Why Stories Matter
When we speak about stories inside of Storywork Studio, we're not talking about fiction or narrative alone. We're talking about mythos—the deeper, unconscious stories that live in our bodies and beneath the surface of our waking lives.
These stories shape us. They pattern our behavior, influence our decisions, and structure our realities, often without our conscious awareness. To understand why stories matter, we must first understand their mythological nature: myths are not simply tales we tell, they are the hidden codes we live by.
Mythology in the Body
Stories are embodied patterns. They exist not only in our minds but also in our nervous systems, muscles, cells, and bones. These bodily myths determine how we experience the world, shaping our beliefs, fears, desires, and capacities. We carry within us mythologies of scarcity or abundance, worthiness or shame, connection or isolation.
When we recognize stories as embodied mythology, we begin to see that changing our external circumstances isn't enough. To truly shift our reality, we must rewrite these internal myths—these subconscious templates—that guide our lives.
Ancestral and Epigenetic Mythologies
Many of the myths we carry didn’t originate in our lifetime. They were handed down from our ancestors, imprinted epigenetically through generations of lived experience. Epigenetic research shows that experiences and beliefs can alter genetic expression, encoding memories, fears, strengths, and patterns of behavior into our DNA.
Our ancestors’ understanding of the world, their survival strategies, and their dreams are still alive in us. The griefs they could not process and the stories they could not rewrite remain within our subconscious—waiting to be addressed, honored, and perhaps transformed.
Why It Matters to Rewrite Our Myths
Stories matter because the unconscious myths we embody profoundly impact the futures we create. If we remain unaware of these myths, we risk replaying ancestral trauma, limiting beliefs, and outdated survival strategies at all levels of living: personally, relationally, and collectively.
But when we engage consciously with these myths, we have the power to heal ancestral wounds, interrupt cycles of harm, and open pathways for new possibilities.
Rewriting our stories means:
Recognizing which myths are operating beneath our awareness.
Deciding which patterns serve life and vitality, and which ones need to be composted.
Crafting new mythologies—consciously chosen stories aligned with our deepest values, dreams, and desires.
Storywork as an Invitation
Storywork is the practice of consciously engaging these embodied myths. It invites us into direct relationship with the subconscious stories shaping our lives so we can rewrite, reclaim, and regenerate the realities we inhabit.
This isn’t just personal work, it's collective. When we become aware of these underlying myths, we have a chance to influence not just our own lives but also the patterns we pass forward. Doing this work helps shift family lineages, cultural stories, and even the ways we relate to one another and the world around us. It matters because stories aren't neutral—they shape realities. Becoming conscious of them is the first step toward creating something genuinely new.
