Play Is the Way
Why your nervous system is craving movement, curiosity, and wonder.
Somewhere along the way, many of us were taught that play was something we were supposed to outgrow. Not all at once. Not dramatically. Just… quietly. Little comments here and there. A look. A correction.
“Grow up.”
“Stop acting childish.”
“Don’t do that, you sound like a baby.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
And slowly—often without even realizing it—we tucked something away. Not because it was wrong. But because it didn’t fit anymore. What we tucked away was play.
Not adult play.
Not sexy play.
Not competitive play.
But that soft, curious, silly, body-led kind of play we used to do without thinking. And from a somatic perspective? That kind of play isn’t extra. It’s essential.
How We Actually Learned About the World
When we’re children, we don’t move through the world trying to figure it out. We explore it. We don’t ask, What’s the right way to do this? We ask—without words—What does this feel like? We learn through our bodies first.
We put things in our mouths.
We hold them to our ears.
We rub them on our skin.
We shake them to hear the sound.
We fidget.
We twist.
We pull.
We move fast… then slow… then fast again.
There’s no goal. No objective. No fear of getting it wrong. We’re not worried about breaking it. We’re not worried about doing it “correctly.” We’re just curious. And that curiosity—pure, embodied curiosity—is one of the most natural somatic states there is. The brain and body are connected. The nervous system is open. We’re here. Present. Alive.
Boredom Isn’t a Problem—It’s a Portal
Somewhere along the way, boredom got a bad reputation. We treat it like something to fix. Something to fill. Something to escape. But kids know something we’ve forgotten. Boredom is where imagination lives. When there’s nothing to do, the mind starts to wander. And when the mind wanders, it wonders. New worlds appear and new ideas form. Daydreams unfold and stories get created. Movement starts to happen on its own. This state—what I like to think of as wonderment—is incredibly regulating for the nervous system.
Nothing is urgent.
Nothing is being solved.
Nothing is being optimized.
Brain and body are talking to each other again. And in those moments, joy isn’t forced. Laughter shows up easily. We feel… lighter. That’s not an accident. That’s biology.
What Happens When We’re Told to “Grow Up”
At some point, play becomes inconvenient. It doesn’t look productive and it's not moving us forward. It’s not earning us money, and it’s not fitting neatly into the life we believe we’re creating as an adult. So it gets corrected. Over and over.
“Sit still.”
“Be quiet.”
“That’s not how you do it.”
“Stop being silly.”
And even when we’re grown, those voices don’t disappear. They loop. In our heads, throughout our entire bodies- that messaging gets trapped. It affects our nervous system and those messages change what we believe about ourself and how we respond to the world around us. We become more goal-oriented- we focus on efficiency- play isn’t efficient. We become rigid with rules and expectations, shame creeps in if we stray too far from the prescribed way of life. We rely on what we already know. And that knowing starts to harden.
But here’s the thing somatic work teaches us again and again: What’s familiar isn’t always what’s alive. nd rigidity—while it can feel safe—often pulls us further away from ourselves.
The Cost of Losing Play
When play fades out, a few other things tend to go with it.
Spontaneity.
Emotional flexibility.
Creativity.
Joy without a reason.
We spend more time in our heads- overthinking everything. It over protects us and disconnects us from sensation. Ever wonder why you can’t stand on one foot anymore or why you can’t seem to enjoy listening to music like you used to? It could be because you’ve disconnected from the parts of you that were touched by music or your brain is not connected to your body to feel your center of gravity any longer. From a somatic perspective, this isn’t because something is wrong with us. It’s because energy needs movement. Emotion is energy. And when energy doesn’t move, it gets stuck.
Play is one of the simplest, most natural ways we know to move energy through the body.
This Is the Kind of Play I’m Talking About
When I talk about play, I’m not talking about accomplishing anything.
I’m talking about:
Dancing without choreography
Spinning until you get dizzy
Hopping, skipping, jumping
Laughing loudly
Singing badly and enthusiastically
Moving in ways that feel a little ridiculous
Think back to recess, or gym class-free play. What was your favorite game? Mine was jump rope.
I loved double dutch. I couldn’t jump it—but I could run the ropes and memorize the chants like no one’s business. There was rhythm- connection. Laughter. Belonging. And if we missed we just started back up again, and again, and again until the whistle blew. Mistakes didn’t matter in play- it was PLAY! No one cared if you were good. No one was tracking progress. We were just in it.
That’s the energy of somatic play.
Why Movement Calms the Overthinking Brain
One of my favorite things about playful movement is how quickly it interrupts overthinking. You can’t spiral while skipping or overanalyze while spinning. You can’t monitor every thought while laughing uncontrollably. Movement moves energy and emotion rides on that energy. When the body moves freely—without shame, without self-consciousness—emotion moves too. Through and out.
This isn’t about forcing release-It’s about allowing flow. (or FLOH as I call it!) Play keeps the nervous system from locking into freeze or hypervigilance. It brings us back into presence. And presence is where regulation lives.
Laughter Is a Nervous System Reset
We all know laughter releases feel-good hormones. But what matters is how laughter shows up. Play removes pressure and the need to perform. Play removes the need to be anything other than what you are. When shame drops away, the body softens. When the body softens, the nervous system settles. And when the nervous system settles… joy has room to land. That’s why play is such a powerful somatic tool. It bypasses logic and goes straight to the body.
Choosing Play as an Adult Is a Big Deal
Reclaiming play in adulthood isn’t about being irresponsible. It’s about remembering that your body isn’t just here to work, produce, or push through. Your body is wise and creative. It knows how to regulate when we let it. Play softens us. It helps us be maleable and bendy- literally. It widens our emotional range, increases our nervous system ability to pendulate, and broadens our capacity to feel. It reconnects brain and body. And it reminds us that being alive isn’t something to earn.
It’s something to experience.
A Gentle Invitation
You don’t need special clothes. You don’t need equipment- though some kinds of equipment can enhance your play. And you don’t need permission. Start small.
Put on music and move without trying to look good.
Spin until you laugh.
Sing loudly in the car.
Skip down the sidewalk.
Let boredom open a door instead of closing one.
Let your body remember what it already knows. Because play isn’t childish.
It’s somatic wisdom. And it might be exactly what your nervous system has been asking for.
