How the Body Stores Emotions

Athletes know the importance of physical and mental health, but what you may not know is that the two are connected in how the body stores emotions. The physical pain or discomfort may be present suddenly, always, or occasionally. In fact, sometimes before you’re able to identify which emotion you’re feeling, you’ll be able to pinpoint it in your body.

It’s been said that the body never forgets. As neuroscientist Candace Pert wrote, “Your body is your subconscious mind.”

As I shared in the Athlete Mental Health Playbook, emotions are energy and that energy has to go somewhere. This means that if you don’t face what you’re feeling, those emotions don’t cease to exist, they just go somewhere else and are channeled in other ways.

The most relatable example is stress. Everyone has felt stressed at one point or another. Your adrenaline from fight or flight mode kicks in—and when that sticks around for long periods of time, those stress hormones can begin to break down your body in different ways. You’ve probably heard from a doctor at some point that the physical symptom you’re experiencing is caused by or exacerbated by stress.

Even if you’re unable to identify the emotion that you’re feeling, you might feel something off in your body. For example, I knew a person who would never say that he felt anxiety, but he would say that he had a stomachache. He didn’t know how to identify the anxiety he was feeling, but he was aware of the pain in his stomach.

Examples of how the body stores emotions include:

Scenario 1: Stress

Prolonged stress can cause your body to break down. In one chapter of the Athlete Mental Health Playbook I shared a story about how during one particular lengthy stressful period in my life, my body began to break down even going as far as causing the skin on my hands to have an outbreak. Physical signs of stress can be something external or internal. For example, you might notice that your jaw is tight, you clench your teeth at night, your shoulders are tense, or you clench your fist without purposely meaning to do so.

Scenario 2: Trauma.

Trauma is more prevalent than most people realize. One study found that 70% of adults in the U.S. have experienced some type of traumatic event at least once in their lives—although I’d argue this number is higher after the pandemic and social and political events of 2020.

Sources of trauma can range from

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE)
An acute one-time event like a car accident, natural disaster, or unexpected loss of a loved one
Chronic recurring events like bullying or domestic violence
Complex repeated traumatic events in which the person feels trapped or can’t escape
Secondary trauma in which the person witnesses other people’s suffering like first responders and doctors

The body stores unhealed trauma and emotions in organs, skin, tissues, muscles, and endocrine glands. In addition, trauma can shock the nervous system so when you remember the traumatic event—consciously or unconsciously—your nervous system might respond to the feeling of that memory.

A trained trauma therapist can help you process trauma through such techniques as bodywork. Naturally then, with trauma, physical release is an incredibly important part of the full healing process. And, it’s not something you should try to do on your own.

Scenario 3: Mental health issues.

Mental health problems like anxiety and depression can absolutely present as feelings in your body. For example, people who suffer from anxiety might notice that they have stomachaches, headaches, or even find themselves shaking nervously. I actually used to have stomachaches every morning in college when I woke up to get ready for class and it wasn’t until years later that I realized that this was my body reacting to anxiety. I didn’t even realize I was suffering my anxiety at the time but this was one of the clues.

Scenario 4: Everyday emotions.

One study on emotions found that, on average, people experience one or several emotions 90% of the time. In your own experience, you know that sometimes those emotions feel good and sometimes they don’t. When you take a moment to think about it, you can probably think of a time that an emotion came up and you felt in your body. For example, think of game day jitters and the butterflies you get in your stomach before a game or how your heart flutters with excitement when you’re in love.

How to Listen to Cues from Your Body

The body always knows. If your emotions are the compass, your body is the pathway.

One of the best ways to really hear your emotions and your body is to get quiet. Take a few deep breaths and let how you’re feeling come up. Don’t judge your answer, even if it surprises you. See if you can feel that emotion in your body.

If you have a hard time pinpointing what emotion you’re feeling, get a little more curious. You can ask yourself questions like:

If I had to pick an emotion, which one would I be?
If I were an emoji right now, which one would I be?
If what I am feeling right now was a color, what color would that be?

One of the keys here is to go with the first answer that you come up with because that’s likely your true feeling.

Then ask yourself: Where do I feel this in my body? With your eyes closed and sitting or standing still, scan your body from your toes up to your head and see what you notice.

If no emotions come up for you, make note of what you feel in your body and where you feel it. This will help give you clues as you go repeat this exercise.

How can this help athletes?

Working through emotions is invaluable to strengthening your mindset and your body. Many athletes are taught to compartmentalize emotions and channel them into their sport or even ignore them all together. Remember, however, when you ignore your feelings, that energy is going to go somewhere like being stored in your body. So, if you want to be in prime physical condition, get face-to-face with your emotions.

Keys to the game:

Pain in your body can be from any number of reasons so it’s important to work with health care providers who can help you determine the cause of your pain. Sometimes the cause of the pain might be a physical injury or illness, and sometimes it might be caused by your emotions. Take a holistic picture of mind, body, and soul with individuals who are qualified to help you do so.
If you have a hard time with emotional awareness, tune into your body. Listen to how your body is talking to you and pay attention to what it’s saying. What do you feel and where do you feel it?
Balance mind, body, and soul by getting quiet. The more you know yourself, the more you’ll be able to notice when something is off balance.
Fight or flight wasn’t meant to be sustained for long periods of time. Pay attention to what it feels like when you’re in survival mode so that you can learn how to recognize it and move into growth mode. You’re not a robot.

Is mental health coaching right for you? Contact me about one-on-one VIP coaching for athletes.