Remembering the Body
On Burnout and Coming Back to Ourselves
I’m in the midst of week 10 of massage therapy school, and something has been becoming clearer - not all at once, but in quiet layers of noticing.
The body is always speaking.
Not loudly. Not in words. But in sensation, in fatigue, in the subtle ways we drift away from ourselves without realizing it.
So much of what we call burnout is not just tiredness.
It is disconnection.
A long stretch of time spent out of rhythm with the body.
Out of rhythm with rest.
Out of rhythm with what it feels like to actually be here.
And over time, that becomes normal. So normal that it stops feeling like something is happening at all.
We keep going.
We adapt.
We override.
Until the body begins to ask for attention in quieter or louder ways, depending on how long it has been unheard.
What I keep coming back to is simple:
healing is not always about doing more.
It is about returning.
Back to breath.
Back to sensation.
Back to the intelligence that is already here, beneath the noise.
Sometimes that return is small.
A slower morning.
A deeper exhale.
A moment of noticing instead of pushing through.
Sometimes it is a larger reorientation - a sense that something in the way we’ve been living needs to soften or shift.
But always, underneath it, there is something steady:
a remembering.
Not of something new.
But of something already known by the body.
This isn’t about adding more to do. It’s about small supports that help the body soften enough to return to itself.
An herbal ally in this rhythm
One of the simple supports I’ve been working with during this season is oat straw (Avena Sativa).
It is a gentle, deeply nourishing herb traditionally used to support the nervous system, especially in times of depletion, overstimulation, or long-term stress.
Oat straw is often considered a restorative tonic - something that doesn’t push the body, but supports it in slowly rebuilding a sense of steadiness over time.
Some of its traditionally understood benefits include:
supporting nervous system nourishment and resilience
easing feelings of exhaustion or burnout
encouraging a grounded, steady sense of energy over time
Simple oat straw infusion
A simple way to prepare it:
Add 2 teaspoons of oat straw to a jar or teapot
Pour 1 cup of freshly-boiled water over it
Cover and let steep for 10-15 minutes (or longer for a stronger infusion)
Strain and drink warm or room temperature
This can be taken one to two times daily as a gentle, supportive tea.
Optional add-ins (for deeper nervous system support)
Lemon balm: 1 teaspoon dried (adds calm, ease, and mental softness)
Rose buds or petals: 1 teaspoon dried (adds emotional support, heart openness, and subtle grounding)
These can be steeped together with the oat straw in the same infusion.
There is something about these small, quiet practices that feels important right now.
Not as fixes.
But as reminders.
That the body is not something to manage.
It is something to come home to.
More soon as I begin opening a small space for this kind of return.
~ Alora