Lifestyle : Pay attention to warning signs!
Pay attention. Listen to your body. Is it trying to tell you something? Go ahead, from your head move down till you get to your toes.
Don’t miss even the part you think is not important. What is your body telling you? We all know when we feel good and when we don’t.
Just in case you are wondering where I am going with this, please be patient. Hopefully, you will get the gist of my message when you get to the end of this article.
That constant low energy level, the pain, backache, upset stomach, mood swings, dizziness, inability to focus, that odd feeling you have that something is not right but you are unable to pinpoint what is wrong; Are these warning signs and if they are, what do they mean?
Picture yourself driving down the road. As you approach the traffic light, it turns red. What does it mean? Every driver knows green means go, red means stop and yellow (amber) means slow down, get ready to stop. When you ignore the sign and do the opposite, what is the result?
Road rules are given to drivers in an effort to secure their co-operation in better observance of the traffic laws, thus helping to prevent accidents.
Much like the traffic lights, if you ignore the alerts sent out by your body, you could cause a major problem. Signs that are left ignored, unchecked or poorly managed could contribute to other diseases.
Probably the signals from your body are an indicator from your body that it needs proper care or maintenance.
Have you seen how little children behave when they want something? They will keep asking, reminding you and using different means to get what they want. They don’t give up too easily.
In so many ways, I think our bodies behave in the same way. Constantly trying to get us to listen so we can give it what it wants. If we don’t listen, it will keep reminding us.
Yet for many of us, taking a hint from what our body is trying to tell us is not on our list of priorities. However, over the years I have come to see that listening to the feedback our bodies provide is one of the most effective tools for managing health and well-being.
Good or bad, major or minor, the body gives off signals all the time and every sign is an indication that your body needs something.
Don’t let anyone tell you that those signs are not important. They are your clues and the sooner you act on them the sooner your healthy life begins.
Too many times, people only take notice when major illness strikes. Ironically, sometimes serious illness teaches us how to listen to our bodies, to realise how symptoms no matter how subtle, can be a crucial barometer for larger issues. Nonetheless that is not what I am talking about today.
Today my message is simple – pay attention to your body’s subtle warning signs. Trust me, the world won’t come to an end if you take that much needed rest or break.
What is your response when your body uses tiredness to tell you that you need to slow down or take a rest? What about a headache, what do you do?
Your body is constantly providing feedback in the form of illness, fatigue, stress and more. All of these are like a yellow traffic light begging you to slow down and pay attention to what's going on inside.
The problem is, are you listening? Whether you choose to listen to your body or not, it is always telling you what it needs. The connection between how you take care of your body and your well-being is too important to ignore.
So how do you listen? Nobody knows your body more than you do. Usually, it will give you clear warning signs when something is about to go wrong or something is not right.
The first step is to pay attention and that is my goal in writing this article; that all of us including myself will begin to pay more attention.
Sometimes, all you need might be minor like rest, water, the right diet, exercise, but other times it might be the signal of something major.
Hint: If you have anything that is chronic, recurring in frequency or increasing in frequency, please don’t wait. Go for a medical check-up. Remember you are the one who will pay the price for ignoring the signals.
It is important to be mindful of the choices you make for your personal health and well-being. Your body is yours and the only one you’ll ever have.
If you don’t pay attention to the warning signs, who will?
The writer is the author of The Seduction of Food
