Episode 62: "You Don't Have to Work So Hard to Heal”: A Story of ME/CFS, Panic, and Neuroplastic Rewiring with Teresa Hobbs

When Teresa Hobbs was left bed-bound after a minor fender bender, she couldn’t be near a computer, read a book, or even receive a phone call without blacking out. Her world had shrunk to staring at the texture on her ceiling, searching for shapes to comfort her. This is a story about what happens when you stop fighting your symptoms and start listening to the mechanism behind them—when you realize that the brain can get stuck on a loop, perpetuating danger signals long after the threat is gone. It’s about learning to dance with panic, to accept the unacceptable, and to discover that healing isn’t about eliminating intensity—it’s about expanding your capacity to be with it.Episode OverviewIn this conversation, I sit down with Teresa Hobbs, a Certified Trauma Recovery Coach, Pain Reprocessing Therapy Practitioner, and Safe and Sound Protocol Provider from Utah. Teresa walks us through her decades-long journey with chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), from early warning signs in her twenties to a catastrophic nervous system crash in 2014 that left her bed-bound for years. We explore the shame of being told her illness was “in her head,” the relentless pursuit of fixing herself, and the pivotal moment when she learned to stop trying so hard. Teresa shares the neuroplastic understanding that chronic symptoms are often the brain’s stuck danger signals, and introduces practical tools like somatic tracking for rewiring. We discuss codependency, attachment, the window of tolerance, and why the most radical act of healing is often simply accepting yourself where you are—without judgment.What You’ll Discover* The fender bender that fractured her nervous system and left her bedbound for years.* Why her brain would black out from reading, phone calls, or even positive daydreams.* The painful experience of family members labeling her illness as “getting a payoff” or “all in her head.”* How trying too hard to heal—five hours of meditation a day, rigid protocols—actually impeded her recovery.* The liberating invitation: “You don’t have to work so hard to heal.”* Understanding neuroplastic symptoms: how the brain perpetuates danger signals long after the initial trigger.* Somatic tracking: meeting sensations with curiosity and non-judgment.* Why pain reprocessing therapy works best when symptoms are between a 1 and 5—and when to just take the medication.* The connection between codependency, attachment disruption, and chronic illness.* How learning to tolerate panic transformed her life—and gave her the courage to live fully.Timestamps00:00 - Introduction & The Big Question of the Podcast02:00 - Welcoming Teresa Hobbs from Utah04:00 - The Early Warning Signs: Fatigue in 200306:00 - The Fender Bender That Fractured Her Nervous System08:00 - Bedbound and Blacking Out: The Most Terrifying Period10:00 - Family Members Who Said It Was “All in Her Head”12:00 - The Fixing Mindset: Five Hours of Meditation a Day14:00 - “You Don’t Have to Work So Hard to Heal” — A Pivot Point16:00 - Moving Out of Her Parents’ House and Into Healing18:00 - Physical Stressors: Cavitation Surgery and Upper Cervical Chiropractic20:00 - The Last Piece: Panic and Learning to Stop Avoiding22:00 - Dancing with Panic: “I Dared It to Get as Big as It Needed to Get”25:00 - Codependency and Chronic Illness: “I’m Not Okay Unless You’re Okay”28:00 - Neuroplastic Symptoms: How the Brain Gets Stuck on Danger Signals30:00 - Pain Reprocessing Therapy and Somatic Tracking33:00 - The Safe and Sound Protocol: Training the Ear to Hear Safety35:00 - Expanding the Window of Tolerance: Healing as Capacity Building38:00 - Who Has Her Illness Invited Teresa to Become?40:00 - Teresa’s Coaching, Groups, and ResourcesGuest Information & LinksConnect with Teresa Hobbs:* Website: www.monarchintegrativecoaching.com* YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@monarchintegrativestudio* Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/monarchintegrativecoaching* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/monarchintegrativestudio* Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@almostawakenedpodcast💫 Want to Go Deeper?→ Begin your Sacred Illness® Journey:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/communityUse coupon code PODCAST for 20% off your first month.→ Become a Sacred Illness® Practitioner: click the link to get on the waitlist. Our first cohort begins September 2026, spots are limited.https://www.aurorasomatic.com/practitioner-training→ Apply to be a podcast guest:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest→ Apply to be an Affiliate and help share this work:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/affiliate→ Follow Dr. Erin on Substack:🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfkhttps://www.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe