Episode 50: Hala Alyan

Recipe
Written By Ailey Jolie

01/29/2026

What if the stories your body carries are the map back to belonging? In this conversation with Palestinian–American poet and clinical psychologist Hala Alyan, we explore how narrative, trauma, and the nervous system meet inside a living body. Hala shares how displacement shaped her love of books and oral histories, why writing still arrives as mystery, and how creative practice can offer coherence when life feels scattered.

We move beyond buzzwords to talk about embodiment as a political act—how storytelling becomes witness and resistance when institutions fail. Hala offers practical ways to return to your body: hand over heart, 4-7-8 breathing, hot baths without a phone, and the simple mantra “this is just what’s happening.” She also unpacks why perfectionism makes somatics feel inaccessible and how choosing to feel—even discomfort—builds resilience.

This episode is for anyone curious about creativity as healing, building distress tolerance, and holding grief and agency at the same time. Expect clear language, grounded tools, and gentle guidance for reconnecting to your body and your story.

About In This Body: Conversations with leading experts about the importance of embodiment in living an authentic life. In This Body asks the important questions: How does connecting to your body change your life? How will connecting to your body allow you to love better and live more authentically? And how does connecting to your body change the trajectory of our shared world?

In this episode:

0:00 – Welcome And Episode Setup

3:37 – Narrative As A Unifying Thread

9:53 – How Narrative Works In The Body

14:46 – Displacement, Reading, And Early Survival

20:47 – Creativity As Conduit And Mystery

30:17 – Safety, Downregulation, And Rewriting

36:52 – Storytelling As Survival And Alliance

42:12 – Memory, Erasure, And Resistance

49:07 – Embodiment As Political Practice

Find the Full Transcript Here

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Ailey Jolie

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Episode 51: Ailey Jolie
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Episode 49: Megan Campbell