I’m known for being practical and offering practical solutions. So when someone said that observing their body sensations (to be aware of all the ways you create tension) sounded like woo, I almost spit out my water.

Y’all are paying attention to the news right? Will you devote a fraction of your attention away from it to the reactivity you’re generating? We need you to redirect so you can actually be a force in the world for change.

Reactivity is an opportunity for creativity and using our sensations as teachers.

Are you breathing?

I received a call from someone who wants to come in for acupuncture. He hurt his ankle. He wants the ankle to heal, and so do I, but not in the way he’s likely thinking.

Your symptoms are your teachers. Perhaps your clenching is teaching you something about your life. Your amazing, brilliantly designed body is flagging you of this fact through pain, part of your built-in feedback system

When you don’t recognize that you’re the one generating the tension, not the thing in front of you or the person you’re with, the tension can show up as a (knee-jerk) reaction. Or, come out sideways in another conversation, or skipped or glossed over, packed away and entombed until Thanksgiving with the fam. These are ineffective ways to use a valuable asset called your upset inside your family or team. Your upset is wisdom!

As my teacher says, there’s no fix for being human. Life is all the pain and joy you can muster and be with. Do not turn away from learning from your wise body.