Are You Escaping Stress or Facing It in a Healthy Way?

Evil Dead Rise [Lee Cronin • 2023]

Stress has a sneaky way of creeping in. Sometimes, it’s loud and obvious—a racing heart, a clenched jaw, the feeling that there’s just too much to do. Other times, it disguises itself as endless scrolling, overbooked calendars, or a ‘treat yourself’ habit that starts tipping into avoidance.

So here’s the question: are you dealing with your stress, or just finding clever ways to run from it?

Escape vs. Healthy Release

There’s a fine line between taking a break and avoiding reality. One so fine, it’s easy to mistake numbing for nurturing.

🚪 Escaping stress might look like:

• Binge-watching to silence your thoughts (but still feeling restless).

• Shopping, snacking, or doomscrolling as a way to distract yourself.

• Pushing stress down instead of letting it move through.

🌿 Facing stress in a healthy way might look like:

• Moving your body—shaking, stretching, dancing, walking barefoot.

• Deep, honest breaths (not the rushed kind).

• Writing things down so they don’t swirl in your head.

• Letting yourself cry, laugh, or just feel without judgment.

So, What’s Your Go-To?

Next time you feel that familiar tightness in your chest, ask yourself:

Am I soothing myself, or just pressing ‘mute’ on the noise?

Try one tiny shift—pause before reaching for your phone, breathe before making a decision, take a five-minute walk. Stress doesn’t disappear, but it does change shape when you give it a healthy way out.

Because you don’t have to run. You just have to move with it. 💫

And if you’re not sure where to start, that’s where somatic bodywork therapy comes in.

Stress doesn’t just live in your mind—it settles into your body, your breath, your posture, the way you hold yourself. Through gentle movement, breathwork, and guided release, somatic bodywork helps you process stress physically, so it doesn’t stay stuck.

If you’re ready to shift from escaping stress to truly releasing it, I’d love to support you. Whether it’s through movement, breath, or simply holding space for your process, let’s explore what your body needs to feel lighter, calmer, and more at ease. 💛

Book an exploration call with me or reach out to: carlacarolinacoach@gmail.com to learn more on how I can help you embark your own path towards release, reconnection and flow. 

Our body already holds the answers, we just need to listen. ✨

Carla Carolina Watson, is a trauma informed accredited Life Coach, Neurolinguistic Programming & EFT practitioner, Clinical Hypnotherapist, Breathwork and yoga teacher with a holistic somatic approach.

For the last 7 years she’s worked in the wellbeing industry providing safe spaces for people to let go what’s holding them back and focus their energy on what truly matters for them while embracing their most authentic balanced self.

Carla has worked in renowned wellness centres, yoga studios, 1:1 with individuals all over the world as well as facilitating wellbeing spaces for local businesses to support their teams.

Her unique approach gives her clientsdifferent options to explore what works best for their goals. Through her offerings you can choose to work on: Phobias & Fears, Self-Reflection, Emotional Resilience, Anger, Communication, Stress Management and more.

Since becoming a mother two years ago she has focused on creating healing spaces for women and mothers to explore the benefits of different nourishing somatic practices like Sound Baths, Therapeutic Singing & Writing, Women Circles, and Wellness workshops.

Her services are also available to curate private gatherings like: Mother Blessings, Purposeful Hen Parties, Festivals and more.

Get in touch for more information: carlacarolinacoach@gmail.com