The Kinetic Sense

The Kinetic Sense Massage Therapist | Movement & Exercise Specialist 🫶 Feel first, think second 🧠

08/30/2026

Your senses matter to your posture more than you might think. 🧠👀

Your visual and vestibular systems are two major sources of information your brain uses to understand where you are, where you’re going, and how you’re oriented in space.

When the information coming in is unclear, or when your sensory systems aren’t working well together, the brain may have to work harder to create a stable sense of your body and environment.

And that can show up in ways you might not expect:

→ Changes in posture
→ Increased muscle tension
→ Balance challenges
→ Feeling “off” in your movement
→ Fatigue or brain fog
→ Increased sensitivity or stress

One of my favorite ways to explore this connection is through simple eye and head movements.

Try these and notice what changes, not just how you perform the movement, but how your body feels afterward.

1. Smooth pursuits đź‘€

Hold your thumb or a pen in front of you. Slowly track it side to side 5 times, then up and down 5 times.

Retest whatever you’re noticing in your body.

2. Saccades đź‘€

Hold two targets about shoulder-width apart. Keep your head still and quickly shift your eyes between the targets 5–10 times.

Then try it vertically, 5–10 times.

3. VORs đź‘‚

Pick a target in front of you and keep your eyes locked on it. Gently turn your head side to side about 1–2 inches while keeping the target clear and in focus. Repeat 5–10 times.

Then try the same thing moving your head gently up and down.

Did anything change?

Maybe your posture feels different.
Maybe your balance changed.
Maybe your movement feels easier…or maybe you notice no difference at all.

That’s the point: we’re exploring the conversation between your sensory systems and your movement system.

Tell me what you noticed 👇

I love this quote from Dolly Parton, and honestly, Dolly has been such an inspiration to me…not only as a singer and sto...
08/27/2026

I love this quote from Dolly Parton, and honestly, Dolly has been such an inspiration to me…not only as a singer and story teller but as someone who built an extraordinary community and business with so much intention.

What I admire most is the way she shows up with gratitude, grit, and grace.

She’s a beautiful reminder that hard seasons don’t have to break us. They can deepen our roots.

And I think the same idea applies to our brains and nervous systems.

When we willingly do hard things (physically, mentally, or emotionally) we challenge our brain to adapt. One area involved in processing effort, discomfort, motivation, and persistence is the anterior midcingulate cortex (aMCC).

The beautiful part?

Our brains are capable of changing throughout our entire lives.

Neuroplasticity doesn’t have an expiration date.

Every time we practice something difficult, choose presence over reactivity, coordinate a new movement, or stay with a challenge instead of immediately avoiding it, we’re giving our brain an opportunity to learn.

So if you’re in a storm right now, remember:

You are not stuck. You are adaptable.

Keep practicing the things you want your brain and body to get better at.

Keep choosing the hard things that matter to you.

And keep showing up with a little more grit, gratitude, and grace.

Because your nervous system isn’t working against you.

It’s always supporting you and constantly learning from what you give it. 💪✨

08/23/2026

The trigeminal nerve is my favorite cranial nerve. 🧠

It’s a high-payoff nerve with connections throughout the body, which is why it shows up in so many of the things I work with.

The trigeminal nerve provides sensation to the face and carries sensory information from the eyes and sinuses. It also helps control the muscles of the jaw, innervates muscles of the middle ear, and has connections with the tentorium cerebelli (the dural tissue within the cranium).

And from a nervous system perspective, it gets even more interesting.

The trigeminal nerve is part of the sensory pathways involved in the social engagement system described by Stephen Porges, making it a simple place to explore when we’re looking to create cues of safety, connection, and relaxation.

This nerve made a huge difference in my own healing journey, especially with nervous system regulation, back pain, and what I experienced as sciatic nerve tension.

I’ve also seen the trigeminal nerve be a valuable piece of the puzzle for clients working through things like jaw pain, concussion recovery, pelvic pain, nerve tension, and simply feeling chronically stressed or “stuck on.”

Sometimes the nervous system needs a different input…not more stretching, strengthening, or pushing.

Give it a try and see what you notice. đź‘€

Want to learn how to assess your trigeminal nerve for yourself?

✨Comment RESET and I’ll send you my free Nervous System Reset Guide which includes step-by-step instructions for simple trigeminal nerve assessment.

Safety is the treatment. 🫶This is one of the biggest lessons from my own back pain healing journey, and something I see ...
08/19/2026

Safety is the treatment. 🫶

This is one of the biggest lessons from my own back pain healing journey, and something I see again and again with my clients.

Polyvagal Theory gives us a framework for understanding how the nervous system shifts between states of safety, connection, mobilization, and protection. When the body is constantly perceiving threat, it can be difficult to heal, adapt, or create lasting change.

For me, healing wasn’t about finding the perfect exercise or pushing harder. It was learning how to help my body feel safe enough to come out of survival mode.

Because we heal differently in a state of safety and rest than we do in a state of threat and protection.

One of my favorite ways to cue safety is through the cranial nerves involved in our social engagement system: 5, 7, 9, 10 and 11.

Think:

• Facial sensory work + gentle facial expressions
• Humming or singing
• Gargling
• Gentle head and neck movement

These seemingly simple inputs can give the brain more information that says, “You’re safe. You can soften. You can connect.”

And sometimes, that is exactly where the work needs to begin.

Not more intensity.
Not pushing through.
Not forcing the body to change.

Safety first. Feel fully move freely 🫶

08/14/2026

Inner knee or hip pain bringing you down?

Try this obturator nerve glide! ⚡️

I recently had a client with chronic medial knee pain with squatting and stairs and we tried a version of this nerve glide (seated hips wide with a spinal roll) and their knee pain was gone!

The obturator nerve is often overlooked when it comes to mobility work, but it can have a big impact on lower body movement.

It branches off from your lumbar plexus (L2-L4) and provides motor control to your adductors, gracilis, and obturator externus, plus sensory to your inner thigh.

If you’ve been dealing with nagging hip, groin or knee pain or tightness, this might be a missing link.

Important tip:

When working with nerves, less is more. Aim for a 3/10 stretch or less. Nerves don’t love being stretched or compressed, so take it slow, stay curious, and listen to your body.

Did this make a difference for you?

Drop a comment and let me know!

âś… Follow for more nervous system-savvy movement tips

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