December 30, 2023

2023, the year I finally started to *understand* shame.

How many potentially amazing things are you holding yourself back from because you fear being judged or shamed?

This question has been floating around for me (and with my clients and students and loved ones) all year.

Shame. Where does it live in us? When does it show up? What protective features does it hold? What wisdom? What happens when we face it and release it?

When we look it in the eyes and say that it’s not going to control our choices anymore.

I think it becomes silly. But really. Consider all of the delicious and growth-filled moments that await when you let go of a narrative that judges and shames...

In my rabbit hole of questioning, there has been an element of confusion, cause, y’know, unpacking decades (centuries) of societal conditioning.

What I know is that shame prevents us from living authentically, and I’m not into that. I’m here for shame-free, raw, real, authentic, messy, beautiful things.

I’m into that on a global level (what an incredibly intense + horrifying year it’s been), on a local level (every society has different shame stories), and on a personal level (when we examine and release our shame we prevent future generations from feeling shame around decidedly non shameful things.

So. 2023 was exploring shame. 2023 was releasing shame.

Next year feels big. I believe in it’s magic, already. A year where we allow even more growth, even more mystery, even more unpacking, even more creation, even more exploration, even more play.

And even less shame.

Photo by @ladygroove at the Let Your Body Speak retreat in NC. Wanna join us in Italy next September? More details coming soon, send me a dm to be in the first to know list 💛✌️