April Insights: How to move through change somatically with more ease

The Monthly Reset

April has arrived — and if you've already caught yourself wondering, "Why am I not further along?" — I would like to invite you to ask yourself a different question.

What if instead, the most powerful thing you could do right now is pause and check in with yourself — not with judgment or a scorecard — but with simple, honest curiosity and ask yourself, “How am I, really, doing with where I am right now?”

This gentle question can be powerful and recently made me reflect on something I learned in my coaching training with Martha Beck that changed the way I move through my own life: Change isn't something that happens to us. It's something we are always moving through — in big ways and small, constantly letting go of old versions of ourselves and stepping into new ones.

And this is deeply aligned with what's happening astrologically. We are a week into a brand new astrological year. Aries, the first sign of the new year, carries the energy of initiation and beginning again. But every true beginning requires an ending first. Which means for many of us, this is a season of death and rebirth — and depending on where you are in your own cycle, that may feel exhilarating, terrifying, or quietly bittersweet.

What makes this moment even more potent is that the astrological wheel and Martha Beck's Change Cycle are telling the same story — that transformation has a natural intelligence to its timing, and fighting that intelligence is what exhausts us, not the change itself.

So if April feels like a threshold moment — if something is ending, stirring, or not quite formed yet — that is not a sign you are behind. That is the medicine of this season working exactly as it should.

The problem is that most of us were never taught how to let this happen naturally. And when you couple that with the science that our nervous systems equate new with unsafe, it makes sense why we can resist and fight change. Then wonder what is wrong with us when life feels messy, uncertain, or why we aren't further along.

Here's what I want you to hear today: There is nothing wrong with you. You are exactly where you are supposed to be. I used to hate that statement. My tempo used to be more, faster, quicker…but when I learned to lean into that phrase – allowing it to settle into my body – my nervous system stopped treating change as a threat. My body relaxed. And that's when my body moved into regulation – where creativity, curiosity, and joy live.

In addition, you permit yourself to move at a pace your nervous system can tolerate. Small, intentional steps — from safety, not stress. That's when change stops feeling like something to survive and starts feeling like something you can embrace and co-create the life you desire.

Martha Beck's Change Cycle maps this out across four stages that I dive deeper into below. I also recorded a somatic exercise below to help you move through whatever stage you are in.

You might be closer to where you want to be than you think. 👇

The Change Cycle

Square 1 - Death & Rebirth

"I don't know what the hell is going on."

Something shifted — a loss, an ending, a moment that turned your world upside down. You may feel confused, scared, or caught between who you were and who you're becoming. This is the most disorienting square, but it is also the birthplace of transformation. Your only job here is to grieve, ask for help, and resist the urge to force your way back to what was. The old life is dissolving for you to become who you were meant to be.

Square 2 — Dreaming & Scheming

"There are no rules, and that's OK."

The fog begins to lift, and something stirs — curiosity, possibility, the first flicker of what if? Hope starts showing up. Thoughts and Ideas quietly nudge you into a new direction. This is your invitation to imagine without editing yourself. Nothing is too big, too wild, or too late. Let yourself dream here — even the impossible ones, especially the wild ones. You don't need a plan yet. You just need permission to wander and wonder.

Square 3 — The Hero's Saga

"This is much worse than I expected."

This is where the real work begins — and where most people get stuck or quit. You have a dream, but the path forward feels overwhelming and riddled with failure. This square asks you to take small intentional steps, learn from your mistakes, and keep going anyway. Not perfectly. Not gracefully. But persistently. The setbacks aren't signs you're doing it wrong — they are part of the process. Celebrate the small wins. Lean on your people, coaches, and loved ones. And when in doubt, just keep trying different things. Failure isn't rejection, it's redirection.

Square 4 — The Promised Land

"Everything is changing, and that's OK."

You made it! The dream has taken root, and it has staying power. Life feels easier, more aligned, more like you. This is the square of peace, presence, and gratitude. Your job here is to savor it — to focus on what's working, be generous with yourself and others, and fully inhabit the life you worked so hard to build. And then gently, lovingly, accept that the cycle will begin again. Because that's not a threat. That's just what it means to be alive and growing.

And Here's What I Want You to Remember…

You and I have been through every one of these squares before — probably more times than either of us realizes. The first job out of college, the job loss, starting a family, only to lose your freedom, the relationship that ended, the identity that you outgrew, the dream that finally came true. Or the dream that ended before it got started.

You survived all of it. You grew through it. You learned from it. Even if you didn't know it.

The goal was never to avoid change. The goal is to stop fighting the stage you're in and start trusting the process that's already carrying you forward.

So wherever you are right now — lost, dreaming, struggling, or thriving — you are not broken. You are not behind. You are becoming. And that will always be enough.

Which one of the squares are you in right now? Respond to this email and let me know.

If you need support as you transition through your next stage, click here to schedule a free inquiry call with me.

SCROLL DOWN for a simple somatic practice to help you move through whatever stage you are in.

Laurie