What do you do with emotional pain in the body?

The Weight We Carry — Part 2

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for medical advice. Always consult with your healthcare provider before making significant changes to your lifestyle, diet, or supplement routine.

Welcome back to The Weight We Carry, a series where we’re learning how emotional pain stored in the body, spiritual wounds, and embodied experiences shape our health in ways many of us were never taught.

If you read Part 1, you already know this truth well: your body is not betraying you; it’s speaking.
Some of our bodies whisper.
Some of our bodies groan.
And some of our bodies are screaming for attention because we’ve been too overwhelmed, or too disconnected, also known as dissociated, to hear them.

There’s a quote that captures this beautifully:

“Listen to your body when it whispers so you don’t have to hear it scream.”

Scripture has been telling us the same thing long before neuroscience caught up:

“A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” — Proverbs 17:22

Your body, mind, and spirit are not separate. When emotions go unprocessed or unspoken, they don’t disappear; they settle. They may settle into your chest as tightness or heaviness. They may settle into your gut, stirring anxiety or digestive distress. They may settle into your shoulders, creating tension or a sense of carrying too much. They may settle into your jaw through clenching or grinding. They may even settle into your bones or into the rhythm of your breath, shaping how your body moves through the world.

Today, in Part 2, we’re going deeper into how emotions manifest physically, how they can become dis-ease or chronic conditions when ignored, how Scripture speaks to this truth, and what to do next.

Symptoms of Emotions: When Feelings Become Ailments

Unprocessed emotions can contribute to:

• Joint pain
• Inflammation
• Headaches
• Fatigue
• Digestive distress
• Autoimmune symptoms
• Chronic tension
• Stress-related illness

Your body is not “dramatic.” Your body is honest. It wants you to listen.

Researchers in the field of psychoneuroimmunology have shown that emotional stress creates real physical changes in the brain, nervous system, and immune system (Kiecolt-Glaser et al., 2015). What you feel emotionally often shows up physically as tension, pain, or discomfort.

We live in a time when chronic stress is normalized—even though the body was never designed to carry stress long-term. But the conversation is shifting. Science is finally confirming what Scripture has always taught: the heart, mind, and body are deeply connected.

Over the past several years, I have studied the link between emotional pain and physical pain. Through research, my work in holistic health, and the stories of the women I serve. What I’ve discovered is striking: many of the aches, tight places, and symptoms we feel are not just physical problems. They are responses to emotional experiences that were never processed or healed.

This realization is what inspired this series and my book, The Embodied Beloved. I hope that as you understand the connection between emotions and the body, you can begin moving toward true healing: body, mind, and spirit.

Mind Body Connection to physical ailments

When emotions are unexpressed or unhealed, they don’t fade. They settle into the body and contribute to inflammation, chronic pain, digestive discomfort, headaches, and more (Lumley et al., 2011). The examples below are not diagnoses but invitations to curiosity. Listening for what your body may be communicating.

Arthritis: Resentment, Self-Criticism & Feeling Unloved

Emotional Root
Arthritis involves inflammation and stiffness in the joints. Studies show that long-term emotional stress, especially resentment, harsh self-criticism, or chronic feelings of being unloved, can raise inflammation and increase pain sensitivity (Lumley et al., 2011; Kiecolt-Glaser et al., 2015). Somatically, joints represent movement and flexibility; when emotions remain unprocessed, the body can become physically rigid.

Spiritual Reflection
Scripture describes bitterness as creating a hardened heart, and God invites us into softness and restoration.

• Ezekiel 36:26
• Ephesians 4:31–32

Somatic Practice
Gentle heart-opening stretches and Butterfly Hugs calm the vagus nerve and support emotional release.

Joint Pain: Struggling to Move Forward

Emotional Root
Joint pain often reflects inner resistance, fear of change, difficulty letting go, or uncertainty about the future. Emotional stress increases inflammation and heightens pain perception (Wiech & Tracey, 2009). Resistance to life transitions is also linked to physical symptoms (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984).

Spiritual Reflection
God promises to guide your steps, even when you feel stuck.

