By any chance are you feeling a little “out of sorts” this month?

A little less motivated? A little strange? More pain? Or maybe even noticing past “self soothing” behaviors resurface?

In today’s blog, I wanted to open up a conversation around “traumaversary”.

Before California went into lock down and paper towels flew off the shelves at nearly every market, I was in San Diego, CA for a work event.

I ended up changing my flight and making it home before lock down, and one year later, on this traumaversary, I feel the return of those strange feelings occupy my mind and body.

A traumaversary is more than the date something traumatic happened. It is whole bodily experience, an often unconscious experience, by the brain as it anticipates something bad happening again.

The nervous system remembers everything you’ve been through, even when we consciously don’t and will often speak to us via symptoms…

Therefore, the low mood, lack of productivity, sadness, irritability or pain that returns this month may be due to the nervous system’s response to the traumaversary.

This month of March, I am encouraging my students to scale back on daily expectations.

Instead of daily meditations, maybe it’s just daily breaths.

Instead of doing the dishes, maybe use the dishwasher.

Instead of always needing to improve or be productive, maybe we just “be”.

I hope this month you can lean into embracing your humanness.

And exist more as a human, just being.