An invitation to reconnect with the part of you that’s always been trying to keep you safe.
For a long time, I thought something was wrong with me. The racing thoughts. The exhaustion that came out of nowhere. The sudden surges of fear or tears or numbness, often for reasons I couldn’t explain.
The overreactions. The underreactions. The shutdowns.
I kept trying to fix myself, to be more resilient, more rational, more calm. But the more I fought with myself, the worse it got. Until I learned the simplest and most life-changing truth:
My nervous system wasn’t broken. It was trying to protect me.
What Is the Nervous System, Really?
Your nervous system is your body’s internal messaging and survival system. It scans constantly for danger, safety, connection, and threat. It controls your stress response, digestion, heart rate, sleep patterns, and your capacity to think clearly or respond gently.
It’s not just “in your head”, it’s in your whole body.
It holds memory. It holds emotion. And sometimes, it holds fear long after the danger has passed.
Especially if you’ve lived through trauma or long-term stress, your nervous system might be more sensitive, more protective, and quicker to react.
That doesn’t make it wrong. It makes it wise.
From Fight to Friendship
The real turning point for me came when I stopped trying to “manage” my nervous system and started learning how to tend to it.
Not force it. Not ignore it. Not shame it.
I began to understand that my body was not against me. It was doing its best with what it had learned. It was shaped by grief, fear, loss and chronic hypervigilance. But it was also shaped by resilience. By quiet beauty. By moments of art, connection and nature that helped it slowly soften.
This shift from fighting to befriending changed everything.
Small Ways to Begin
You don’t need to overhaul your life or meditate for an hour to start regulating your nervous system.
Sometimes, the smallest shifts are the most powerful.
Try:
Sitting in a patch of sun with both feet on the ground
Drawing soft circles on the page until your breath slows
Holding a warm drink with both hands and noticing the temperature
Listening to one piece of music with your eyes closed
Naming out loud what you can see, hear and touch
Journaling without a plan, just letting the feelings arrive
These are creative and sensory ways of signalling safety to your body.
They remind your system that this moment is different from the ones that hurt you.
You Are Not Failing
If you feel like you’re too much or not enough: too reactive, too sensitive, too scattered, please know this:
You are not failing.
You are adapting.
And your nervous system is not the enemy.
It is the part of you that has always tried to protect you, even when it got loud or quiet or confusing.
It deserves your care. And so do you.
This is the beginning of learning how to live with yourself more gently.
This is the art of creative living.
And you are welcome here.