What the body holds, the mind tries to ignore

“One of those moments came through something I had never tried before: a buccal massage — and what it unlocked surprised me far more than I expected.”

There’s a certain kind of return that doesn’t happen all at once.

I’ve just come back from what felt like two lives folded into two weeks: Melbourne and China; and even now, I feel like I’m processing. It was intense, in the way full days and unfamiliar places can be, but also deeply energizing, and in moments surprisingly grounding.

China is something I’ll write about separately. It deserves its own space. There were experiences there that didn’t just stay on the surface, but opened something in how I think about the body, about wellbeing, about what we tend to overlook. I’m still kind of integrating it. But that will come.

Because before that, there was Melbourne!

Melbourne welcomed me with as always with that perfect blend of creativity and just this Aussie vibe.  Somewhere between planning, activations & the constant rhythm of being out and about, I found tiny moments of stillness that felt almost unexpected. Or maybe not unexpected – just long overdue.

The Buccal Massage That Changed How I Think About Tension

One of those moments came through something I had never tried before: a buccal massage. It sounds niche, and kind of is. But what I experienced there felt far removed from anything purely aesthetic. The woman I went to had over 35 years of experience – one of those rare people where you immediately sense that what they do goes beyond technique. There is a kind of knowing in their hands that you can’t really learn, only develop over time. From the moment the treatment began, it was clear this wasn’t just “about facial”. Buccal massage works both externally and internally, releasing tension not only through the face, but from inside the mouth, particularly around the jaw. Unusual at first, yes – but what unfolded was something much deeper. As she worked, she explained how much we tend to hold in this area. Unprocessed emotion, stress, even tension we’ve normalized to the point of not noticing it anymore. The jaw, she said, is one of the places where emotions settle. And sometimes, when that tension begins to release, it brings more with it: emotion, memory, even tears. She told me simply to relax and that whatever comes up is safe.

And somewhere in between her words and the rhythm of the treatment, I could feel it – layers softening that I hadn’t even realized were there.

It made me think about how often we move through life holding things in. The things we don’t say, the emotions we postpone or suppress, the pressure we learn to carry as if it’s normal. And somehow, the body keeps track. The face, as she described it, is almost like an emotional map, like a landscape of everything we’ve experienced, whether we’ve acknowledged it or not.

She also spoke about the vagus nerve, something I had come across before, but never quite understood in this way. It’s one of the most important pathways in the body, connecting the brain to major organs, including the heart and digestive system. It plays a key role in our nervous system, especially in helping us shift into a state of rest, relaxation and safety. So interesting!! When the jaw and face are tight, it can actually impact how regulated we feel. Releasing that tension can gently signal to the body that it’s safe to soften – to breathe deeper, to let go; a kind of internal permission to exhale. Lying there, I could feel exactly that. Not just physically, but emotionally. A deeper breath, a quieter mind.

It stayed with me – as a reminder that not everything we carry is visible and that release doesn’t always come in big, defining moments.

Since being back, I’ve noticed it in small ways: a greater sensitivity to tension, a stronger connection to how my body responds throughout the day, and a clearer understanding of how much happens below the surface without us actively registering it.

I’ve already caught myself thinking about how to continue this. Finding similar treatments in Zurich, staying engaged with how the body holds and releases tension, and paying closer attention to signals that are easy to ignore, especially in the fast moving environment that I am in.

If anything, the past two weeks didn’t just offer new experiences or countries, but a more precise awareness of something that’s always there: How much we carry, often without realizing it, and how important it is to create space to release it, even in small, understated ways. And also, more simply: That allowing that process to happen isn’t a weakness. It’s part of staying aligned.