Holly Joy McCabe
Why Movement is the Missing Link in Your Healing Journey
7 May 2025
If you’ve been on a healing journey—whether physical, emotional, or spiritual—you’ve likely explored many tools: therapy, breathwork, supplements, journaling, meditation, maybe even somatic or trauma-informed practices.
But there’s one tool that is often overlooked, misunderstood, or dismissed as just “exercise”—and yet it holds the power to radically shift your nervous system, mindset, and emotional resilience.
That missing link? Intentional movement.
Movement Isn’t Just Physical—It’s Neurological
Our culture tends to separate physical movement from emotional healing. But science—and lived experience—tells a different story.
Movement isn’t just about burning calories or hitting step goals. It’s a form of regulation, release, and reconnection.
Each step you take, each swing of your arms, each deep inhale as you walk—these are messages to your brain that say: I’m safe. I’m here. I’m moving forward.
In fact, rhythmic movement (like walking) directly stimulates your vagus nerve—the communication superhighway between your brain and body—and supports nervous system regulation by shifting you out of a stress or freeze state and into a more grounded, present, connected space.
Stuck Emotion Lives in a Stuck Body
When we experience trauma or prolonged stress, the body often holds onto that experience as tension, dissociation, or immobility. We might feel numb, disconnected, or constantly on edge.
What’s one of the best ways to begin releasing that? Move.
Not in a punishing, performance-driven way—but in a curious, attuned, and present way.
Movement can reconnect you to your body when it feels foreign. It can offer a gentle invitation back to sensation, breath, and awareness. It becomes a bridge—from shutdown to aliveness, from dissociation to presence.
Movement As Medicine for the Mind and Mood
Studies consistently show that daily movement improves mental clarity, emotional stability, and sleep quality. But what the research also reveals is that movement helps:
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Rewire the brain through neuroplasticity
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Support emotional processing and release
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Reduce inflammation (which is tied to anxiety and depression)
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Increase self-efficacy and confidence
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And when we move mindfully—with intention, awareness, and even joy—it amplifies these benefits exponentially.
From Mindless Motion to Mindful Miles
That’s why I, Holly Joy McCabe, created the Mindful Miles Challenge—a movement-based nervous system healing experience that invites you to walk not just with your legs, but with your senses, your awareness, and your inner wisdom.
Each week is themed with a specific sensory or regulation focus—from visual resets and sound mapping to tactile grounding and full-sensory integration. It’s about making movement meaningful.
Not just walking for fitness, but walking for presence.
For healing.
For returning to yourself.
Let’s Bring the Body Back Into the Healing Conversation
If you’ve felt stuck in your healing… if you’ve done all the mindset work and still feel dysregulated or disconnected… it may be time to move.
Not perfectly.
Not intensely.
Just consistently.
Intentionally.
Lovingly.
Try this:
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Start with a daily 5–10 minute walk. No podcast, no phone, no pressure. Just you, your breath, your steps, and your senses. Notice what shifts.
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Then, check in with yourself afterward: How do I feel in my body now? What has softened or opened? What am I noticing more clearly?
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These micro-moments of movement add up to massive change.
Final Thoughts
Healing is rarely linear—and it's almost never just mental. The body holds so much of our story, our stress, and our resilience. When we ignore movement, we miss a vital part of that healing puzzle.
You don’t need to run marathons or hit 10,000 steps a day. You just need to start. Walk slowly. Breathe deeply. Notice the ground beneath you, the way your arms swing, the rhythm of your breath.
Let movement become your medicine. Let each step remind you: I am here. I am healing. I am home in my body.
Your journey doesn't have to be perfect—just present. And it starts right now, with one mindful mile.
Ready to start walking your way to regulation?
Join the Mindful Miles Challenge today and experience the healing power of movement, one step at a time.
Your Next Step: Let’s Stay Connected
If you're ready to take this journey with real support, here’s how you can start today:
This is your invitation to break free from the cycles of stress, trauma, and overwhelm—and step into true, lasting transformation.
Let
Let's Rise Together.
LOVE & ZEN,
References
National Library of Medicine.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6023813/
NCBI. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6490746/
Frontiers in Psychology. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00874/full
National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6381429/
NCBI. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10619750/
ScienceDirect. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1550830718303513
Frontiers in Psychology. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00874/full
HeartMath Research. https://www.heartmath.org/research/
Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. https://www.liebertpub.com/journal/acm
Harvard Medical School. https://www.health.harvard.edu/alternative-and-complementary-medicine/the-healing-power-of-qigong
NIH. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4654786/
HeartMath. https://www.heartmath.org/research/
Harvard Medical School. https://www.health.harvard.edu/alternative-and-complementary-medicine/the-healing-power-of-qigong
Journal of Transcultural Psychiatry. https://journals.sagepub.com/home/tps
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