Listening to Your Body: Our Trauma-Informed Approach to Care (Part 1/3)
What if your pain wasn’t just physical—but a story your body has been carrying for years?
In our Minneapolis clinic, we hear it often:
“I’ve tried everything and nothing sticks.”
“I didn’t realize my migraines could be connected to my jaw—or to the stress I’ve been holding.”
When symptoms don’t respond to quick fixes, it can feel like your body is broken. But what if the truth is simpler—and kinder? At Stockheart Whole Health, we believe your body is already wise. Trauma-informed care is about listening closely, honoring your story, and creating healing that lasts.
What We’re Seeing in the Clinic
Over the past few months, I’ve noticed a theme: patients—especially women balancing caregiving roles—are showing up with daily headaches, jaw pain, and a deep sense of nervous system depletion. They’re not imagining it. It’s showing up in their posture, their breath, even the way their muscles resist letting go.
Many have cycled through specialists, sleep studies, and elimination diets, yet still find themselves exhausted. Others arrive convinced they’re “too sensitive” because even a new supplement or a massage can trigger flares.
This isn’t random. It’s the body saying, “I’ve had to hold too much for too long.”
That’s why we often bring together gentle DNFT chiropractic for neck and TMJ tension, acupuncture for nervous system regulation, and functional medicine to explore underlying triggers like inflammation or hormone shifts.
How This Informs Our Care
Trauma-informed care means we don’t separate the mental from the physical, or ask your body to do more than it can. Instead, we focus on co-regulation—helping your system feel safe enough to release what it’s been holding.
Rather than rushing, we prioritize pacing. Gentle adjustments, craniosacral therapy, or acupuncture invite your body back into balance without force. Functional medicine helps us uncover patterns—whether that’s food sensitivities fueling migraines or nutrient gaps worsening fatigue.
It’s less about “fixing” and more about creating conditions where your body can remember how to heal.
What I Wish More Patients Knew
Rest isn’t optional for a healing nervous system. Think of it as medicine.
Your jaw and neck may be fueling headaches. If you clench at night or carry stress in your shoulders, that tension matters.
Consistency matters more than intensity. Small, steady steps help rewire your nervous system.
✨ “You’re not too sensitive. You’re picking up on patterns your body’s been managing for years.”
You’re Not Alone.
Even as a provider, I’m not immune. When life feels overwhelming, my body lets me know—tight jaw, shallow breath, restless sleep. I have to return to the same practices I offer my patients: slowing down, listening, softening. Healing isn’t about force. It’s about rhythm, relationship, and remembering that we are not machines.
Thanks for listening.
Thank you for letting me share a window into our approach. If this resonates, I’d love to hear your story too.
Every healing journey is unique. Yours deserves to be honored with the time, attention, and gentleness it needs.
👉 Schedule a discovery session and see if our trauma-informed approach feels right for you.
“I finally found a provider who gets it.” —What we hear most often from our patients
This is just the beginning. In Part 2, we’ll share what we’re seeing in the clinic around migraines, jaw pain, and nervous system depletion—and how trauma-informed care helps.