When Self-Doubt Is Doing the Talking

Words spoken hours ago are still making my heart sing: "Thank you for helping me find my voice."

When I first met the client I'll call Sara, she was caught in the grip of self-doubt. She had spent many years with the same organization, and my own corporate background helped us connect right away.

Restless and Stuck

Over time, her loyal, skillful service had come to feel routine, both to the people around her and to Sara herself. Her body knew better. It kept signaling her with a restlessness she couldn't shake. Her mind, doing its best to protect her, answered with warnings: Who's going to want someone who's been in one place as long as I have? Do I even know how to interview anymore? The pay is good. What's the harm in settling for a few more years?

Notice, Name, Navigate

Together, we worked with a simple practice: Notice, Name, and Navigate. Sara learned to notice what was happening in her body, name what she was feeling, and navigate back to steadiness by regulating her nervous system. Along the way, she built a new relationship with her amygdala, the brain's threat center. As her body began to feel safer, constriction gave way to expansion, and that made room for her voice to emerge instead of being swallowed by self-doubt.

Remembering Her Worth

That new sense of safety showed up in the practical work, too. As she combed through past projects for measurable results to add to her résumé, Sara began to remember how significant her contributions had been. In our mock interviews, she showed up fully and gave voice to those accomplishments. Fear was no longer driving.

Behind the Wheel

Today, Sara is behind the wheel. She recognizes the strengths she brings to the table and speaks about them with an assured confidence, the kind that will carry her from where she is to where she is meant to be.

Your voice is still there, even if self-doubt has been doing the talking. If you're ready to take the wheel, let's talk: jennifer@somaticallyaware.com

P.S. Want to start on your own? Notice, Name, and Navigate, the practice that helped Sara, is at the heart of my book, Somatic Awareness: Leading with Body Intelligence.

Names and identifying details have been changed to protect client privacy