Blogging, Blogging Challenge, Health, Lifestyle, MyFriendAlexa, Sharing views, Transformation, Whines and whispers

Paying heed to body signals #MyFriendAlexa

Everything in life starts with a conversation and the ones we have with ourselves are often the best. The loud hullabaloo around us sometimes makes us disregard the gentle voice coming from within. However, talking out and listening to our thoughts and opinions is a sign of self-awareness. If we ignore our body signals, how will we understand if and when we’re in distress?

I’m an incorrigible chatterbox while talking to myself. Expert advice and all! Having said that, picking up delicate body signals is a different ball game altogether. Turning a blind eye to discomfort and self-medicating are two of the most common blunders we commit against ourselves. Why not assess everything methodically to grasp the entire situation? The day I understood this simple thing, life and my transformation wasn’t overwhelming anymore.

listentobody_avibrantpalette

Whether it is making dietary changes, taking up some physical activity or getting up earlier than usual, any kind of lifestyle change takes time to settle. Your body doesn’t appreciate the change in inertia and tries to resist as well. Understanding the difference between this resistance and a genuine problem takes close scrutiny which you must concentrate upon.

PHYSICAL BODY SIGNALS

These signals are generic but may sometimes differ with gender.

  • Exhaustion – Physical exhaustion can come in any form like travelling to or from work or nature of your work. Being on your toes all day can deter you from indulging in additional workout. While your commitment is praiseworthy please do not set unrealistic goals and exhaust yourself. Also, taking protein shakes or steroids for pumping iron in the gym isn’t good for you in the long run. Remember to take weekly breaks. I take one or two.
  • Sprains, swelling or aches – Any kind of injury or physical discomfort must never be ignored. Persistent joint aches, back pain or swelling could be signs of something acute. I had a sinister health scare once where I blacked out thrice in a day. I considered consulting a neurosurgeon while our family physician made his simple diagnosis. Surprisingly, it was a shoulder condition aggravated by bad sitting posture! Hence, please don’t self-medicate or dillydally and get professional advice.
  • Period pain – This obviously applies to women but men can take note too. Some women have painless periods and lead a normal life during this time. However, for others periods can be a harrowing experience. Even after all these years I’m practically out of action for first 2 days. PMS makes me hungry, lazy accompanied by terrible body ache. So no matter what anyone says, listen to your body and get rest. Your steps target and workout can wait.

listentobody_avibrantpalette

MENTAL BODY SIGNALS

  • Change in sleep pattern – Our schedules have completely gone for a toss during the lockdown. Meal times have become flexible and we’re guzzling down endless cups of tea and coffee to keep our minds alert. Whether for work or consuming content on OTT platforms screen time has increased too. I’m guilty of reading into the night on my Kindle and waking up with a bad headache the next day. Seven hours of uninterrupted sleep should never be compromised upon. Work we must but sticking to a timetable certainly helps in sleeping soundly.
  • Depression – Where do I begin? Let’s just say that life throws enough stuff at us everyday to make us want to crawl into a hole and stay there. People refuse to address the elephant in the room and preach that counting our blessings will make us happy. They couldn’t be more wrong. I’ve suffered from severe depressive tendencies few years ago and was prescribed medication. Thankfully, if I feel those symptoms now, and I do, I’m equipped to have a better grip on myself. Don’t be shy of acknowledging it, how else will you get rid of it?
  • Demotivation – We all want to be on God’s favourite list. Wouldn’t it be awesome to excel at work, respected by friends, loved at home and face no problems in life? Can this happen beyond our dreams though? Looking at others’ achievements fills us with remorse and demotivates us. Bloggers getting more work, influencers having a steady flow of assignments or even having a full-time job were things that tugged at my heart once. “The grass is greener on the other side”, remember this and you’re good.

The New Me_avibrantpalette

Have you ever thought how the conversation would go if our body parts started talking to each other? The heart will lay culpability on the tongue for its blockages while the nose will vehemently protest that walk in the rain. Take some time out and listen to yourself if you don’t already. You’ll be pleasantly surprised with the wonderful company and fun conversations. Try it!

I am taking my blog to the next level with Blogchatter’s #MyFriendAlexa.

66 thoughts on “Paying heed to body signals #MyFriendAlexa

  1. So refreshing Varsha. We listen to everything else but forget our body. It speaks to us. Our body tends to resist to change and we should be gentle and treat it with love. Thanks for sharing this 🙂

  2. Everything in life starts with a conversation….. loved the opening lines of your post.
    Actually loved the overall ambience of your post. The points you’ve highlighted are so relatable and your solutions are ao doable.

