BRAVING Trust In Your Body

Trust is lost, and rebuilt, over time, over and over again. It’s not in the grand gestures, but in a thousand small choices.

This is true in every relationship we have, including the one we have with our bodies.

When we are born, we trust our bodies completely. Hunger comes and we cry, and that cry is met with nourishment from our mothers. Too hot, too cold, too loud, too bright — our bodies register it all and we respond instinctively. We are experts in sensation. We do not question our cues or negotiate with them. We certainly never hold in a fart.

But eventually we become aware of something new: the world outside our bodies. And in that world we encounter limits, judgments, expectations, rules both spoken and unspoken. Suddenly, the natural release of a fart carries the risk of embarrassment or exclusion.

So we hold it in.

And it doesn’t stop there. We begin holding in our stories, our emotions, our impulses. Our breath? That would seem impossible, considering we can’t live without it… but we hold that too.

Each of these tiny betrayals might seem insignificant in the moment, but over time they accumulate. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, the relationship shifts.

We stop trusting our bodies. Then we stop listening. Eventually, we stop knowing them at all.

Somewhere along the way, the body stopped being a magnificent, living system and became something to control, discipline, and fix.

Thankfully, our bodies have never stopped doing their work. All the while they have been carrying us through our lives by sending signals, digesting, releasing, nourishing, repairing, building, stretching, pumping, holding, breathing, and constantly communicating.

The messages of distrust come in subtle ways: A signal to go to the bathroom during school that we’re told to ignore, a whisper from a grown up: Is she really going to eat that?, the pressure to be the best athlete you can be, to push harder, to endure more.

For me, pushing through pain, ignoring hunger, suppressing emotion were all small moments that accumulated into a deep sense of distrust.

This isn’t to say that discipline, stretching limits, or being thoughtful about what we consume automatically creates disconnection. In my case, those choices weren’t coming from trust. They were coming from fear, control, and disembodiment. Interestingly, many of my choices today look similar from the outside. I still move my body intensely. I still care deeply about what I eat. I still challenge myself.

The difference is the relationship underneath those choices.

Rebuilding trust with my body didn’t happen all at once. It happened through thousands of small, intentional moments over many years. Moments of pausing instead of overriding,
moments of listening instead of pushing through (or being forced to stop because I was at my absolute limit and had no choice but to listen), moments of curiosity instead of judgment.

The old voices still appear sometimes, those subtle thoughts that invite me back into distrust. But curiosity and compassion have become the foundation of a different response. They are the bedrock of rebuilding trust.

One of my favorite frameworks for understanding trust comes from Brené Brown. She calls it BRAVING Trust. BRAVING is an acronym that describes the ingredients of trustworthy relationships (Boundaries, Reliability, Accountability, Vault, Integrity, Non Judgement, Generosity). While it’s usually applied to relationships between people, I’ve found it to be a powerful lens for the relationship we have with our bodies.

So let’s walk through it together, and explore what each element might look like when the relationship you’re rebuilding is the one within your own skin.

Boundaries

Trust requires boundaries. In the relationship with your body, boundaries sound like quiet signals:

I’m tired.
I’m full.
I need to move.
I need to slow down.

When your body sends messages, asking for more movement, less processed food, more rest, will you honor them?

Each time you listen, you reinforce safety. Each time you override without awareness, trust breaks down.

Reflection: What boundaries do you need to set with yourself, or with others to create more safety in your body?

Reliability

Trust grows through consistency. Reliability with your body means showing up again and again to listen, not perfectly, but regularly. Sometimes that means taking action, and other times it means pausing to have a curious internal conversation before deciding what’s next.

Over time your body learns to count on you to tune in.

Reflection: What consistent practice can you commit to that will set you up for tuning into your body’s messages.

Accountability

Old habits can be powerful, and you won’t always get it right. Accountability means acknowledging when you override your body’s cues or fall into patterns that harm it with honesty.

You take responsibility, commit to change, and slowly begin keeping that commitment.

Reflection: What is one choice that you need to take accountability for? What is the next best action to make a change?

Vault

In Brené Brown’s framework, the vault means confidentiality. Applied inwardly, it can mean protecting the sacred space between you and your body. Not every sensation, struggle, or emotion needs to be public commentary, or even internal judgement. Rebuilding trust often means refusing the cultural habit of joking about or criticizing your body.

Instead, practice meeting yourself privately with honesty and care.

Reflection: When was a time that you publicly judged your body? Go back to that time and what you said. What would it feel like to turn around the criticism to language that is nurturing, full of care, and promoted growth? Now say that part out loud.

Integrity

Integrity means doing what you say you’ll do.

If you commit to getting enough sleep, your bedtime becomes non-negotiable. If you say you’ll nourish your body, you follow through.

It’s not about perfection. It’s about alignment between your intentions and your actions. Every small choice in integrity builds trust.

Reflection: What is one commitment that you will make with yourself? How will you make sure you keep your commitment?

Non-Judgment

This one is simple in theory, but hard in practice.

Non-judgment means noticing what is happening in your body without immediately labeling it as good or bad or labeling it as anything at all.

Instead of “this shouldn’t be happening,” practice noticing what’s here.

Reflection: Pause. Notice what is happening in your body. Sensations, thoughts, emotions. Now practice noticing. If a judgment comes, simply say “Judgement, I’m gonna ask you to sit to the side right now.” and continue noticing.

Generosity

Generosity means assuming the best from your body, and even from the parts of you that seem to work against it. Every part of you is responding to something, and is there for a reason.

When we approach those parts with curiosity instead of condemnation, trust has room to grow again.

Reflection: What is one part of you that you are grateful for? How has that part supported you throughout your life? How will you honor that part of yourself?

Slowly.
Quietly.
One small choice at a time.

Trust is built through small choices.

Maybe that choice was simply reading this and pausing long enough to ask your mind and body where trust might need rebuilding.

Choose one part of BRAVING Trust to focus on cultivating. Then take the smallest next step in that direction.

Your presence here is a gift. Thank you for being here.