Hello my friend Reader,
Do you wake up in the morning with your hands clenched, your jaw aching, feeling like you've been working out all night or running from a bear?
I've been thinking about this a lot lately, because so many women tell me the same thing: by the end of the day they feel impossibly tense, or they wake up in the morning with pain.
It starts with feeling unsafe.
Safety is foundational to our physical and mental health. When the body doesn't feel safe, it never fully stands down.
I've spent a lot of time in Africa, and one thing always struck me: animals that hunt each other will share the same watering hole, peacefully, as long as their bellies are full. There's no leftover tension. And when they do get stressed, chased, startled, or cornered, they discharge it. They literally shake it off and move on. You've probably seen your dog do the same thing after a scare.
We don't do this.
We absorb the stress, carry it into the next meeting, the next task, the next night's sleep, and it settles into the jaw, the hands, the shoulders.
What if we gave ourselves just one minute to shake it off, whether or not we know exactly what set us off?
Here are two things you can do right now to release the tension and help your jaw relax.
1. Press LI4 (Hegu) — the great tension reliever
LI4 sits in the webbing between your thumb and index finger, at the highest point of the muscle when you bring them together. It's one of the most powerful points in Chinese medicine for releasing tension in the face, jaw, and head.
Hold for 1-2 minutes while you breathe slowly. Then switch hands.
(One note: skip LI4 if you're pregnant, as it's traditionally avoided in pregnancy.)
2. Tap the Kidney points along the sternum — to tell your body it's safe
In Chinese medicine, the Kidney system governs our deepest reserves, and it's the organ most associated with fear. When we live in that low-grade "is something coming?" state, it's the Kidney energy that gets depleted. This is why settling the body and settling fear are really the same project.
Run your fingers along both sides of your breastbone (sternum). The Kidney meridian rises here, and the points along it are wonderful for calming the nervous system and bringing you back into your body.
Make a light fist and tap firmly but gently up and down both sides of the sternum for 30 to 60 seconds. Breathe slowly as you go. You can pair it with a quiet phrase I am safe right now, in this moment. This is your version of the shake-off: a deliberate signal to your nervous system that the threat has passed and it's safe to stand down.
Tension that has nowhere to go doesn't disappear it just waits for you in the morning, in your clenched hands and aching jaw. But your body already knows how to let go. Sometimes it just needs permission, and a little direction.
Try these two points tonight before bed and again tomorrow when you feel the tension creeping back in. Give yourself that one minute. Notice what shifts.
All in good health,
Jeanettexoxo
P.S. And if you're ready to go deeper, The Reset Call is one focused hour, just us. We find your most stubborn symptom, name the TCM pattern behind it, and you leave with the exact acupressure points and foods to start feeling like yourself again. Reply "CONSULT" or book your call here.