Your body is telling you something

…You might just not be used to tuning in to it – I know I’m not!

‘Listening’ to your body

I’ve said more than once that I don’t consider myself to be a very ‘woo’ person, so if I’m honest I’ve not really spent much time ‘tuning in’ to my body for information (aside from obvious physical discomfort and what's the quickest remedy I can find).

I have taken it for granted as the vehicle that allows me to do what I need to, most of the time! I’ve tended to listen to my brain, my thoughts and beliefs. And that has its pitfalls for sure! But I’m not going to focus on our brains today, I’ve done that many times before. Today I am focusing on the importance of listening to what your body is actually trying to tell you.

My idea of listening to my body was very literal – I have a very growly stomach when I’m hungry! I also hate having a cold; if I’m bunged up I furiously try to unblock my nose (to no avail!) because I don’t have the patience to be physically slowed down because of a cold. So, unless I’m unwell or have a physical need, I’m not really listening.

I haven’t considered my body as a barometer for my wellbeing for a long time – I guess as a coach I am often concerned with what our thoughts are telling us. But I have realised this is not everything I should be paying attention to.

Tuning in to my body – my recent abrupt awakening

It came as quite a surprise for me this week that my body has actually been screaming at me very loudly so I’ve had to listen whether I wanted to or not! It has been an unexpectedly crappy week, mostly because our beloved 15-year old cat Ziggy was diagnosed with a tumour on Monday, and was put to sleep on Tuesday.

I’ve only experienced the loss of a pet once before in my life – my cat Tinker who lived to the ripe old age of 17, and I was in my early 20s by then, no longer living at home. The difference this time has been palpable – I work at home, and Ziggy was always close by, often snoring, or curled up in strange places – never far away. I look round now expecting to see or hear her and she has gone. My heart physically hurts and feels heavy, it is the only way I can describe it.

I now realise I have not had to process grief (for which I am extremely grateful) in a very long time, and I’m highly aware that there are of course far more significant losses people unfortunately experience. The surprising part has been feeling the heaviness of grief in my body, like I am literally carrying around an extra weight, and it feels so different. The impact on my mood, feelings, sleep and productivity is noticeable.

Your 'body barometer' for your wellbeing

What this has encouraged me to think about and share with you all this week is that it is highly possible there are cues in our ‘body barometers’ that we are not picking up on because they may be far more subtle than my very obvious example above.

And we might even be so used to living with these cues that we think it is just what our ‘normal’ looks (well, feels) like.

The irony is I can reflect on coaching sessions at the end of which, after processing a lot of thinking and deciding on a course of action, clients have told me they feel physically ‘lighter’. And when one client recently wanted to discuss something uncomfortable for her, she told me that when I asked her about it, her stomach clenched and lurched in response.

But our bodies might not just be responding after an event, they might also be giving us big clues in the build-up – if we are paying attention!

What is your body telling you?

Maybe give that some thought for you right now, is your body telling you something that might be more than just a physical symptom?

For example, you may be feeling heavy-eyed due to tiredness, and whilst there may be an obvious reason behind this (interrupted sleep due to a little one or a snoring partner for example), maybe there is something else contributing to the tiredness, like not switching off or feelings of overwhelm. You may have tension behind your eyes, or in your shoulders / neck, or a sinking feeling in your gut or tightness in your chest. Whatever the physical experience may be, consider what it might be telling you about something in your life, because starting with awareness means we can opt to do something about it.

Coincidentally, this time 10 years ago I was in hospital for 10 days with severe pre-eclampsia at 7 months’ pregnant and my body was battling hard and struggling hugely. It was a long road to recovery and I acknowledge now I have probably been quite complacent about my body recently – as long as I could do what I wanted to do, I didn’t pay it much attention. I think that is going to change a bit now after feeling the impact of it shouting at me this week! Hopefully I’ll tune in more quickly next time it is talking in a quieter voice.

If you’ve read this and realised you have some cues from your body that you need to pay attention to, please do ask for help, whether that is via coaching or another more appropriate means. Chances are you and your body will thank you for it!

RIP lovely nutty Ziggy (7.3.08 - 18.7.23)

We miss you x