Tight Jaw, Tight Hips? Where Your Body Holds Stress

Tight jaw, shoulders up by your ears, waking at 3 a.m.? Somatic movement teacher Liz Tenuto, author of When the Body Speaks, joins Dr. Chris Motley to explore where the body holds stress, why she favors tiny, lazy movements over force, why animals shake it off, and how to recognize when you’re still bracing. Dr. Motley adds the Chinese Medicine perspective on the jaw and waking at 3 a.m.

Sources and corrections are included in the show notes.

Content note: This episode discusses trauma, emotional healing, and the mind-body connection. Take care while listening, and feel free to pause or skip around if you need to.

Educational only, not medical advice.

Chapters:

00:00 Cold open: where your body holds stress

00:44 Welcome: Liz Tenuto, somatic movement teacher

02:45 Ten years without sleep, and everything she tried

03:51 "People rolling around on the floor in their pajamas"

04:47 Inside a somatic class: the laziest movements possible

05:52 From workhorse to gentle, and what surfaced

07:06 A dancer, disconnected from her emotional body