The Body Remembers — Somatic Symptoms of Grief

Dr. Danielle Niaz, PhD – Founder & Lead Instructor
Nov 20
3 min read

By Dr. Dani Niaz, PhD | Neuronest Yoga | The Science of Grief & the Art of Healing Series (Part 2)

Person lying on a beige couch, wearing light-colored clothing. Hands rest gently, creating a calm, relaxed atmosphere. No visible text.

🌙 Introduction: When the Body Speaks What Words Cannot

Grief doesn’t only live in the mind — it roots itself in the body.

Long after the tears fade, the body still remembers what the heart has endured. Tight shoulders, aching joints, shallow breaths, and fatigue are all ways the nervous system says, “I’m still processing.”

At Neuronest Yoga, we teach that grief is a full-body experience.

Every sigh, every ache, every moment of stillness is part of your nervous system’s way of trying to find balance again.

🧠 The Body-Brain Connection in Grief

When you experience loss, your brain sends distress signals through the vagus nerve, the superhighway that links your brain to your gut, heart, and lungs.

This sets off a cascade of physical changes:

Heart rate and breathing become irregular.
Digestion slows as blood flow reroutes to survival mode.
Muscles tense to guard against perceived danger.
Hormones like cortisol and adrenaline surge, while oxytocin and serotonin drop.

This is the somatic echo of grief — your body protecting itself from emotional overwhelm.

💔 Common Somatic Symptoms of Grief

Many people don’t realize how physical grief can be. Some of the most common patterns include:

Tension headaches or neck/shoulder tightness from constant emotional bracing
Digestive changes (constipation, nausea, or loss of appetite)
Sleep disturbances or vivid dreams
Joint pain or inflammation — often linked to chronic stress hormones
Shortness of breath or shallow breathing from an overactive stress response
Chronic fatigue — because the nervous system is constantly in “alert” mode

None of these symptoms mean you are “weak.”

They mean your body is trying to help you survive.

🌬️ The Nervous System’s Language: Breath, Posture, and Stillness

Every emotion has a posture.

Grief often curls us inward — chest collapsed, eyes down, shoulders heavy — mimicking protection.

By contrast, healing unfolds when we begin to open the chest, expand the breath, and root the feet.

The vagus nerve, our body’s natural “reset switch,” responds to rhythm, sound, and slow breath.

That’s why practices like chanting, humming, rhythmic breathing, and rocking help ease the tension grief leaves behind.

🪷 The Ayurvedic Lens: Grief as a Vāta Imbalance

In Ayurveda, grief is linked to the vāta dosha — the energy of air and ether.

When vāta is imbalanced, we feel ungrounded, anxious, forgetful, or physically cold. To restore harmony, Ayurveda recommends:

Warm, nourishing foods: soups, stews, oats, herbal teas with ginger or cinnamon.
Abhyanga (self-massage): with sesame or almond oil before bed.
Grounding rituals: sitting on the earth, burning incense, or using weighted blankets.
Regular routines: sleeping and eating at consistent times to stabilize circadian rhythms.

These practices don’t just comfort — they recalibrate the nervous system.

🧘🏽‍♀️ How to Reconnect with Your Body After Loss

Gentle Chair Yoga — especially forward folds, heart openers, and slow neck rolls.
Mindful Movement — let music guide your breath instead of your thoughts.
Breath Awareness Practice:
- Inhale slowly through the nose (count 4)
- Hold gently (count 2)
- Exhale through the mouth (count 6)
  
  This longer exhale activates the parasympathetic “rest-and-repair” response.
Body Mapping Journaling:

Draw a simple outline of your body and mark where you feel emotion — then write what those sensations remind you of.