14/04/2026
As my heart continues to expand, there is a feeling that flows through the centre of it. A part that is still holding on, while at the same time wanting to let go. A part that knows it wants to move forward, yet still feels a quiet vulnerability around what may unfold next.
It’s not resistance in the way I once understood it.
It’s more like a soft guarding. A wisdom. A pause between breaths.
I notice this same space in many of the clients I work with.
It reveals itself not always in words, but in the subtle vibrations that move through the room. A trembling in the voice, a tightening in the body, a deep exhale that doesn’t quite complete itself.
From a nervous system perspective, this is the body moving between states.
The heart and breath begin to open, guided by the parasympathetic system—the part of us that allows rest, connection, and safety. Yet alongside it, there can still be activation from the sympathetic system—the part that has learned to protect, to brace, to anticipate.
So the body gently oscillates
between opening and holding,
between trust and protection.
This can even be felt physically in the heart space.
The muscles around the chest, diaphragm, and ribs subtly contract and release, as if learning a new rhythm.
The vagus nerve, so deeply connected to the heart, breath, and emotional regulation begins to tone and respond, supporting a greater capacity to feel without becoming overwhelmed.
This is the space where the body is learning it is safe to open,
but hasn’t fully trusted it yet.
And instead of rushing it, fixing it, or trying to move it along
I’m learning to sit with it fully.
To honour the part that holds on,
and the part that longs to release.
Because both should be honoured.
Both have had a part to play.
As I sit with this space, I allow what needs to be felt.
To my surprise, softness begins to flow in a very gentle way.
A feeling of joy emerges in the most subtle of ways.
quiet, gentle, almost like a whisper moving through my body.
And with it, a deeper sense of aliveness meets the parts that once held this vulnerability.
A slow and tender soul sigh moves through me, as if something within feels relieved.
Relieved that it is finally being met, not avoided, not rushed, but fully seen.
In these moments, the body shifts. As the bodies capacity strengthens,
the breath deepens naturally, the diaphragm softens, and the heart rhythm begins to regulate that bit more. This is the nervous system settling, moving further into safety, where the body no longer needs to hold so tightly.
What once felt like vulnerability,
now feels like a wider opening.
What once felt uncertain,
now carries a quiet deeper sense of trust.
This part of me feels so integral
not only within my own journey,
but in the way I hold space for others.
Because this is the space I witness in so many.
Those who feel stuck, like I did.
Those who long to move forward, just as I did but the body kept contracting back, going in an opening, closing back and forth rhythm.
Those that don’t realise that the doorway isn’t force
it’s softness.
It's capacity, it's balanced safety.
It’s the willingness to meet what is here,
with presence,
with patience,
with compassion.
And in that meeting
something shifts.
Not all at once,
but in gentle waves.
Softness becomes strength.
Presence becomes permission.
And the body begins to remember
it is safe to be here. Within this safety then able to take the next step forward with gentleness and grace.
To me I feel it in my heart and soul that healing doesn't have to be so hard when the body is met in this way fully.
Feel free to reach out if you need support.
Love Chantelle
✨ Rise Above Barriers
