Emotions Underlying Physical Pain: A Breakdown of How and Where Emotions Manifest in the Body
Our emotions are not separate from our body as our body is not separate from our emotions, but often we try to compartmentalize these two parts of ourselves and work on the self-care aspect of these while negating their close proximity. Our nervous system is a well-oiled machine that connects to all of our systems in the body and directly connects to our responses to trauma, both big and small in our lives.
There are beautiful thoughts and theories coming from multiple sources of science and medicine of generations of data collected that not only prove the theories but help amplify its voice of truth to empower each and every one of us. Books like The Body Keeps the Score, Chinese Medicine and its understanding of organs/emotions, Ayurvedic principles, and Mayan philosophy, and countless other research in things like epigenetics, emotional cognition, and psychological studies we now have a greater understanding than ever before. Emotional Body Mapping, while is a personal journey for me, is also an abbreviated version of numerous studies I have sought and an intuitive bridge to help bring actionable skills to heal our wounds.
Most often it is the repeat mini-traumas that we store in our body unconsciously unaware that they are holding tension as they are micro-aggressions, or mini lapses in personal judgment or things that we simply see as ‘normal’ in our lives until someone or something points out that it is not necessary for the mini pain to exist, whether or not it is an emotional, physical or mental pain.
When we take in these traumas into our body they are then transmitted and stored and can manifest a number of ways causing physical distress as well as emotional and mental distress in the body. The longer the pain has manifested, the more common it is to become something ‘chronic’ or more severe and requires multiple tools in order to clear the tension.
Step one, however, to heal anything is to empower yourself and to become aware of the ‘what’ that is going on in your body so that you can do something about it. If you don’t know, then there is nothing that you can do. We are still learning about our own body’s and hearts every day. There is so much to unravel and it is a lifelong process. We are not here to judge ourselves, but instead to continue learning and growing, and expanding.
I hope this list below brings some insight into your own body and what may be some of the underlying emotional reasons for your physical distress.
Head
Over-thinking, worrying (also related to the spleen), can also create jaw tension if over-thinking creates grinding teeth and insomnia. ‘Trying to figure it all out’ versus learning how to have trust or faith in something working out. Letting go of personal expectations.
Neck
Minor Anger, Taking on the role of the ‘savior’ or helper/sucking it up. Not speaking up for oneself, not speaking authentically. Afraid of judgement/self-judgement. Difficulty connecting or asking for needs.
Shoulders
‘Shouldering’ the weight of the world. Savior complex. People-pleaser/drained doing it for everyone. Taking care of someone in life that does not serve them/enabling bad behaviors. Helping too much and not taking care of self/ feeling used.
Chest (heart)/midback
Loss. Front of the chest is heartache, loneliness, and lack of feeling loved/self-love. The back of the body is more related to independence/separation and feeling a void/imbalance. Rejection.
Ribs
Making space for self-care, self-love. Not feeling like there is ‘enough’ time for self. Loss or not feeling like anyone cares. Holding anger/breath. Regret.
Lungs
The imbalance between giving and receiving. Most common to over-give and not know how to ask for help or give authentically. Giving with hoping for something in return. Not asking for help because they feel they will owe someone something. Not feeling deserving enough/good enough.
Liver
Anger. Difficulty finding healthy ways to express boundaries. Sugar/alcohol/food consumption ends up becoming a coping mechanism to create a short-lived moment of joy. Difficulty finding moments of joy in personal creation. Anger/boundaries/self-preservation.
Gallbladder
Related to the liver. Relationships to disgust, judgment, depreciation.
Stomach
Overworked, overdoer, over-committed. Feeling obligated based on societal and cultural learned beliefs versus trusting what serves the heart-mind. Anxiety and fear. Fear of change, lack of knowing ‘how’ or ‘what may happen. Fear of not being liked or wanted. The stomach is considered the ‘second brain’ and can be the central point for a lot of other varying diseases and illnesses. Ulcers can be a representation of the inner judgment ‘biting’ from the stomach.
The stomach is considered the ‘second brain’ and can be the central point for a lot of other varying diseases and illness.
Intestines
The large intestine is the storing of our inner ‘chi’/Hara/energy center and can store unexpressed fear, anger, and a loss of innocence.
Kidney
Flow and the connection to the adrenals. Fight or Flight complex/nervous systems. It Alkalizes the entire body and cleanses the blood. Trauma is stored here that connects deeply with fear from the outside world. This can be from abuse, surgery, illness as a child, allergies, and auto-immune diseases.
Bladder
Flow and sexuality. Anger is linked with sexuality and boundaries.
Right Hip/ low back pain
Safety and holding onto guilt. Safety in relation to money and finances often. Low back, not feeling supported, lack of trust or faith in friends, family, or religion/God/spirituality.
Left Hip
Safety in relation to sexuality and boundaries. Speaking one’s truth and learning an authentic voice and neck/ear/nose/throat diseases happen quite often in conjunction with this area of the body especially in women.
Sexual Organs
Anger against the opposite sex and issues related to birth, sex, abortion, rape, fear, guilt, anger stored from ex-partners.
Thighs
Vulnerability and difficulty to feel comfortable with change. Lack of protection/safety regarding resilience.
Knees
Feelings of being stuck in life. Immobile. Not able to leave a job, partnership, location. Feeling victim to life.
Feet
Connected with Ankles and movement as well as connection to grounding and earthliness. Feeling rooted and present in making clear and concise decisions from a logically centered space when healthy. When in pain one may not feel grounded and is often indecisive. Dust is in the air in life when it comes to transitions happening and the inability to build a healthy routine. Not feeling like there is ever ‘enough’/ time/space/money/love/skills/resources…
Hands/Skin
Trying to control everything and contain everything. Not happy with how things are so creating a layer between one’s surroundings and self. Over-control and lack of trust. Lacking spiritual faith. Trying to use logic and reason too often instead of emotions and intuition.
So, there is a good list for you to start with through the emotional body map. This is a list predominantly on the blockages of this area if there were pain existing. For a deeper analysis, I will slowly be writing blog posts to break down each one of these areas and what the body part does both scientifically and spiritually/emotionally in order for you to have a better representation of where to go next.
I also will be creating an affirmation/mantra infographic with this list and a few more that will be offered alongside a VIP Self-Care workshop I will be running.
Are you an empath, holistic business owner, or service-based practitioner working on your own self-care practice?
Learn some easy daily steps that can get you to access self-care quickly and effectively. You can use this both for you and your clients.
In this course you will learn:
1. Simple daily practices on how to begin and end your day with intention.
2. Learn the basics of the emotional body map to better understand what your body is saying to you.
3. Receive a worksheet of affirmations and mantras that you can use in conjunction with your new knowledge and immediately start clearing old traumas and blocks that have been manifesting for years!
4. Receive a book alongside in multiple Digital formats of the basics of emotional body mapping.
Emotional body mapping is effective and easy to understand because it begins with you! It begins by trusting your own powerful intuition and being guided by the tangible body that is communicating directly to you and your needs.
I cannot wait for you to learn it! It’s a no-brainer price too, simply $11, the price of a couple of coffees and you have this for life.
For more information and how to register please join the Facebook group and you can donate and register below by clicking the donate button and then putting your name in the Registration.