Greetings, Reader!

Today's winter tale has a happy ending, even though the middle was a bit hairy!

Last night, my wife and I were driving into town for a holiday concert, and we were almost t-boned by an SUV speeding through a stop sign. Thanks to some quick thinking on her part, and some divine intervention, she swerved just enough for the SUV to pass by without hitting us, but it was a close call.

From the passenger seat, it looked like the SUV was heading right towards Faith in the driver's seat. My whole life didn't flash before my eyes, but in that split second between registering what was happening and Faith's reflexes kicking in, it was like I saw a flash of the future; of what could have happened if we had crashed.

Fortunately, that flash future didn't happen, and we were so lucky to escape without any damage to either of the cars or the living beings within them.

As soon as we were safe, tears sprung from my eyes, and my body started shaking to discharge the energy. I let the waves come, knowing it was part of the process of moving from danger to the shores of safety.

I was grateful to be in a space where I could let my nervous system complete the stress cycle and metabolize the fear. Skipping those steps and going right to calming down prevents the natural flow of energy, trapping that energy in the body .

There was a time when I would have held it in and pretended I was fine, but now I know that crying, trembling, shaking, raging, storming, and shutting down are the language of the nervous system, and I want my nervous system to know that I am listening.

Once the energy flowed through me, I used two of my favorite tools for nervous system resilience, the 5-4-3-2-1 practice, and a vagus nerve reset (both of which you can find in my free Tools for Everyday Resilience booklet), not to calm myself down, but to help my nervous system register that I was safe.

By the time we arrived at the theater, I felt integrated, grateful, and ready to celebrate. We were delighted by the Vermont Symphony Orchestra's rendition of the 12 Days of Christmas (Vermont style, featuring Ben & Jerry's, Bernie's mittens, and flannel PJs), movements from the Nutcracker suite, and the sweetest caroling sing-a-long.

It ended up being a magical night, full of birthday cake lovingly made by my favorite 4-year old, happy little surprises, and a room full of hundreds of strangers singing their hearts out. I'm so glad I didn't miss any of it.

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In love and solidarity,

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Rachel Doctor of Physical Therapy & Integrative Pain Specialist Build a resilient nervous system to help you flow through the seasons of your life with courage, wisdom, and compassion.

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PS: Nervous system resilience isn't just about staying calm, it's about having a big enough boat to ride the big waves without capsizing, and about being able to right the ship once the storm has passed so we can enjoy the rest of the journey.

When the waves are big, or the raft is tiny, it helps to not have to go it alone. If your nervous system could use some TLC, please reach out.

​CranioSacral Therapy might be just the thing to help your nervous system metabolize the stress you've been holding so you can flow into the holidays with presence and grace.