The power of being seen

When my son was a baby we taught him some simple sign language, and one of my favorite memories is from when he was about 14 months old. He was standing in his crib after a nap and flicking a finger at his lip, like you might if you wanted to make a funny sound or maybe brush off a crumb. I realized he was trying to tell me something, so I ran through a few different possibilities — thirsty? hungry? diaper? up? He got increasingly tense and agitated and I started to worry that something was wrong.

Then he pointed out the window, and I looked, and he did the "sign" again, looking at me with desperation. It came to me — was he trying to do the sign for bird? I asked, "Bird? Do you see a bird?" He broke into a smile, and his whole body relaxed.

I was deeply moved. If he had let me know that he wanted his favorite toy car, or to have a snack, or to go outside, I wouldn't have blinked. But his unprompted need to share his experience really struck me.

We started baby sign language thinking it would be useful for urgent needs or wants — "more," "milk," "eat." It was fascinating to realize that even at such a young age, the desire to simply communicate, to share an experience and be understood — "I see a bird!" — was also an urgent need. It could create distress if unmet, and a profound relief when fulfilled.

I think a big part of the solace that energy healing provides is this feeling of being seen and understood. People can spend a lot of time and energy struggling to be understood and then suffering when they are not well-received or accepted. Over time it gets exhausting.

In an intuitive session wounds, battles, defenses, and strengths are transmitted and received, subtly and yet fully, without judgment or analysis or rehashing, and that alone can be deeply relieving.

Do you have something you've been needing to share, maybe even more urgent than a bird outside your bedroom window, or maybe something you can't quite articulate? I welcome you to join me in a session or in a group and discover the relief of being seen. It's been an honor and very humbling to bear witness to people's beautiful complexity in this way.