Imagine you’re carrying a backpack from the moment you’re born. At first, it’s light and empty, barely noticeable.
But as you journey through life, experiences start to fill it. Some are light, like soft feathers from joyful moments—a warm hug with a connected loved one, winning the egg and spoon race, playing sports or having the craic with friends.
Then there are the heavier rocks, the wounds. Often painful memories, maybe bullying, parents divorce/separation, grief of losing a loved one, illness. The smaller stones that collect over time could be moments of rejection, failure, or fear, there are many events you don’t consciously remember, a hurtful comment, tension in your childhood home, or inter-generational trauma, all become hidden rocks in the bottom of the bag.
With every step you take in life, the weight of these rocks grows heavier, from all the times you have suppressed your emotions because it wasn’t “safe” to express them.
We do adjust and learn to carry it without questioning why it’s so heavy. Your shoulders ache, your posture changes, and you move more slowly.
You might feel stuck, anxious, angry, always frustrated, overwhelmed or have a general lack of motivation, everything is a hassle. Old fears resurface in new situations, the past is always in the present, leading to patterns of behaviour and communication that may not be serving you well.
You might even forget that the backpack isn’t part of you; you’ve carried it for so long, it feels like it’s just who you are.
Neurodynamic Breathwork acts as a safe, intentional space where you finally set that backpack down. You start to practise unzipping it, one layer at a time, over and over again and pulling out what’s inside and ready to come out. You discover what’s been weighing you down.
As you let go of the weight, it feels like getting to know yourself for the first time. You’re lighter, freer, and standing tall and strong. The space you create inside allows you to breathe deeply, to feel solid in yourself, to trust yourself, to embrace life with a new sense of balance and clarity. You still carry the feathers, of course, they were always meant to lift you.