Why we celebrate through criticism

When we look at the literal idea of trigger points in the body, some of us do not actually feel pain. We are not aware of it. Many of us, myself included, have become numbed out to it. I do not typically wake up with a sense of pain or tension anywhere in my body. That has been true for at least the last fifteen years.

Yet when I take a foam roller to my body, I find areas that are holding tension, places where energy is blocked, where nourishment and oxygen are lacking. The cells there cannot properly move out their metabolic waste, so it pools, creating a trigger point. That trigger point then inhibits the muscle’s function, its ability to move or stabilize, and its ability to generate power.

To me, that is a perfect metaphor for the unresolved trauma, separation, and pain we carry, often hidden deeply within. The same way I cannot feel certain pains until I literally roll over them, there are parts of my emotional body that I do not recognize until life experiences “roll over them”.

Literal foam rolling brings awareness to the physical places I am storing pain and stagnation. Emotional foam rolling does the same for the heart and mind.

Our emotional trigger points get rolled over when we encounter tension in relationships, disappointment, unmet expectations, or moments when life is not matching the picture we had in our head. That friction brings up pain that is often connected to something much older.

The ego’s job, in part, is to protect us. It helps us survive and even thrive. Yet to truly thrive often requires releasing what is buried beneath the surface. And for those living in deep survival mode, that release can feel impossible because unresolved pain is running the show.

So to the question, “Is it bad to foam roll without doing the additional emotional work?” No, it is not a bad idea at all. Everyone has their own entry point.

For some, starting with the body is the safest way in. Physical foam rolling alone can still awaken emotional layers. It might bring unresolved material up into conscious awareness. I have seen people begin to cry or feel waves of emotion while releasing a tight muscle, unaware that it is connected to something much deeper.

So wherever you begin, it is all valid. Follow what feels approachable.

My invitation, especially if you are working with clients, is to let your intuition guide you. When I work with someone, there is a part of me that steps back while something else, a quiet sensitivity, steps in. I think we all have that ability. When you tune into yourself that way, answers begin to emerge naturally.

Nose to Tail Eating

Another question that came up was about nose to tail eating.

Traditionally, humans ate the entire animal, hooves to snout, bones, organs, skin, connective tissue, all of it. Today, most people eat only select muscle cuts. That shift has created a nutritional imbalance.

Muscle meats are high in an amino acid called methionine. Methionine is not bad, but when it is out of balance with glycine, it raises homocysteine levels, which increase inflammation.

Ancestral eating naturally balanced this out. Bone broths, organ meats, skin, and slow-cooked stews supplied glycine, B6, B12, folate, and choline, all of which buffer homocysteine and reduce inflammation.

That is one reason I make sure to include collagen, gelatin, or bone broth in my daily nutrition. Glycine does not just balance chemistry, it also has a calming effect on the body. It can ease anxiety and help counter excess norepinephrine, supporting emotional regulation through physiology.

So nose to tail eating is not a trend, it is a remembering. A way of returning to wholeness, physically and symbolically.

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The Awakening and Relationships

The last question for today might be the most challenging. It was about the light and shadow sides of awakening, specifically how our friends and family experience our change.

I once worked with a woman who had been deeply depressed and in pain for over a decade. Through timing, environment, and readiness, she began to change physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Her digestion improved, her energy lifted, her smile returned.

But something unexpected happened. As she healed, her family began to struggle. They had unconsciously built parts of their identity around taking care of her, being the savior, the helper, the caretaker. Her improvement threatened that dynamic.

When she started to stand on her own, her family began to guilt and shame her back into the role they were comfortable with. Eventually, she slipped back into her old pattern, allowing her father to rescue her again.

This is not judgment, it is observation. It is a look at how powerful emotional need can be, and how change does not only challenge the one transforming, it challenges everyone connected to them.

When we begin to break free from family patterns, inherited values, and social conditioning, those around us may resist. They may try to pull us back into who we once were because the new version threatens the familiar story.

In my experience, the most stabilizing realization through this process is simple but not easy:
I am not responsible for how others experience me.

I am responsible for my words, my actions, my integrity, but not for others’ interpretations of them.

That does not mean I stop caring, it means I stay curious. I can respect another’s feelings without taking them on.

When someone reacts to my choices, like bringing my own food to a dinner, it is rarely about the food. It is about what that act represents to them. It might symbolize rejection, control, or loss of connection. Knowing that helps me stay open rather than defensive.

We cannot always have those deep conversations with everyone, but holding that awareness inside allows for compassion without self-abandonment.

So as you awaken and shed layers of who you were taught to be, remember that it is natural for others to feel unsettled. It is natural for relationships to shift. Your work is not to convince them to understand, it is to stay grounded, kind, and true to what you now know.

That is what I mean when I talk about foam rolling the ego.

Awareness applied to the body, the mind, and the heart. Rolling over the unseen knots we did not know were there.

It is not always comfortable. It is often messy. But like every good foam roll, it brings circulation back to places that have gone numb.

And that, to me, is healing.

Until next time

Jator

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