Ep. 24 | Lara Day: How the Body Reveals the Truth You’re Avoiding

What happens in the body when we avoid the truth we’re not ready to face? In this episode of Enheartened, Xavier Dagba sits down with Lara J. Day — Qigong practitioner, intuitive guide, and creator of the 13 Sacred Nights Oracle — to explore how the body reveals the truth we’re avoiding, and why darkness is not something to fix, bypass, or transcend, but something to stay with. Together, they explore how unacknowledged truth lives in the body, how avoidance of darkness creates stagnation and symptoms, and how somatic practices like Qigong teach us to listen rather than force healing. This conversation invites a slower, more embodied relationship with truth, healing, and inner seasons. One that honors timing, sensation, and the wisdom found in the dark. In this episode, you’ll discover: How the body reveals truths the mind avoids Why avoiding darkness comes at a somatic cost How to navigate seasons of darkness and winter How Qigong supports embodied listening and integration The difference between spiritual insight and nervous system truth Why healing requires staying present with what we usually turn away from Explore Xavier’s Work 📖 Scars of Gold — Book & free resources: https://www.scarsofgold.com ✉️ Join the newsletter: https://newsletter.xavierdagba.com/ 🌐 Website: https://www.xavierdagba.com 🎧 Listen to Enheartened on: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6sxXNMfsN9FnK34glRnkFC Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/enheartened-with-xavier-dagba/id1798866363 Connect with Lara J. Day Website: https://www.larajday.com 13 Sacred Nights Oracle: https://www.beyondword.com Instagram, Facebook & TikTok: @larajday ⏱️ Chapters 00:00 – When the body signals unspoken truth 02:45 – Speaking truth and somatic symptoms 06:10 – Discovering Qigong through lived experience 10:30 – The body as the primary site of truth 15:20 – Why we avoid stillness and darkness 20:05 – The cost of bypassing the dark 25:40 – Learning to stay instead of fix 31:10 – Cycles, seasons, and inner timing 37:30 – Darkness as initiation, not pathology 44:00 – Qigong as a practice of listening 50:15 – Slowness, patience, and nervous system maturity 57:40 – Creating the 13 Sacred Nights Oracle 1:05:10 – Embodiment versus insight 1:12:30 – Trusting the body’s intelligence 1:20:00 – Integration and closing reflections #embodiment #somatichealing #qigong #shadowwork #darkness #truth #healingjourney #spiritualintegration #bodywisdom #nervoussystem #innerwork #enheartened #scarsofgold #xavierdagba #larajday