Listen To Your Body Whisper + Free Journal Prompt Activity With Yoga Flow

A few years ago, I took an “On being human” workshop led by Jen Pastiloff. We moved (practiced yoga), and we wrote. One of the best journal/writing exercises, in my opinion, came from this prompt: 

Feel your body. 

What hurts? 

What’s talking to you?

Listen to your body.

Set a 4 minute timer. 

Free journal from the perspective of your chosen body part. 

For me, it was my lower back talking to me. This is what I wrote:

“Here is the thing Lauren,

I love you. So damn much. I’ve got you and I’m proud of you. 

I’m proud of your strength.

Life is a lot sometimes. It is heavy.

It’s okay.

I ache because we are living. Because we are working.

You are alive and I am supporting you. This is all good news. We are lucky to have this pain.

You are in a period of magnificent growth. Growth isn’t comfortable. It is full of aches and pain and sometimes it all just feels like too much. In those times, what I need from you is rest. If you listen to me, your body, whisper, I won’t need to scream. What do you need? Do you need permission to heal me? To get acupuncture, therapy, a massage? HERE IS YOUR PERMISSION. Take care of us. We are lucky, we are grateful, we are wise. And when it all seems too much, I need you to lay me down and BREATHE. I’ve got you.”

That’s it. That’s what I wrote. As a mother now, I needed to read this again. You cannot pour from an empty cup. When the baby talks to you, it needs you to listen. If you don’t listen, oftentimes, all hell breaks loose. Set an example for your littles. 

Say your morning affirmations in the mirror in front of your little one. Let them see you love your body. Mess up and say sorry; get up and try again. Modeling is the strongest resource we have as parents.  Show your little that it is okay to be sad (but not okay to hit LOL JK too much gentle parenting content intake). 

Rewrite your narrative. SHOW your baby that it is not selfish to take time for yourself. In the end, it is what is best for everyone! I will say it until I am blue in the face (such as mom thing to say) - but here we are - YOU CANNOT POUR FROM AN EMPTY FAUCET, MOMS. FILL YOUR CUP FIRST. What overflows will nourish all other aspects of your life.

When my husband and I met with my doula to prepare for my birth, she asked him to do two things that would help immensely. Eat. And drink. So many birth partners try to do it all. To be the savior. They feel guilty taking care of themselves when mom is the star of the show. Well, guess who becomes the star of the show if he passes out due to exhaustion, hunger, and thirst? That guy. Don’t be that guy. 

Focus your energy on what you need now. Listen to your body whisper so you don’t need to hear it scream.