Awareness/ Body Signals

We all have a body. We live in it, we live with it, we carry it with us?everywhere we go. We cannot get out.?It is our real home, the place where our spirit is kept. Our body is?one of the most precious things and the only thing in life?we can really call our own. It allows us to do almost everything we want and go everywhere we want, it is our tool for life.?As long as it is functioning well, many of us take it for granted.?Only in times of illness, we experience that it is not natural or given that we are healthy. We feel restrictions, limits. Depending of the kind of illness it can be a?very tough experience. In these times the only thing we wish for is to be healthy again. Everything else is secondary. Unfortunately, we tend to forget that when we are healthy and fit . Sometimes we even neglect our bodies over a long period of time, we don't listen to?the signals and warning signs and put many things before our health.?Now, the human body is a wonder of adaption. It can adapt to almost every circumstance we live in. On the one hand that is a great ability, because it gives us a better chance to survive, even if the circumstances are not optimal. On the other hand it is a big danger, because we may get used to unhealthy lifestyle, to ignoring our body's needs, to moving less, to putting on too much weight, to getting a bad posture or even ill.

Our body and our spirit are deeply connected. If one of each does not function?well anymore, it affects the other and vice versa.?Of course, our mind can still function well, while our body has some restrictions or suffers from an illness. But it does affect the way we feel, our mood, our power. And we all know cases in which people are suffering from such severe illnesses and are trapped in their own bodies while their mind is still working fine. That is the point where many just want to die...?So: You cannot really separate one from the other. In this connection we often?speak??about " the soul". But: what is the soul? Where is it located? In our brains? Is our brain our soul? Is it located somewhere in our body?Is it something that can leave our body? Do animals have a soul too? I think it is very hard to tell and everyone has to answer this question for his own. Many people are religious, believe in God or other things that controls life and them- maybe because it helps them to find a meaning in everything that happens, maybe it gives them the feeling that they are sheltered, protected, that there is someone who has the real?responsibility. Maybe there is something bigger, maybe not. This is a question everyone has to answer for his own.

Fact is:?we are part of this world like plants, trees, animals- nature in general. Like them we are subjected to?the same laws of nature, our body is mortal, can get injured, hurt, ill and needs certain things to survive and stay healthy. Over the decades, our mind has developed in a?way that allows us to live the lives we live now, to create our own world, to go further and further. Our brains haven't stopped developing yet- we can learn and learn and learn and pass this knowledge on to further generations. Our bodies though, its needs and functions, have mostly?stayed the same over the time?(with the exception that we became taller in some regions and that we are getting older and older). So, our bodies, which are mostly the same as they have been decades ago, now live in a world that has changed completely: instead of running around, hunting, climbing trees, swimming, fishing, working actively with our bodies and moving?everyday, many of us spend most of our time sitting at a desk, doing brain work. We are stressed, surrounded by noise, polluted air, spend most of the time indoors, eat?unhealthy food etc.

?What I want to say:?We have been given two wonderful gifts: our bodies and our mind.?It is our responsibility to take good care of both. We should listen to the signals our body is sending us, listen to our thoughts and feelings and?take them seriously.?In daily/working life we should take a tiny break from the task we are?doing more often and listen to these signals. In regular intervals, we should ask ourselves: do my eyes need a break from the computer work (our eyes are made for looking around, into the distance and?not to fix close objects all the time), am I hungry?(if yes: really hungry, appetite or just bored?)?thirsty, tired, stressed? How does my body feel at the moment? Good? Tensed in certain muscle groups (neck, shoulders, lower back)? Do I feel pressure on the chest? Do I need a break from sitting and want to move, to stretch? How is my breathing? Shallow? Deep? In the chest? In the belly? In what way has my body feeling changed after?I did some stretching, exercises, the walk around the block? Do I have more power for work now??What about my feelings? How do I feel at the moment? Stressed? Harassed? Under pressure? Uneasy??Or relaxed, good??What about the people surrounding me? Colleagues? Friends? Family? Are there conflicts, unspoken problems, things that hinder me in doing my work for example? Does it affect the way I act around them? Do I feel good or even happy in their presence? Why did I react the way I did? Was it good, bad? The things I said: were they too personal??Did I hurt someone, came too close to his / hers boundaries? What can I learn here?

Awareness - physically and emotionally- can be the key to leading a better, healthier life. Try to be more aware of these things and see what is changing- for yourself and for the people around you. It may be exhausting,?uncomfortable and we can't do it all the time, of course. But it is worth the effort.

Katrin Steinbeck: Holistic Health Coaching, Personal-Fitnesstraining, Corporate Health, Consulting

#awareness #bodyawarenes #bodysignals #health #healthcoaching #corporatehealth