Truth, Justice & the American Way?

It’s only January, and I’ve been in deep grief this entire month…

First, for the passing of my friend and client, Bret Shuford, which I wrote about last week. 

Then, like many of you, I watched the news unfold about a woman being shot in the face by ICE agents. 

I watched the “official” statements from the White House and the DHS come out. 

And I watched videos that told a different story.

As a former journalist, I felt disgusted. I also felt that familiar, quiet disorientation that comes when what we’re told doesn’t match what we see or know as the truth. 

We, or I’ll just speak for myself, I like to believe that the world is filled with “good” people who want to do the right thing. I also used to believe that facts are facts, and that authority figures are, at the very least, pretending to investigate instead of just blatantly lying to us.

However, the Trump administration has not followed those “sane” rules. This is now the NEW American way… Lies and Injustice. 

So, I want to support you today, in a different way. The reason we all feel sooo on edge is that this instability affects our sense of safety in our bodies. 

And that’s exhausting.

Because now, on top of living our lives or dealing with REAL challenges in our daily lives, we’re also having to orient ourselves from uncertainty and chaos and constantly asking these questions (especially on a subconscious level):

• What’s real?

• Who can I trust?

• Am I safe in this world?
  

These questions don’t live in the intellect or the logical part of our brain.

They live in the body.

The fear part that’s beneath the surface…

…one that unconsciously keeps telling us:

If the world is dangerous or dishonest, I need to stay on high alert.

So we watch more of the news.
We scroll longer.
We numb out.
Or even get emotional about minute things that may not have affected us previously…

These are survival strategies, and I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that we have been living in survival mode for the last five years.

The wrong move (and why it’s so understandable)

When truth feels unstable, the nervous system tries to regain control.

It does this by:

• hypervigilance

• collapsing into despair (“it’s the end of the world!”)

• outsourcing clarity to louder voices (not feeling safe to have a voice)

• disconnecting from the body entirely (hello binge watching…)
  

And again…this isn’t a failure. It’s our biology.

But staying there comes at a cost.

Because a dysregulated nervous system cannot hold complexity.

It cannot witness injustice without burning out.

It cannot stay compassionate without becoming overwhelmed.

And it cannot create meaningful change — internally or externally.

Here’s the shift I want to offer — and it’s subtle, but powerful:

What if your work is not to absorb everything — but to stay anchored while witnessing, protesting and speaking out?

Being informed does not require being flooded or feeling overwhelmed.

Caring does not require collapsing.

Seeing truth does not require losing yourself.

The most radical thing you can do in moments like these is to strengthen your inner talk.

That part of you that can say:

I see what’s happening.

I feel the grief, anger, and fear.

And I am still here in my body.

This is how your nervous system can get out of survival.

This is more embodied wisdom and “rising.”

This is how we stay human in inhumane moments.

Why does this matter more than we realize?

When leaders lie, when narratives fracture, when lives are lost and truth is distorted, the harm isn’t only external.

It creates internal unrest, which can lead to anxiety or at worst, illnesses.

And if we don’t tend to that, we carry it forward…
…into our relationships…
…our finances (yes, it shows up especially with our money because our financial life is a direct reflection of our emotional life…
…AND our sense of possibility.

A nervous system that doesn’t feel safe cannot rest.
A nervous system that cannot rest cannot create.
A nervous system that cannot create cannot imagine a better future.

This is why slowing down is not avoidance.

It’s regulation.

This is why truth-telling must be paired with a grounding practice.

Here’s a gentle invitation…

If you’re feeling heavy, extremely emotional, or overwhelmed, I invite you to pause.

Close your eyes.

Place one hand on your chest and one on your belly.

Feel the warmth of your own touch.

Take a slow breath in through your nose…and an even slower breath out through your mouth.

If it feels okay, gently name what’s present right now — without judging it.

I feel…

 Sadness…
Anger…
Confusion…
Numbness…
Care…

There’s no “right” feeling here.

Now remind your body, gently and clearly:
“In this moment, I am safe.”
Even if the world feels uncertain… you are here.

Let your eyes land on something solid in the room.
Notice its color. Its shape. Its weight.
This is your nervous system anchoring back into now.

And finally, ask yourself two gentle questions, and just listen for the answers:

What do I need, in this very moment? 

What does my body need to feel safe and “good” today?

My answers just now? A good cry and water.

Yours may be: 

less news…
more movement…
rest…
connection…
Or simply permission to feel what you feel.

You don’t have to carry the whole world.

You don’t have to resolve everything today.

Your job is not to take on everything or to get cynical. It’s to stay rooted enough to witness, protest and activate your voice, without losing yourself.

That’s how we stay human.

That’s how we stay capable of love, truth, and change.

Take one more breath.

And when you’re ready, continue slowly, gently, in your own time.

With Love & Gratitude,

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