Your Body Can Do More Than Survive, It Can Thrive
Your body is an extraordinary testament to resilience. If it was able to survive, if it carried you through the darkest, hardest moments, then it also holds within it the capacity to thrive. Survival is the body’s baseline, a response to protect you in moments of crisis, to shield you from harm. But survival isn’t where your body’s story ends—it’s where it begins. Beyond survival lies the possibility of ease, joy, and true connection with yourself and the world. Thriving is not only possible; it’s a natural evolution your body is designed to experience.
When we think about survival, we often imagine the body as braced and guarded, on high alert, constantly scanning for threats. This is the body’s sympathetic nervous system at work, the fight-or-flight response that mobilizes energy to protect us from danger. For many of us, particularly those who have experienced trauma, this state of vigilance becomes familiar, even normalized. The body adapts to a state of heightened arousal because, for a time, that’s what kept us safe. But the human body is built to do more than endure—it’s capable of moving beyond just "getting by."
The same systems that keep us safe in moments of threat also allow us to feel calm, connected, and joyful when given the chance. The parasympathetic nervous system, often called the “rest and digest” system, is designed to bring the body back to balance, to signal that it’s okay to relax, to open up, to breathe deeply. This is the foundation of thriving. When we support our nervous system in moving out of survival mode, we create space for a state of being where life isn’t just about defense but about growth, curiosity, and fulfillment.
Moving from survival to thriving is a gradual process, one that requires us to honor our body’s journey and listen to its needs. This is where somatic practices come into play—grounding techniques, gentle movement, breathwork, and mindfulness help remind the nervous system that safety is possible, that the body can let go of its guard. Over time, these practices help to retrain the body, showing it that it doesn’t need to stay in a state of constant readiness. Each moment of ease, each deep breath, is a small step away from survival and toward thriving.
From a feminist perspective, the journey from survival to thriving is an act of reclamation. We live in a society that often pressures women to ignore their bodies, to push through pain, to prioritize productivity over well-being. The decision to move beyond survival and allow yourself to thrive is a radical act of self-care and self-worth. It’s a refusal to let societal demands dictate the limits of your experience. Thriving is an affirmation that your life is meant for more than just endurance—it’s meant for pleasure, connection, and the freedom to be fully, vibrantly alive.
Thriving also means trusting that your body’s wisdom is enough. After all, it was your body that brought you through the toughest times, that adapted, that carried you even when you felt like giving up. That same body is capable of experiencing joy, safety, and belonging. The sensations of calm, pleasure, and contentment are not foreign; they’re inherent to the human experience. They may feel unfamiliar if survival has been your primary mode, but they’re waiting for you, accessible as you learn to trust your body’s capacity to heal, to open, to embrace life.
To thrive, then, is to allow yourself the full range of experience. It’s learning to sit with moments of joy without questioning if they’re fleeting. It’s allowing pleasure without guilt, rest without apology, and connection without fear. It’s giving yourself permission to move through the world without bracing, to soften into each day knowing that your body is strong enough not only to survive but to flourish.
Your body’s capacity for survival was only one chapter in its story. The next chapters are about trusting, exploring, and feeling what it’s like to be fully alive in this moment. After all, if your body was able to carry you through survival, it holds the wisdom, strength, and resilience to support you in discovering what it truly means to thrive.