Rebuilding The Bridge, Part 2: How To Repair Your Inner Trust (When It’s Been Broken)
Learning to hear your instincts again after years of overriding them with logic, fear, or external noise.
“Give yourself permission to let go.”
A Note from Me
Hi, I’m Jessica.
If you ever feel like you've lost the ability to hear your own inner voice, you're not alone.
Many of us have spent years doubting our intuition, second-guessing ourselves, outsourcing decisions, and choosing logic over instinct.
In Part 1 of this series, we talked about the battle between instinct and intelligence.
Today, we go deeper. What happens when you’ve overridden your gut for so long that you can’t even recognize it anymore?
This article is about rebuilding that bridge. Because your intuition didn’t disappear—it just got buried under years of conditioning.
Let’s uncover it together.
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I. What Happens When You Stop Trusting Yourself
You feel stuck, anxious, and disconnected.
Even when all the "logical boxes" are checked—the job, the relationship, the house—something still feels... off.
That "off" feeling is often a signal: Your instinct is being ignored.
In Part 1, we explored how the brain prioritizes intelligence and logic to solve problems—but in doing so, we often override our gut, our nervous system, and our body.
However, intuition is like a muscle. If you stop using it, it atrophies. The good news? It can be rebuilt and made stronger.
And rebuilding inner trust is not about thinking better—it's about feeling again.
II. Why We Stop Listening to Ourselves
There are a few core reasons we lose touch with our inner voice:
Childhood Conditioning: Many of us were told, "Don't be so emotional," or "Use your head." We learned that logic was valued over felt experience.
Past Trauma or Betrayal: If you've been burned before by following your instincts, it's natural to doubt yourself.
Praise for Logic: Society celebrates those who are analytical, rational, and data-driven. We get rewarded for suppressing emotion.
Decision Fatigue: The digital age bombards us with choices. Over time, this noise drowns out our own clarity.
Neuroscience Insight:
Chronic stress impairs interoception (the brain’s ability to read bodily signals).
When the prefrontal cortex is overactive (often from overthinking), it overrides instinct.
Trauma reduces vagal tone and disconnects us from our "felt sense," which is the foundation of intuition.
III. Signs You’ve Lost Touch With Your Inner Guidance
You poll others for every decision, big or small.
You experience decision paralysis.
You feel unease when saying "yes," even if it's the "right" choice.
You get physical signals: a sinking stomach, tight chest, or tension when something feels wrong.
You constantly seek permission to act.
These aren't personality flaws. They're signals.
The body is waving a flag, saying: Please listen to me.
IV. How to Rebuild Inner Trust (5 Science-Backed Steps)
The path back to your gut is quiet, consistent, and powerful.
These steps will help you rebuild what was never truly broken—just silenced.
Silence The Static
Start with 10 minutes a day of pure silence.
No phone. No input. Just presence.
Let your mind settle so your instinct can speak.
Feel First, Think Later
Ask yourself: “What am I feeling in my body before I analyze it in my mind?”
Learn your physical "yes" & "no" responses. Maybe a "no" feels like nausea. A "yes" might feel like calm expansion.
Catch Micro-Disappointments
Each time you override your gut, it creates a tiny fracture in your self-trust.
Start catching those moments and choosing differently.
Run Micro-Experiments
Try following your gut on low-stakes decisions: choosing a meal, a workout, a route, or a book.
Journal the outcome: Was it the right move? How did it feel?
Create a Trust Log
Each time you honor your instinct, write it down.✍️
This log becomes data that rewires your brain to trust yourself again.
Neuroscience Note: Repetition creates neural pathways. The more you honor your gut, the stronger those pathways become.
V. Instinct Requires Safety
Your nervous system needs to feel safe to activate intuition.
If your body is in survival mode (fight or flight), it won’t access higher-level processing like felt sense or subtle knowing.
Build Safety First:
Practice deep breathing or yoga.
Try cold exposure or exercise to strengthen vagal tone.
Sleep. Rest. Journal.
Relax in the warm sun.
These help regulate your nervous system—and re-open the doorway to instinct.
Final Thoughts: What You Already Know
Your body always knew.
It’s just that the noise of logic, trauma, and modern life drowned it out.
Rebuilding inner trust is not about becoming someone new; it's about remembering who you've always been.
🌀Journaling Prompt:
When was the last time I knew something was wrong, but I did it anyway? What did my body feel like?
What would it look like to fully trust myself this week?
🌀Coming Soon in Part 3:
How to use your instincts as a decision-making compass in high-stakes situations (career, relationships, mindset, & health).
You already have the answers.
This series is about helping you hear them again.
Thank you for reading this article.
Until next Sunday,
—Jessica
Your 2am friend who actually gets it
“True power is living the realization that you are your own healer, hero, and leader.” —Yung Pueblo
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MEDICAL DISCLAIMER
This content is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide medical advice or to take the place of such advice or treatment from a personal physician. All readers/viewers of this content are advised to consult their doctors or qualified health professionals regarding specific health questions. All viewers of this content, especially those taking prescription or over-the-counter medications, should consult their physicians before beginning any nutrition, supplement or lifestyle program.
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