Listen to Your Body
There is More to Health than What We Can See
I have seen many people struggle with their health over the years. Many people are shocked to learn of their diagnosis! It seems to come from NOWHERE! After all, they were feeling perfectly fine just last week!
They only came in because they saw a little blood in the toilet. Or maybe they had a simple cough that just won’t go away. Or perhaps they started eating less. They possibly noticed a growth or skin rash that seems to be expanding at an alarming rate!
Whatever the initial symptom, that diagnosis can be down right SCARY! And treatment options seem scarier still!!!
However in cases like these, the body is out of alignment with itself. As a result, it has reached a point where the body screams out for attention!
When we find a moment between the hectic schedule of Doctor’s appointments and treatments, let’s take a moment to step back.
Put aside the label of diagnosis we have received, and LISTEN to what our body has to say.
What are We Listening For?
There will be a lot of noise surrounding your diagnosis. There will be all kinds of tests to run, doctor’s appointments to keep, and treatments to begin. All of these are extremely important and you must take it upon yourself to maintain the regimen your doctors prescribe!
In the midst of this all, we must tune in to our bodies. What are we listening for? We are listening for what our body’s want and need to heal itself.
We find ourselves in a situation where the body has known of its imbalance for a long time! What’s more? Our body knows EXACTLY what to do to heal itself!
The disease got this far because we neglected to pay attention to what our body is trying to tell us. It tried to whisper at first as though to say, “It’s no big deal right now, but I’ve noticed a slight imbalance in your system. Please look after it.” This imbalance continues to grow if we do not hear the whisper. So the body gets a little louder to get our attention.
The sign may be perceptible this time, but we don’t know what to make of it. We simply go to the Doctor and ask for a prescription to get rid of the discomfort!
Do you have acid reflux? Take a proton pump inhibitor (PPI). Do you have Irritable Bowel Syndrome? Have some loperamide for the diarrhea. You have an infection? Take this antibiotic.
While these medications are important to take care of the immediate problem, they may not address the root problem that is causing your body to speak up.
Finally your body is so frustrated that it just SCREAMS!!!!
Then we get our Earth-shattering news that seems to come out of nowhere! But in reality, our body tried to warn us!
How Do We Start Listening
Our bodies want ONE thing: to be in health! So our bodies have elaborate systems that make sure we remain in optimum health!
Therefore no matter what situation we find ourselves, we must take the time to listen to our body’s wisdom.
We may already be in tune and listen constantly. Or we may not have the foggiest idea how! We may catch a disease in its early stages, or we may not realize it until our bodies are screaming at us for being so deaf! Regardless, listening is the first step towards finding and maintaining your balance.
I have found that the best way to start listening is with a Body Scan Meditation. A simple online search will yield many results of scripts you can follow or videos you can watch and listen to during the practice.
The Body Scan
A Body Scan sounds intense! And it can be! But the great thing about a meditation practice is that the meditation will be what you need it to be at that moment.
Therefore you can either take 5 minutes or take 5 hours! You can set a chime to signal the end of a session or you can continue past. It’s up to you.
The important thing is that you take whatever time you give yourself to tune in to your body.
The Approach
Approach this scan without judgement or fear of what you will find. For example, if you have pain in your leg, you will hear your mind racing with, “Oh my God this pain is unbearable! What could it mean? Is there something wrong with me? Do I have some sort of rare disease? I just absolutely need to go to the Doctor and get some medication to make it through the day!” These are NOT your thoughts! These are the thoughts of an active brain. It’s up to you to notice them and let them go. After all, it could just be hurting because you stubbed your toe!
Instead we must learn to simply say, “Hello pain. I see you now. What do you have to tell me?” This may be difficult to do at first, which is why this practice will take time. But practice will make things easier.
Embrace with Gratitude
In this example of pain, do what you can to simply notice the presence of the pain without wanting to immediately extinguish it. Notice the character of the pain. Its quality. It might even have a color. What are all these things telling you? You might notice why it is present. Then you can understand the nature of the pain. It does not appear just for fun. Its role is to alert you to an issue and try to protect you from it. Be thankful for it and allow it to go in peace when you are aware of the underlying cause.
Your Body has Many Communication Skills
Pain is just one manifestation of the body. There are many others such as the absence of any sensation. Fever/chills, headaches, blurry vision, dizzy sensation, light-headedness, ear ache, sore throat, neck pains, difficulty swallowing, chest pains (Pain in the chest should never be taken lightly and must be evaluated by your healthcare provider immediately), abdominal pains, digestive irregularities, constipation/diarrhea, irregular trips to the bathroom, different colors or shapes or sizes or smell of your stool and/or urine, weird skin rashes or moles that seem to have popped up. There is A LOT to pay attention to and have evaluated.
Converse with Your Doctor about What You Learned
Go through each section of your body one by one, from head to toe, and work with your Doctor. Any single clue by itself can mean or indicate a multitude of possible issues that your body is trying to communicate. When you notice these clues, you must present them to your doctor as he/she is trained to collect them, analyze them, and make a decision about what they mean in context. So do NOT jump to conclusions (NO hypochondria here please)!
Now you must put on your detective’s hat! The job of you and your Doctor is to objectively collect as many clues as possible from your body. Then you and your Doctor can logically piece together what your body may be trying to communicate. From this, you can make a decision with your Doctor on how to go about addressing your body’s requirements.
Your Doctor is especially trained to evaluate and consider every detail in the context of the whole body. Therefore your goal with this Body Scan is to be able to notice the ways your body speaks with you as well as what it has to say in that moment. Then work with your Doctor or healthcare provider to determine what’s going on in the grand scheme of things!
