Are You at War With Your Own Body?

Have you ever felt that way? Like you are being punished for something you don’t know you did? Do you feel like your body has betrayed you?

This is so often the case when struggling with chronic pain, fatigue, illness, anxiety, unexplained weight gain, “crazy hormones,” vertigo, and countless other symptoms. Tremendous fear arises because it feels like you have no control over your symptoms and you wonder how much worse could it possibly get? You may feel trapped in a body that will just not cooperate, unable to do the things you want to do or feel like you should be doing just to survive.

The Daily Struggle

You may ask yourself, why won't your body let you do what you need to do? Why can't you even do what you WANT to do? Why, no matter what diet, what supplement, what healing modality you use, you still have at least some lingering fatigue, pain or other symptoms?

Does your body seem to hold itself together all week only to crash on the weekend? Why do even good things like vacations, celebrations, sex, and events that should bring joy, cause a flare in pain or other symptoms?

Suffering with chronic symptoms day-to-day can be overwhelming enough, but when added to the frustration, grief, RAGE and TERROR (let’s be real), it becomes a battle for survival, nevermind striving for a joyful, well-lived life.

Sadly, the enemy seems to be your body.

A Different Perspective

At Partnered Healing, we would like to offer a different, more compassionate perspective. We believe that your body is your closest companion and partner in this life. No other physical being will be as close to you in this life as your own body, not your children, not your parents, not your partner.

We believe your body IS your PARTNER, it is not a subordinate. We believe that it truly wants what is best for you and the only way it can get your attention is with sensations. Your Mind, Body and Spirit are all part of the same package and they must be treated equally and with great respect and care.

Who’s Really in Charge?

A client said to me once, “but the Brain is the Commander.”

Yes and no. Without getting into a lot of neuroscience (Nicole Sachs' work has easily accessible, excellent information on the science of the nervous system, how and why you should work to regulate it), yes the brain directs things, but an anxious, conditioned Mind cannot be allowed to treat the Spirit and the Body as second class citizens.

It is our Minds that hear those critical low-self-worth voices we discussed in the last blog, it is our Minds that are subject to societal conditioning and, of course, those messages and other painful experiences are often stored in the body as cellular memory.

However much the Mind is conditioned, your body and your Soul know you to be fully worthy, they have not forgotten.

Sensations as Messages

Imbalance between Mind, Body and Spirit (Soul) is part of why we have symptoms. From neuroscience research, we know that sensations arise to let you know something in the body needs your care.

Think about a cut or break, the sensation of pain guides you to take care of an injury. Tired, gritty eyes let you know your body needs rest, the sensation of a rumbling stomach signals the need for nutrition and energy. These sensations are no different from getting a headache when you are stressed or overwhelmed. They are no different than heart palpitations when you are anxious, no different than a stomach ache because you are anxious, afraid or excited.

This same kind of signaling happens when aspects of your life are out of alignment, when life choices are being made that are not congruent with your intrinsic high value as a human being, when the Mind is overriding the Body and Spirit.

Living in Alignment

The word “alignment” is getting a lot of air time right now, but it is a good word to use when talking about living in such a way that feels good and right, peaceful, satisfying, fulfilling to each person.

Everyone is uniquely designed for a life of vitality, meaning, and joy. The path to this life of well-being is not the same for everyone. There are as many paths to a well-lived life as there are humans to walk them. You already know these things.

The Soul and Body lovingly provide us with emotions and sensations to signal when we are off course so that we can correct. So that we don’t settle for living just any life. Creation, Life, God wants you to live your best life, all the time. That is your purpose.

That doesn’t mean there won’t be challenges and sorrows, but it does mean that your day-to-day life should feel harmonious, satisfying, peaceful, and joyful. This harmony and satisfaction should be the norm, not the exception.

Practical Reflection

Can you believe that is possible? Not just possible, but how Life is actually designed?

Think about the last time your mind was telling you one thing and your body was telling you something different. Maybe your body felt tired or your feet hurt, but your mind told you to finish that work or house task. Did you choose to follow your body or your mind?

How about feeling expectations to commit to an event or meeting, but you just feel exhausted or bored by the idea? Exhaustion and boredom are signals that a situation is not in alignment for you and is not going to be the best use of your energy. Are you able to say no?

What are you saying YES to that, in your heart or your belly, you’d rather say NO to (overtime, community responsibilities, caregiving)? And the opposite, what are you saying NO to (creative expression, rest, fun) that your body and soul are asking you to say YES to?

This can even be as simple as your body asking for food and you say “Not until this other thing gets done.”

The Mind can be very helpful, but The Soul and Body are wise also. Their messages need to be heeded as often as the Mind’s messages.

When Societal conditioning, fear, and external pressure get to direct your life - through your Mind - these small (or big) daily choices turn into 1000 tiny betrayals that lead to a life that does not feel good to your Body and Spirit despite what the Mind says about success, security, and responsibility.

The Good News

There is good news!

When the three aspects - Mind, Body and Spirit - are working in harmony, a person can step into what we at Partnered Healing refer to as “the Embodied Self.” There is no more battling or war against the Body.

As a part of our work, we will teach you how to communicate with your body to understand the messages it is trying to provide. We help support discernment of the Soul’s messages. This Embodied Self way of being in the world is the vision we hold for all of our clients. We know this is possible because we see it happening and we experience it ourselves.

The very best part is that as you grow into your Embodied Self, you share the Blessing of high self-worth, vitality and light with everyone around you.

The World needs your light.