Inspired by In The Voice Beneath the Skin, by Besmira Stermilli There are moments when your mouth is still forming a polite “Sure,” but your body has already stepped back. Your shoulders tighten, your ribs feel like they are bracing, your stomach drops, your throat narrows, and suddenly it is hard to breathe in a … Read more
Inspired by In The Voice Beneath the Skin, by Besmira Stermilli There is a quiet kind of vanishing that does not look dramatic from the outside. You still show up, reply, smile, and handle responsibilities. But inside, you feel like you are living slightly behind your own eyes, watching your life instead of inhabiting it. … Read more
We often talk about boundaries as though they are simply lines drawn in conversations, a bold “no” at the right moment or the refusal to tolerate disrespect. But boundaries are less about behavior and more about biology. The nervous system, constantly monitoring the emotional climate we live in, interprets safety or threat not from facts, … Read more
Most of us believe we make decisions with our mind, yet the body keeps a quiet record of every experience long before we intellectualize it. The stomach tightening before we say yes to something we do not want, the throat closing when we try to express anger that feels forbidden, the sudden exhaustion after a … Read more
There is a moment, often quiet and unceremonious, when a person realizes they have been performing their life rather than living it. The performance is not always dramatic. Sometimes it is simply the borrowed smile, the curated calmness, the constant managing of other people’s expectations, all while ignoring the voice inside that keeps whispering, “I … Read more