right. And I and I did fall into that trap where, like, you know, when I was doing my when I got on my spiritual journey, and then I was like, oh my goodness, like negative emotions are bad. So a tip for you, don't label them as good or bad, right? Don't give them meaning, don't give them anything. They're just it's a negative emotion. Okay, I feel just give it the name. Oh, I feel the anger right now, I feel frustration, I feel blah, blah, blah, fear, doubt, etc. And let's just let and maybe it could it could helpful to love on it versus like you know, beat it down.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. 100%. Well, and that every emotion has a purpose, right? And you said, I love that. It's kind of like food. Stop labeling it as good or bad, um, because that creates a meaning. And we don't need a meaning behind these emotions, it just is what it is. They're helping us learn something. So feel them, allow them to move through you, but then decide, is this emotion serving me right now? And if it is something traumatic, then yeah, maybe that emotion really is serving you in the moment, but in the future, you can change that. So even the uncomfortable ones, anger, sadness, rage, whatever, they have a purpose. So allow them to be there. We're not labeling them, but then allow them to move.
SPEAKER_00:Absolutely. Just like we say with food, listen to your body, listen to your body here, and to emotions. They're here to serve you, right? Just like the symptoms that we've talked about in the past, right? They're here to serve you. Um, another tip is because sometimes I get it, sometimes it is harder to let go or to feel those negative emotions and to get out of them. I get it. It's it's not easy, it's not easy. I know, and we've done it and we've done the work, and same her and I, we still communicate and be like, I'm feeling this, I'm feeling that. Like, it's not gonna go away. You're a human being. Yeah, um, so what I really love, and I learned this from um the teachings of Abraham Hicks, it's find a better feeling thought. Right? So recognize the emotion that you're in, and if and if it's bothering you, like, oh my goodness, you know, there's anxiety here or there's fear, let's find a better feeling thought. So I'm gonna give you some examples, but then of course you apply. And I will recommend that you read the book and I'll um list the name because in the book, uh Abraham Hicks gives a lot of examples about different areas in life, et cetera, so you could relate to them or not. So, for example, let's say the negative thought is what if everything goes wrong? Because you're feeling anxious about the future. What if everything goes wrong? I'm so scared. But a feeling thought could be it's okay not to know everything. I've faced uncertainty before and found a way through it. Is this gonna, oh my goodness, magically take everything away? No, but it's a better feeling thought.
SPEAKER_01:And that's the thing too that I think is important is like we don't go from I'm so scared to I feel amazing. And I you know what I mean? Like it has to be a subtle, a subtle shift.
SPEAKER_00:Like step.
unknown:I know.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, but well, again, because we're still looking for the magic wand. So if anyone finds it, just send it our way. Yeah, I mean, it's just gotta be gradual, absolutely. Um, another example could be when you don't feel like you're measuring up, you're comparing yourself, let's say you're like, I'm not as good as everyone else, but we we all fall through that trap. And a better feeling thought could be everyone has their strengths. I have things I'm good at too, and I'm growing at my own pace. My daughter always teases me. She always says, Well, I wish you're able to do hair because I don't know how to do the braids, and I don't know, like, and you know, and she's she's a dancer, so sometimes they require braids, and but I mean, finally I've got the bun together, right? And that's it. And then she's like, Why can't you? Why can't you be like so-and-so? Why can't you be like so and so? It's like to be honest, because I have my own strengths and hair and braiding is not one of them. So, yeah. Anywho, um, the the book that I recommend, other than The Body Keeps the Score, if you want to explore your emotions and um better feeling thoughts, it's called The Astonishing Power of Emotions. Let your feelings be your guide by Abraham Hicks.
SPEAKER_01:I am I, you know what? Wow, I have not read that one, but now I'm adding it to my list. So you gave me something new. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:I mean, not everybody loves the teachings of I love them. I mean, it could be something, I mean, it could be try reading it. I know.
unknown:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. I still providing a list. I'm always happy to add books to my list. Even if it doesn't resonate, there's gotta be something in there I can take from it. And I love learning about emotions. So thank you.
unknown:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:So I mean, our takeaway today is pretty simple, right? Create the awareness again, look at your emotions, look at what you're getting into on a daily basis, decide if it's serving you, because again, it boils down to choice. If you're in a foul mood every day, you know, with whatever emotions running through you, you're letting that be a choice. And you have the power to shift that into something better. And you've got some tools now, some simple ones, and you've also got tools for when you're not expressing them. So start taking action. You know, we're gonna continue to say this, but yeah, the goal of the podcast is for you to learn new aspects of healing, and this is one of them.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, may I add something? Yes, of course. Also, there's there's no one that's gonna come to save you. You are the one who's gonna save yourself. So that's why we keep talking about there's no magic wand, it's just not gonna appear. It is you making the different choices. So I really love what you said about you have the choice, you have the decision. Yes, it may not be the best, or you know, you're like, uh, but it is your choice to either harbor the anger or explore and see, is this even your emotions? Because sometimes I have emotions that are not even mine, things that I've learned. So I've just let them go. And I say, those are not mine, they're not mine. Go back to where you came from. So, but it's a constant practice.
SPEAKER_01:It is, it is, and it goes. I'm also gonna throw in it goes back to gratitude, one of our previous episodes, too. If you can get into a state of gratitude, it's very easy to shift emotions. And I forgot to mention that earlier. Okay, all right. Well, if you like this episode, guys, please subscribe, share it with people that you think would benefit. We would also love reviews. This is a new podcast, this is only episode five for us. So any love you can give, we would highly appreciate it. And we will see you on the next episode.
SPEAKER_00:Before you go, we just reopened our retired programs, the ones that changed so many lives. If you're ready for deeper healing work to pair with the podcast, this bundle is your next step.
SPEAKER_01:These three programs were originally valued at$700, and now we've bundled them for just$97, over 85% off. It gives you real tools to support your body, calm your nervous system, and move forward on your healing path. The link is in the show notes.