  3. i think some of us take exhaustion as part of our lives so we barely look at it as a signal to stop whatever we are doing. Good post. Im going to send this to my friend who is always exhausted even on her own birthday!!!!

  4. All the points are so apt but I like last one most. I agree we all feel that others are doing great than us but you said it rightly that grass look greener on other side and we don’t know exactly what is other people’s struggle and challenges. Enjoying your journey and focus on your own thing is best policy that always does wonder for me to reduce these kinds of stress.

  5. Talking to our body is very important which I sometimes overlook. I try to stretch myself. But I have my relaxing days as well when I purposely don’t do anything.

  6. Excellent post, Varsha. I agree with you that we should always listen to our body, to the signs that need attention and then tend to those needs before it’s too late. But there’s another big problem that I have noticed and that is finding the right doctor to help us out. I have been noticing a lot of physical and mental body signals and know that something is not right but then I am not able to find the right doctor. It’s exhausting and frustrating to keep doing the same thing over and over again only to get disappointed every time.

    1. Couldn’t agree more, Neha. I’ve had problems finding the right doctor and getting the right diagnosis too. That’s why it’s important to find and stick with a doctor we can trust.

  7. This is one of the very informative post, and we all should never ignore our body signals. We should understand that our body do tell us about our physical and mental conditions

  8. Can’t agree more, Varsha. Years ago I had a knee pain though tests claimed me fit, I was in pain for long. Months later I was bedridden and took years to recover. More people need to understand gist of the post.

  9. Oh yes, our body shows us the red flags and gives signals but we often ignore them. But we need to listen to our body and give it what it needs. For instance, my eyes are telling me that I should shut my laptop and give them some rest! LOL 😀

  10. Truly sometimes we have to take a break when body demands so .. It need time to heal and rejuvante as we are still not 100% cinverted into machines 🙂

  11. Such a beautiful way of expressing such an important issue. This is so true ..most of the time we do hear but completely ignore , the reason could me many. But this is not good so start listening to yourself for your own good.

  12. Completely agreed with all your points, Varsha & I love how realistic & straight-from-the-heart your post feels like. It really makes one feel like it’s a coffee-table convo with you. That’s true. We need to be kind on our body & take rest when there’s even a slight reluctance or resistance from our body. Every chore, every praise can wait. But health doesn’t. My mom is a super-OCD cleanliness-mascot & all her life, she’s slogged beyond her limits to polish everything to a sparkle & complete every chore in record time. However, it’s taken a toll on her knees over the years & this is what I’ve been telling her since the past few years.

    1. I can understand, Ashvini. We push ourselves too much and don’t realise that our body is much like a machine which needs rest and maintenance too. Hope your Mom takes care now. Glad you liked the post. I loved your comment! 🙂

  13. This is awesome Varsha . We often ask everybody around us about the problem but always forget about our body. Really good idea ,we should ask our body first about the pain .

  14. So rightly pointed out Varsha, as we usually ignore it unless the truth comes face to face with us. I blatantly ignored signs of my body crying for care after daughter was born, and I had to suffer badly. Mental signals as you mentioned are also very important to read. Keep writing such motivational posts dear.

  15. well I cant agree more with you on this. Seriously i get period pains and my sleep pattern goes for a toss if I am exhausted…

  16. No one knows the body better than oneself. I always analyse the source of the pain I feel. If I feel it’s not a regular pain I get in action to get medical advise and deal with the matter at hand as quickly as possible.

  17. You are absolutely right. It is important to sense signals our body is sending and ignore them. Sometimes it may help in even catching life threatening diseases in time.

  18. II always listen to my body and try not to put extra pressure on it always because the body is also like a machine which needs extra care from time to time to perform better. Any pain any discomfort should be noticed.

  19. I completely like what you have said. Most of the time people just end up following trends without thinking whether that actually suits them or not. For a lot of people a certain type of Lifestyle may work whereas for others it may not. Listening to your body is so important and doing what it needs is the way to transform yourself to a healthier you

  20. This is such a unique topic and got me hooked till the last line. It was a bit thought provoking and I started to wonder how my body parts would talk 🙂 Loved reading this.

Liked what you read? Tell me. Thanks!