When something shows up in your body, what's your first move? For most of us, it's "How do I make this stop?" Headache? Take a pill. Tight shoulders? Push through. Fatigue? More coffee. Stomach pain? Something must be wrong. We've been trained to treat every body signal as a problem to eliminate. But in unshaming, we learn something radical: symptoms are messengers. And the message is different for every person. A stomachache in one woman might be saying, "I need to complain more. I'm swallowing too much." In another, it might be saying, "There's a burning boundary in here that I'm not expressing." The symptom isn't the problem. Getting rid of it without hearing what it has to say, that's where we lose something important. This week's reflection: 🤔 Think about a physical symptom that keeps returning for you. The headache, the tight jaw, the knot in your stomach, the fatigue. Instead of asking "How do I get rid of this?", try asking: "If this symptom could speak, what would it say? What might it be asking for that I haven't been willing to give?" Your body's intelligence is personal. It's not generic advice. It's medicine made specifically for you. xo, Amanda

Here's something that might change how you think about your body: your body dreams. Not just at night when you're asleep. During the day, too. Your body expresses deep experiences that interfere with your normal routine, your usual identity, the way you think you're "supposed" to show up. That headache that pulls you out of your day? It's not just a nuisance. It might be your body saying, "Close your eyes and ears. Be still. Stop orienting to everyone else's needs." We've been taught to see these interruptions as problems. But what if they're actually revolutionary? What if your body's symptoms are challenging a status quo that was never truly serving you? This week's reflection: 🔥 Think of a physical symptom that disrupts your "normal" life. Not just bothers you, but actually forces you to stop, slow down, or change your plans. What would happen if, instead of fighting it, you asked: "What part of me is trying to come through here? What is my body insisting on that my usual self keeps overriding?" Your body isn't betraying you. It might be the most honest part of you there is. xo, Amanda

I got hit with a summer cold. Boo! I hate being sick. Doesn’t everybody though? 🥴🤷‍♀️ I’m running behind on everything including the UnShaming Reflections post from yesterday. I’ll get it out this week. Sorry for the delay. 💕 I used to push through, ignore my body, symptoms, and inner urge to rest. I don’t do that anymore. I’m giving myself time to slow down so my body can divert essential resources to fighting this thing. And with a secret hope I’ll recover faster. Obviously. How are you doing?

Hello Lovelies! I’m on holiday with my family in the UK. I’m currently sitting at the airport waiting for our flight to the Isle of Man. I’ll be posting the UnShaming Reflections once I land in a few hours once I land. Xo, Amanda

This month, we're doing something different. We're turning toward the body. Most of us have been taught to override what our bodies are telling us. Push through. Suck it up. Ignore the ache, the tension, the exhaustion. We treat our bodies like machines that need to perform, not like living, breathing messengers that are constantly communicating with us. That disconnection? That's shame, too. Shame doesn't just live in our thoughts. It lives in how we've learned to tune out our own physical experience. 🧘‍♀️This week's reflection: When was the last time you actually stopped and asked your body how it was doing? Not to assess what's wrong, not to fix anything, just to check in with genuine curiosity? Right now, pause. Put your hand on your chest or your belly. What do you notice? Tension? Warmth? Numbness? Heaviness? You don't need to label it or change it. Just notice what's there. Your body has been talking to you. This is where we start listening. 💗 xo, Amanda