Why Presence Matters for Healing

There are moments in life when the body insists on being heard. Not with whispers, but with unmistakable clarity. This year begins with one of those moments for me.

I am facing two major surgeries.

One surgery to correct the underlying cause of blood clots in my arm — a condition that has required vigilance, patience, and deep trust in a body that has felt unpredictable at times. The second surgery is an attempt — a seventh attempt — to heal my left hip. Writing those words still feels surreal. Seven surgeries. Years of pain, recovery, setbacks, hope, and courage that had to be rebuilt again and again.

For a long time, my relationship with my body has been complicated. I have taught embodiment, presence, and gentle awareness for decades — and yet living inside a body that hurts can quietly erode trust. When pain becomes chronic, it’s easy to disconnect. To leave the body. To manage it instead of inhabit it.

This year, I am choosing something different.

My word for the year is presence — not as a concept, but as a practice rooted in flesh and breath. Presence in my body means allowing healing the space to unfold, without rushing, forcing, or abandoning myself when things feel slow or uncertain.

Presence means listening.

It means noticing subtle cues instead of overriding them. Honoring rest as an act of wisdom rather than weakness. Letting my nervous system soften instead of staying braced for the next setback.

These surgeries are not just medical events; they are invitations. Invitations to slow down, to receive care, to surrender the illusion of control, and to create the best possible conditions for healing — once and for all.

I am learning that healing does not respond well to pressure. It responds to safety.

Safety in the body. Safety in the breath. Safety in knowing I am not at war with myself.

There is grief here, too — grief for what my body has endured, for time lost, for versions of myself that moved freely without thinking. But alongside the grief is something else: a quiet, grounded hope. Not the flashy kind, but the kind that settles into the bones and says, I am still here.

This year, I am not asking my body to prove anything.

I am offering it presence.

And I trust that presence — steady, compassionate, and embodied — is what gives healing its greatest chance to take shape.