When you begin a healing journey—especially one centered around chronic symptoms or burnout—it’s easy to expect progress to look clean and upward: symptoms disappearing, energy improving, clarity returning. But in truth, real healing rarely looks like a straight line.

At Root + Ash, we believe that part of healing is unlearning the unrealistic expectations we’ve picked up about how fast we “should” feel better. Our culture is built around quick fixes, instant relief, and symptom suppression. But when you’re working with the body, the mind, and the nervous system, progress often looks more subtle—and more layered.

This blog post explores what true, root-based healing actually feels like. It may look like more awareness of your body, even if discomfort is still present. It may mean you’re resting more, setting boundaries, or feeling emotions you’ve numbed for years. These are huge signs of forward motion, even if they don’t show up in traditional “before and after” photos.

We also talk about what to expect when you feel like you’ve hit a setback. Often, healing brings up old patterns before they leave for good. Feeling tired again after a good week, having a flare-up, or feeling emotionally raw isn’t failure—it’s feedback. It’s your body doing the work.

You’ll leave this post with a more compassionate view of your healing process, plus gentle reminders to trust the slower, deeper shifts happening under the surface.