What if you’ve been living from an incomplete instruction manual?
This week, I was somewhat unexpectedly given the opportunity to participate in a project, with the caveat that it was time-sensitive, so I needed to move quickly.
As I worked through the paperwork and the process of creating accounts on what felt like a dozen new platforms, I kept hitting “next” or “submit” while realizing I was only about 75% sure I was doing everything right.
I started to become overwhelmed by how much there was to do and what began to feel like a never-ending list of tasks. But my overwhelm turned to frustration when I realized I didn’t always have the information I needed to know what the next steps were.
In that moment, I realized how hard it is to move through something when you don’t have a clear understanding of the steps, or even a complete set of instructions.
It reminded me of the incomplete instruction manual we’re given for ourselves.
Most of us know a lot.
We know rest is important.
We know stress affects us.
We know we shouldn’t constantly push ourselves.
We know we’re supposed to listen to our bodies.
We know what we’re supposed to do.
But intellectual knowing isn't the same as embodied understanding.
Most of us weren't taught how to understand the foundational systems that run our lives and and how they influence our unique makeup.
You can intellectually know:
I don’t have to rush.
And yet still feel a constant underlying sense of urgency.
You can intellectually know:
I don’t need to push myself so hard.
And still feel like you're never doing enough.
You can intellectually know:
Rest is important.
And still feel guilty resting.
You can intellectually know:
I should listen to my body.
And still have no idea what your body is actually telling you.
The information is there.
But the missing part of the manual is the context that helps you understand how to embody it.
Embodied understanding looks like:
Trusting that you can move at a pace that feels good and nourishing to you, and trusting everything will still be okay.
Knowing the line between not enough and too much.
Releasing guilt and prioritizing rest like you do everything else on your to do list.
Understanding how to interpret the signals you're body is giving you.
That sounds simple.
But what does it actually mean for you?
Can you recognize when you’re rushing because something genuinely requires urgency—and when you’re rushing because urgency has simply become familiar?
Can you tell the difference between what you actually need and what you’ve learned to believe you need?
That’s where embodied understanding changes things.
If you’re curious about exploring this work more deeply, The School of Self Care waitlist is now open.
You can learn more and join the waitlist here.