• Isaiah 30:21
• Proverbs 3:5–6
• Psalm 37:23–24

Somatic Practice
Cross-body movements restore rhythm and help the brain shift out of “stuckness.” Walking without rules mirrors the spiritual practice of trusting God one step at a time.

Inflammation: Fear and Overthinking

Emotional Root
Chronic fear, worry, and overthinking elevate cortisol and activate the immune system, causing inflammation (Slavich, 2020; Irwin & Cole, 2011). Anxiety keeps the body in fight-or-flight, preventing healing.

Spiritual Reflection

• Isaiah 26:3
• Philippians 4:6–7
• 1 John 4:18

Somatic Practice
Cooling breathwork, gentle neck rolls, and Scripture meditation help reduce emotional “heat” and calm the nervous system (Streeter et al., 2012).

Fractures & Breaks: Internal Conflict or Feeling Unsupported

Emotional Root
Bones represent structure and support. Stress, relational conflict, and emotional upheaval can slow bone healing (Reynolds et al., 2007). Feeling unsupported, by God, self, or others, can manifest physically.

Spiritual Reflection

• Psalm 31:9–10
• Proverbs 3:7–8
• 1 Peter 5:6

Somatic Practice
Surrender breathwork and Child’s Pose encourage grounding, humility, and safety.

Headaches: Overthinking & Suppressed Grief

Emotional Root
Tension headaches often stem from mental overload or unexpressed emotions. Rumination increases headache frequency (Holroyd et al., 2000), and unresolved grief can lead to somatic pain (Prigerson et al., 2009).

Spiritual Reflection

• Matthew 11:28–29
• Psalm 55:22
• Isaiah 26:3

Somatic Practice
Neck rolls, Butterfly Hugs, and breath prayers (“Inhale: You are my peace. Exhale: I release my burden.”) help release tension and regulate the nervous system.

Understanding the Vagus Nerve & Somatic Exercise

The vagus nerve runs from the brainstem through the face, throat, heart, lungs, and digestive organs, touching nearly every major system. When calm, it activates rest, digestion, clarity, and emotional regulation (Thayer & Lane, 2000; Porges, 2011). When overwhelmed, you may feel tense, anxious, or shut down.

This is where somatic practices become powerful.

Somatic exercises are gentle, nervous-system-supportive movements: Butterfly Hugs, rocking, grounding, cross-body movements, shaking, and deep belly breathing, that help release stored tension and reconnect you with your body. These practices are evidence-based (Levine, 2010; van der Kolk, 2014) and deeply supportive for emotional healing.

In my own life and in the lives of the women I serve, somatic work has been transformational. It connects what we know with what we feel and helps the whole self come into alignment with God’s presence and peace. If you want to begin incorporating somatic exercises, the FaithFueled Life App includes a full library of trauma-informed, Christ-centered practices you can use anytime. I have also started a new YouTube Channel offering Somatic Exercises Flows every Friday and Prayer and Meditation on Wednesdays.

How to Start Healing: Body, Mind & Spirit

You honor God by letting Him heal what your body has been holding. If you recognize yourself in these patterns, pause and take a deep breath. You are not broken. You are being reshaped, healed, and brought into wholeness. Healing begins when we stop ignoring the signals our bodies send and begin responding with compassion. You do not have to push through or pretend to be fine. God welcomes every part of you, your emotions, your questions, your pain, into His healing presence.

Your Body Is a Temple, Not a Storage Unit

You were not created to hold grief, shame, anger, or rejection forever. Jesus came to restore your whole being, mind, body, and spirit.

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; ²⁰ you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. 1 Corinthians 6:19–20

Scripture affirms the integrated nature of the body and spirit (Genesis 2:7; Psalms 31 and 38). Theologian N. T. Wright reminds us that the body is the place where “heaven and earth meet.” Early church father Irenaeus wrote, “The glory of God is man fully alive.” Modern science confirms this truth. Chronic stress and unprocessed emotions increase inflammation and illness (Segerstrom & Miller, 2004). Embodiment practices help regulate the nervous system and support God’s healing work.

