What if your anxiety, exhaustion, gut issues, insomnia, chronic tension, or even emotional numbness weren't random… but your body trying to communicate unresolved stress and trauma? Somatic healing expert and When the Body Speaksauthor Liz Tenuto—better known online as "The Workout Witch"—joins us to unpack how trauma gets stored in the nervous system and why so many people stay stuck even after years of therapy, self-help, and "doing all the right things." Liz explains the science behind somatic healing, bottom-up nervous system regulation, neurogenic tremors, emotional release, chronic stress physiology, and how seemingly "normal" symptoms like jaw clenching, gut issues, fatigue, insomnia, and brain fog may actually be signs your body never fully completed the stress response. This conversation blends neuroscience, emotional healing, nervous system education, and practical tools into one of the deepest conversations yet on what it truly means to move Ever Forward.
YOU WILL LEARN:
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Why trauma is physical, not just emotional
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The difference between top-down vs bottom-up healing
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How chronic stress silently changes the body
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Why high performers often normalize dysregulation
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The role of safety and co-regulation in healing
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The surprising power of tiny movements and somatic exercises
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How unresolved trauma can mask deeper layers of pain
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Why healing can lead to a more authentic and connected life
Follow Liz @theworkoutwitch_
Follow Chase @chase_chewning
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00:00 – Trauma gets stored in the body
00:44 – What "bottom-up healing" means
01:00 – Why physical release creates emotional healing
01:33 – Neurogenic tremors explained
01:51 – Your body is your most honest messenger
03:09 – Giving yourself permission to not feel okay
06:11 – Is healing a luxury in modern life?
07:35 – When your body is quietly screaming at you
09:07 – Healthy coping vs hidden avoidance
11:42 – Why we always go to extremes with stress
14:21 – Can 5–10 minutes a day really heal stress?
16:12 – Signs trauma may be stored in your nervous system
19:58 – A simple vagus nerve exercise for relaxation
22:25 – Rocking movements & soothing the nervous system
25:14 – Gabor Maté's definition of trauma
26:56 – What is secondary trauma?
30:05 – Chase shares his PTSD healing journey
31:59 – Somatics vs talk therapy explained
35:11 – Why the jaw & psoas hold stress
36:09 – Why animals shake after stress (and humans don't)
38:54 – Why physical release creates emotional release
40:46 – The importance of safe people & co-regulation
43:08 – Signs your nervous system may be dysregulated
45:20 – Liz shares her trauma story
47:14 – Discovering somatic healing for the first time
49:39 – What somatic exercises actually look like
51:16 – Why gentle movement heals the nervous system
53:09 – Can you do somatic healing on your own?
54:20 – Reclaiming ownership of your body
55:50 – Healing trauma through unlearning survival patterns
57:43 – Somatics vs therapy: where should people start?
58:45 – Healing trauma you can't consciously remember
01:02:16 – Why avoiding trauma never truly works
01:03:09 – Trauma lives in your cells & tissues
01:05:57 – Healing creates ripple effects for others
01:09:57 – Liz on joy, hobbies & learning to play again
01:12:45 – What "Ever Forward" means to Liz
01:14:24 – "When the body speaks… are we listening?"
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Episode resources:
