Express, Don’t Suppress: Embodiment for Emotional Freedom

In a world that often encourages us to suppress emotions, true healing comes from expression. We don’t suppress; we express — and the key to feeling liberated is through embodiment.

What Is Embodiment?

The word "embodiment" can be broken down for deeper understanding:

• Embodi: To be present within the body.

• Ment: To take action or engage in a process.

Somatic embodiment is the practice of deeply connecting with your body’s sensations, emotions, and energy through movement, breath, and awareness. It supports the release of emotions and trauma stored in the body, allowing for deeper healing and transformation. By integrating practices like dance, yoga, and breathwork, somatic embodiment helps you move beyond the mind and into a fully felt experience, fostering authenticity, confidence, and inner harmony.

Embodiment is about alchemizing experiences by integrating your shadows and inner work. When sensations are left unexpressed, they become trapped in your emotional and energetic body. As the book The Body Keeps the Score highlights, unprocessed emotions eventually manifest as physical symptoms such as:

• Tension in the neck and shoulders

• Tight hips and glutes

• Core tension and rounded shoulders

• Restlessness and packed to-do lists

• Escapism behaviors

• Chronic physical sicknesses

3 Embodiment Tips for Emotional Release + Expression

Here are three powerful practices to reconnect with your body and express emotions safely and fully.

1. Intentional Diaphragmatic Breathing

   • Inhale deeply, filling your breath 360 degrees around your ribs. Aim for a soft fullness rather than an overly expanded chest or tension in the neck.

   • Exhale gently, allowing a seamless release with no pause at the end of the breath.

   • This practice helps reset your nervous system and encourages calm, fluid expression.

2. Move Your Body

   • Movement creates vibration and frequency within the body, helping to alchemize deeply suppressed emotions. Dance, stretch, or sing to let emotions flow freely.

   • Allow yourself to feel the emotions fully, learning from them before letting them go.

3. Speak Loving Kindness with Mantras

   • Use positive affirmations to heal your inner child and rewire your instinctive responses.

   • Example Mantras:

     • "I am safe to express."

     • "I am safe to feel my emotions."

     • "I surrender to the flow of the process."

   • Accompany your words with gentle touch and actions that reflect the nurturing you needed in past experiences.

   
   

How-To Diaphragmatic Breathing

Movements + Mantras

Need Personalized Guidance?

Embodiment is a journey, and working with a mentor can deepen your practice. Dive deeper through: classes, workshops + events, or mentorship. Let’s work together to express, heal, and thrive! 🕊