Nothing about our bodies, our nervous systems, or our brains is black and white. They do not function independently of one another, and what we need, what brings the most wellness and wholeness, is understanding, inclusion, and integration of the complexity of our systems.

The nervous system is our primary internal navigation system, pulling the levers and influencing our behaviors with lightning speed, just beneath our conscious awareness. Although all human nervous systems are made of the same essential parts, our particular life experiences sculpt unique neural pathways that shape how we respond to situations and our environment.

I’m in bed with my partner of 3 years. The sunlight is beginning to stream through the curtains, and we’re just stirring from slumber. He’s spooning me and his hands start to roam across my body in a gentle, barely-awake way. His hands speed up, almost imperceptibly, he gently pushes his hips into mine, and in a flash, I go from feeling held and relaxed to scared and trapped

Life is an ingenious inventor. And, after about 4.54 billion years of trial and error, upgrades and product recalls, the system we humans have been endowed with is a brilliant organic web of optimal functioning….that is, if we follow the simplest of operating instructions; if we learn and follow the practices of fundamental wellness.