Acknowledge the Role of Your Emotions
Once you and your Doctor have determined that there is no life-threatening cause for the physical manifestations of your body, you must then evaluate your emotional well-being. Meditation also helps you unravel the layers of emotion locked up inside. These emotions need expression by any means necessary. Therefore it may choose to physically manifest through your body by any of the means listed above.
Tips for Success in Listening to Your Body
Listening is like appreciating a fine wine. At first, you are overwhelmed by the sharp sting of the alcohol in your mouth and going down your throat! But with practice and careful attention, you begin to notice the subtle flavors and aromas of that wine. You may even start to pair it with foods you enjoy and bring further enhancement and pleasure to your life!
Similarly, you may be overwhelmed by all the noise your body and brain produce! Or you may not notice anything at all! Do NOT be discouraged. This simply means that you must practice this new skill.
Here are some tips to help you get started listening to your body and remain persistent in this practice!
- The first tip must be to know your goals. Why are you doing this practice? Without an understanding of why you will come back to your practice when things get tough, your foundation will crumble. Here are some questions (though not exhaustive) to ask yourself in order to help establish your goals:
- What do I hope to gain from this practice? Why?
- Do I simply enjoy the process of self-discovery?
- Do I want to attain better health?
- I want to simply see what comes up.
- I want to know why I’ve had this pain/rash/chronic disease for years!
- Doctors don’t seem to have an explanation for what’s happening to me. So I want to see what my body says.
- I am afraid of my diagnosis and desperate to try anything (Be HONEST with yourself. If this is you, trust that you are NOT alone! Many people have been through this impasse. And many people continue with grace because they can acknowledge and accept where they are coming from.)
- Refer to your goals often! ESPECIALLY when you sense yourself waivering and finding excuses to discontinue your practice. See if any of these examples sound familiar:
- I’m too tired right now, I’ll just do it later/tomorrow.
- Missing a day of practice won’t make me lose sync that much.
- I have so many things to do, I really don’t have time.
- I don’t think I’m doing it right.
- I’m too distracted about the things I have to do later.
- It’s so boring that I nod off into dreamland!
- Meet with your body at least once a day. Why? Missing one day of practice is itself a practice to miss more and more days. This is a slippery slope. Find a time when your will-power is not tested and is most abundant.
- Studies have shown that people have the greatest reserve of will-power when they first wake up in the morning. Then they lose more and more as the day goes on. So start your day off right with those valuable morning hours.
- Set your intention to open the lines of communication with your body. Why? Because while you have your goals, your body may have different goals. This is the POINT of this practice!
- We WANT to discover where the disharmony between our mind and body lays!
- Be sure to keep an open mind to receive your body’s message as clearly as possible. Then compare and contrast your goals with that of your body. Given enough time, you may find that the goals merge and become synchronized.
- Do not ignore your body’s needs. Take immediate action!
- You took the time to communicate. You exchanged ideas with open honesty. Now you know what your body needs. Conversely, your body knows what you need. Recognize that both want wellness. So do what is necessary to achieve that goal!
- Do you need a good cry? Do you need to release some pent up anger? Are there emotions that have been bottled up for years without any form of release? Find a socially acceptable way to release these emotions! Find a private room in your house and bawl your eyes out! Go to the gym and pump some weights or wail on a punching bag! Listen to loud music and splatter paint all over the walls! As long as you do not cause bodily harm to yourself or others, use sublimation to your advantage!
- Be aware that there is a difference between sublimation and acting out/tantrums. The former is a constructive and mature ego-defense mechanism that helps you get through these emotions in a positive manner. The latter is an immature ego-defense mechanism that is unfortunately destructive and only serves to get you some awkward stares from onlookers.
- Do you need to clean up your diet? Eat more vegetables and cut out fast foods? Drink more water? Do not delay and make the transition! If you find yourself liking a certain food little too much (in other words, you only stop eating it when the container is empty and find yourself annoyed), then notice that and question it. Refined foods are often designed to maximize carbohydrate and fat intake to activate the reward circuits of the brain quickly and maximally! Therefore you may find yourself experiencing withdrawal symptoms when transitioning to wholesome foods like fruits and vegetables or meats and poultry. Be mindful of the following withdrawal symptoms and recognize that your body is simply going through a transition and detoxing from a poor diet:
- Irritability
- Fatigue
- Headache
- Cravings
- Tiredness
- Find your peace. You have just spoken with your body. Be grateful to it! Acknowledging your experience in this way will encourage you as well as your body to look forward to your next time for communication and be more willing to share even more information!
- Anchor what you learned by writing it down. Coming out of a meditative practice can make you feel a bit groggy. It’s like waking up from a dream. But you can still easily forget the details of that dream. Writing it down will help make it more concrete in your waking mind.
- Notice the patterns in your notes. With consistency, you will gain knowledge about your body’s daily needs. And soon, you will find patterns about what your body seems to require frequently. You may find that your body evolves over time just as your mind does. Therefore these must be written down in a journal or diary to track the progression of your body’s needs and see how they evolve over the course of time.
Remember, this practice will take some time. But a practice like this is VITAL!
Building a relationship with yourself is quite intimate and therefore must be unfolded layer by layer. In essence, you fall in love with yourself! Allow this to happen!
You may see or experience twists and turns you never thought possible! Your only job is to open that line of communication!
And you cannot practice this without opening the door to communication consistently, methodically, and conscientiously.
The Last Thing You Need to Know about Opening Communication
Your body is constantly trying to speak with you. Not just once a day, or every other day, or once a week, or once a year!
The body will keep its lines open EVERY MOMENT of EVERY DAY! You need only pick up your phone and connect the line!
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