Coming Next: Part 3

How the Nervous System Stores (and Releases) Emotional Pain

We’ll explore:

• emotions that show up in the front of the body
• why digestion reacts to emotions
• how food cravings reveal unprocessed pain
• what Scripture teaches about embodied rest
• somatic regulation through a Christian lens

Make sure you’re subscribed. Part 3 is where everything begins to click. (Bottom right corner in the teal box.)

Listening to the Body’s Questions

Your body often speaks when your soul is weary:

• If your knees ache: What am I resisting?
• If your stomach churns: What fear am I struggling to digest?
• If your shoulders are heavy: What burden have I picked up that God never placed on me?

Healing is available, in Christ, in community, and yes, even through your body.

I’m opening registration soon for my 12-Week Reclaim Your Temple small group coaching program. I only hold space for eight women at a time because this work is deep, personal, and truly transformational. If you’ve been sensing that God is inviting you into a season of healing, embodiment, and renewal, now is the time to reserve your spot.

Your body and your whole life will feel the difference. You are not alone. You are not too late. You are not too much. You are deeply loved by the God who not only sees your pain but longs to walk you through it.

It’s time to reclaim your temple, one breath, one stretch, one Scripture, one surrender at a time.

If you are ready to begin healing, the FaithFueled Life App includes guided somatic exercises, grounding practices, breathwork, and gentle movement sessions designed to help your nervous system release what it has been holding. These tools are evidence-based, trauma-informed, and rooted in biblical truth. They pair perfectly with this series.

Healing is not something you have to figure out alone.
Join me inside the FaithFueled Life App and begin honoring God with your whole temple, body, mind, and spirit.

“Where do you feel emotional stress show up in your body most often?”

Sources

Irwin, M. R., & Cole, S. W. (2011).

Reciprocal regulation of the neural and innate immune systems. Nature Reviews Immunology, 11(9), 625–632.
https://www.nature.com/articles/nri3042

Lumley, M. A., Schubiner, H., Lockhart, N. A., Kidwell, K. M., Harte, S. E., Clauw, D. J., & Williams, D. A. (2011).
Emotional awareness and expression therapy, cognitive–behavioral therapy, and education for fibromyalgia: A cluster-randomized controlled trial.
PAIN, 152(12), 314–325. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28796118/
Holroyd, K. A., Drew, J. B., Cottrell, C. K., Romanek, K., & Heh, V. (2000).

Perceived self-efficacy, emotional distress, and headache-related disability. Headache: The Journal of Head and Face Pain, 40(5), 445–456.

Prigerson, H. G., Shear, M. K., Jacobs, S. C., Reynolds, C. F., Maciejewski, P. K., Davidson, J. R., & Zisook, S. (1999).

Consensus criteria for traumatic grief. British Journal of Psychiatry, 174(1), 67–73.

Porges, S. W. (2011).

The polyvagal theory: Neurophysiological foundations of emotions, attachment, communication, and self-regulation. W. W. Norton.

Reynolds, M. L., Melloh, M., Staubli, P., & Käfer, W. (2007).

Influence of psychosocial factors on recovery from fractures: A systematic review. Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine, 39(6), 457–462.

Segerstrom, S. C., & Miller, G. E. (2004).

Psychological stress and the human immune system: A meta-analytic study of 30 years of inquiry. Psychological Bulletin, 130(4), 601–630.

Slavich, G. M. (2020).

Social safety theory: A biologically based evolutionary perspective on life stress, health, and behavior. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 16, 265–295.

Streeter, C. C., Gerbarg, P. L., Saper, R. B., Ciraulo, D. A., & Brown, R. P. (2012).

Effects of yoga on the autonomic nervous system, gamma-aminobutyric-acid, and allostasis in epilepsy, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Medical Hypotheses, 78(5), 571–579.

Thayer, J. F., & Lane, R. D. (2000).

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van der Kolk, B. A. (2014).

The body keeps the score: Brain, mind, and body in the healing of trauma. Viking.

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The influence of negative emotions on pain: Behavioral effects and neural mechanisms. NeuroImage, 47(3), 987–994.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1053811909005862?via%3Dihub