Have you ever considered your body to be a compass? Constantly recalibrating to your own optimal true north?
I didn’t fully understand the body and the way it communicates until I got sick. It was only after being sick with a chronic illness that I began to appreciate the body’s intricate system of communication and, if we are aware enough, our ability to listen.
Body awareness is a term thrown around a lot these days. Body awareness is our ability to recognize our body in time and space and in relation to ourselves, others and the world. But…it’s so much more. Body awareness is also our own shared consciousness in relation to our physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. It is how conscious and connected we are to our own body.
After 4 years of working to heal digestive issues, anxiety, skin conditions, migraines, brain fog and acid reflux, needless to say, I am pretty acutely aware of every tick and tock of my inner workings. I spend time each day checking in with my body, listening and feeling for cues. These cues help guide my eating, drinking, sleeping, exercise, spirituality and mindfulness practices.
Like most of the general population, we spend our lives completely detached from our own bodies. We have no idea what is going on. We have no idea what optimal feels like, and we put blinders on when something doesn’t feel well. We self medicate with things that make us sicker instead of using our symptoms and cues to guide us towards better decisions, healthier choices, and sometimes even medical intervention.
Have you ever noticed your breathing patterns? Do you hold your breath? When was the last time you were conscious of the breath you took. I used to hold my breath when I would write emails, in a frantic and anxious state. It wasn’t until I learned about the vagus nerve, diaphragmatic breathing and the connection to the digestive system that I noticed that my breath (or lack thereof) was actually affecting my gut health.
In healing acid reflux symptoms, I have fully felt the spectrum of pain, discomfort and then also days of ease and optimal functioning. I can check in now and feel into my throat, chest, stomach and know if anything seems off. Becoming attuned to your body speak can help you to catch symptoms before they manifest fully allowing you to course correct earlier in the game. A little cough, check in, is it allergies? What is going on in the environment today? Could it be a little reflux? What did you eat last night? Are you getting sick? Have you been exposed to anything and do you have other body aches or symptoms?
Your body is a compass, constantly adjusting and balancing it’s way back to true north at every turn. Our bodies strive for balance. If you listen, you and your body can work together in harmony to achieve optimal wellness. Optimal is different for every body, so check in with yours, know you, to be the best you.
5 Ways to Tap into Your Body Speak
- Meditate. Spend 5 minutes in the morning and 5 minutes at night in silence. Follow your breath as it moves through your body. See where it lands. Feel what comes up for you. What areas of your body are tight, stressed, in pain, relaxed, closed off, open? Practicing mindfulness will only help you take better care of yourself physically, mentally and emotionally.
- Journal. When you are dealing with a condition and even when you are not, journal your feelings, both mental and physical, to begin to see patterns and make connections in how things externally are affecting your internal state (and vice versa).
- Yoga. Literal union of movement and breath and access to every inch of your body. Use this exercise technique to feel into every muscle, nerve, bone and find awareness. Inversions are wonderful for shifting perspective, moving blood to other parts of the body, and for energizing. Coming out of an inversion is sure to give you a new sense of be-ing. Balancing postures are also a great way to check in physically.
- Intermittent Fasting. Allowing your body adequate time to reset each night (I like a 16/8 cycle) will help you to feel more acutely what is happening inside. An empty digestive tract is like a clean chalkboard in the morning. When we are full, we are more sluggish and clouded and it is harder to feel energetically into all the organs and crevices of the body. Fasting for me has been a great way to check in each day before I begin consuming. Also, allowing yourself to fully empty will help you to understand what hunger truly feels like and not just “hey those nachos look good, I think I’m hungry!”
- Movement meditation. Dancing with your eyes closed. Mindful walking. Forest bathing. Slow down, settle in and move with mindfulness. In these practices, you truly are only with yourself and whatever slow physical activity you are using as your meditative vehicle. Are you distracted? Try bringing your awareness to only your breath and your feet on the ground.
Join us on FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/followyourwellness