restful winter offerings to support the tired body

slowing down, cultivating stillness

in my last share, at the fall equinox, i wrote about change. both the change of the season, as well as the personal changes taking place in my life and practice. maybe you were going through some changes too - it feels often like these things move cyclically for everyone at once. i attribute these simultaneous shifts to the subtle way our bodies respond to our environment. even when we aren’t paying attention to it, centuries of evolution have connected our bodies to the natural world. 

well, every fall, i always feel like the changes happen so fast. leaves hit the ground too quickly, and we’re submerged in the stillness of winter much sooner than i ever expect. 

each night creeps earlier and grows colder. somewhere, bears are drifting into the long dream of hibernation. fish are slowing to a stop under frozen ponds. plants are going dormant. most of us, though… we’re continuing to move at the same speed, even if the history baked into our bodies yearns for the same seasonal sleepiness we see reflected in the world around us. 

for me, december has so far been a lesson in slowing down and turning inward. change can be exciting and beautiful, but it can also be scary. it often carries with it anxiety - racing thoughts, stress, the grief of what was or what could have been. by contrast, winter invites us to settle down, to slow, to cozy and warm and drink tea by the fire. it’s a time for reflection, for dreaming, for considering where we’ve been and what we can still grow into. 

but despite the seasonal cues our world offers us, culturally, winter is often a very hectic and busy time. family visits, holidays, buying gifts, never-ending work. these things can be exciting, but also challenge our nervous systems to keep going at a time when they really want to slow down. 

if you push yourself at an unnaturally fast pace for long enough, your body is eventually going to beg you to stop. ways it does that might include: 

~ burnout 

~ fatigue 

~ stress 

~ anxiety 

~ grief 

~ emotional or physical pain

if your body has been communicating with you in these ways, it might be time to lean in and listen. creating even brief moments of stillness in your daily life can make a big impact on how you feel. 

some ways you can do that are: 

~ reflective/expressive practices like meditation, journaling, or engaging with your emotions creatively

~ cooking from scratch and eating a warm meal with loved ones - no phones! 

~ creating safe containers for your nervous system to truly settle and relax, like receiving bodywork 

~ drinking nourishing herbal teas that support the body in slowing down 

introducing the rooted rest tea blend

i’m excited to introduce a new offering i’ve been working on since last month aimed at helping your body settle, slow, and relax. 

it’s my rooted rest tea blend, carefully designed to nourish the nervous system, slow racing thoughts, support and settle the aching heart, aid in grounding and resilience, and warm the body through the cold of winter. 

inside this tea is a layered blend of herbs chosen for their grounding, heart-tending, and nervous-system-supportive qualities. 

~ ashwagandha + dandelion root 

~ rose petals & rosehips

~ lavender + chamomile 

~ cacao + beet powder

~ cardamom + cinnamon

~ oat tops & oat straw 

~ hawthorn berry &  leaf

~ skullcap + wood betony

together they form a delicious cup that steadies the heart, gently supports the nervous system and circulation, soothes racing thoughts with tenderness, and brings warmth to the cold grief, stress, and emotional heaviness that can settle into our bones during the winter months.

the rooted rest tea blend is available for purchase on its own for $20 per 2oz package. when paired with a massage booking or gift certificate purchase, you can get it for only $18. 

gift certificates for winter care

a massage gift certificate is a meaningful way to offer someone actual relief in a season when many bodies are overwhelmed. they’re especially supportive for folks navigating:

~ chronic pain from muscular imbalance or fascial restriction

~ hypermobility / EDS

~ anxiety, burnout, stress

~ trauma recovery and nervous system fatigue

~ migraines & tension headaches

this gift lets the people you love know that you see the struggles they live with, and that you care about supporting them through it.

i offer 60, 75, 90, and 120 minute gift certificates at a rate of $120 an hour (+ a $20-30 travel fee for mobile appointments). i can offer digital gift certificates you can print at home, or i have physical gift certificates available for pickup at my doylestown office on sundays. 

december + january availability 

if your body is asking for support now, or if you want to book something to look forward to after the holidays, here are my current openings:

december ~ office appointments

december 14th ~ 4:00pm-6:30pm 

december 21st ~ 11:30am-12:30pm, 3:30pm-6:30pm 

december 28th ~ 12:00pm 

december ~ mobile appointments

december 22nd ~ 11:00am-1:00pm, 4:00pm-6:00pm 

january ~ office appointments

january 4th ~ 11:00am-1:00pm, 6:00pm-6:30pm 

january 11th ~ 2:00pm-6:30pm 

january 18th ~ 10:00am-6:30pm 

january 25th ~ 10:00am-11:00am, 3:00pm-6:30pm 

january ~ mobile appointments

january 3rd ~ 11:00am-6:00pm 

january 6th ~ 1:00pm-6:00pm 

january 10th ~ 11:00am-6:00pm 

january 13th ~ 10:30am-6:00pm 

january 14th ~ 10:30am-6:00pm 

january 24th ~ 11:00am-6:00pm  

if you’re feeling the pull to slow down…

send me an email or a text, or request a session online. i’d love to support you this winter. whether through bodywork, tea, or both, there are so many ways to help your nervous system settle and reconnect to its own rhythm.