About a month into spring, and I'm loving the warmth, sun, and blossoming trees and flowers. The lilac bushes near our home have bloomed and the scent is intoxicating.

All of this has been soothing to my mind and body, which is much needed. I’ve been quiet with my business for about two months – in mid-February, my daughter had a serious injury. She is fine now, thankfully (and surprisingly to her doctors!).

But the trauma of the incident has impacted my body in ways I didn’t expect. I’ve been so utterly exhausted with no motivation, feeling sort of numb. If you’re familiar with the science behind trauma, you know that trauma has a way of staying in the body and disrupting it, over and over again. Even when the traumatic incident is behind you.

Thankfully, I was able to pull from my experience and do exactly what the whole point of my business is: rebuild the connection between my mind and body.

I started a daily journal. I restarted morning meditation and yoga time. I practiced sun salutations, moving through the repetitive postures over and over with my eyes closed. I sat outside in the sun, feeling the warmth heal my body.

And I found some new forms of movement. We joined the local new YMCA earlier this year, and I finally started going. Feeling my body move and feeling the muscles work – it did something.

A few days ago, I went to my first spin class. For 55 minutes, we rode. At some point, I found myself increasing the resistance during our “uphill” portions. Standing and pushing through each tough stride - my body wanted and needed the release. It was as though all the trauma and fear from the past two months was being pushed out through my legs and all the sweat. I even found myself shouting along with the teacher as she encouraged us, which, if you know me, is not like me at all. She also didn’t use any diet culture language at all. No talk of burning calories or losing weight or any of that.

It was pretty glorious!

Since then, I’ve been feeling more inspired to work on my business (hence this newsletter), less numb, and more motivated.

I’m not saying that you should go out and do a spin class to process trauma.

I’m saying we cannot underestimate the impact that our bodies have on our mental health. They are not separate. They are connected and impact one another constantly.

Research has shown that yoga asana has a positive impact on the mind and body, and yes, that it can be a helpful part of healing trauma.

I’m not sure if spinning has been shown to help, but I’ll use my anecdotal evidence and go back on Monday.

If you could use some reconnection, check out my Connecting Through Yoga workshop here. This six-week on demand workshop will give you the opportunity to reconnect to various aspects of mind and body. You can also check out my free on-demand classes here.