Listening to your body - Why it helps (Part I of II)
I first heard about the concept of “listening to your body” in the realm of eating disorder recovery. However, this important concept can be helpful for everybody. It means listening to your hunger and fullness cues as guidance to when, what, and how much to eat. It is simple yet so many of us forget that our bodies are better at regulating what we need to eat than our brains. Our bodies are certainly wiser than any “diet” out there could ever claim to be.
But what do hunger and fullness cues mean and how do we tune into them? This is where the continuum chart below comes in. In essence, this chart is a simple and straightforward way to allow yourself to notice how hungry or full you are at any given point during the day, with 0 indicating starving and 10 indicating a “Thanksgiving-level” fullness.
Copyright Karen Kartina
Being a chronic dieter or having an eating disorder disrupts these signals. It decreases the hormones leptin and grehlin, known to stimulate hunger and fullness in the mind,body and gut. It takes time and practice listening to our body in order for our hunger/fullness cues to return. When I first started trying to do this, it would often take being hit by a metaphorical 2X4, in order to notice my body was trying to tell me something! I wouldn’t actually feel hungry until I was down on the scale to a 1 or 2. And I wouldn’t stop eating until I was at a 9 or 10.
Now, with time of nourishing my body regularly, my signals are returning and I am beginning to trust my body. I can hear my body’s subtle cues, a slight emptiness, a slight drop in energy or mood tells me I’m at a 4 and will need to eat soon. If I continue to wait, I will approach a 3 and experience some stomach grumbling.
The interesting thing I’ve learned about my body, is that if I don’t listen and respond, it stops talking nicely or may stop talking all together, for a while anyway. I may postpone a meal and then think my hunger has gone away, only to find it emerging later with a vengeance and a full blown hangry attack (watch out if you’re nearby), a headache, and/or extreme cravings.
Hunger/fullness cues are just one type of the multitude of messages our body is trying to convey to us. The longer I remain on this journey of body trust, the more I can learn the ways to benefit from my body’s wisdom.
When I listen to my body, I receive all sorts of cues about physical care. Do I need rest? Do I need to get out of my chair and move my body? Do I need to pee? Do I need a massage? A stretch? A hug? Sometimes these cues are subtle, but with practice, I can listen and respond more quickly than I used to.
Listening to my body also helps with boundaries. Have you ever walked into a room or just met a new person and had a “gut reaction” that something was unsafe? And then acted on this nudge to take care of yourself only to find out later that there was a very justifiable reason for your uneasiness? Ancient cultures used to believe that our brain was in our gut. In fact, our gut actually has more sensory neurons and sends more signals to the rest of our body than our brain. These “gut reactions” can be based on a wisdom that is deep and goes beyond the reasoning of the brain.
This brings a whole other level to the idea of listening to our bodies. We can listen to our gut instincts (our emotions, our intuition, whatever you name it) and receive guidance that we wouldn’t otherwise receive. However, just like with hunger/fullness cues, listening to and acting on this guidance takes trust, commitment, and PRACTICE.
How do I practice this?
I begin with the intention to listen. I then pause when agitated or distressed in any way. I may pause at regular intervals throughout the day to ensure I’m not going too much on auto pilot. Then I gently check-in. I may ask a question, such as “Body, what are you feeling?” “What do you need?”
Then, I listen for the answer…I often hear, “Take a deep breath”, “Drink some water”, “Eat a sandwich”, or “Go outside for a bit.”
The next step is to ACT on this guidance. The brain usually has something unhelpful to say about this guidance. (For example, “You don’t need a break, if you don’t finish now, you may never get this done.”) It’s important for me to disengage somewhat from the brain’s contributions to this discussion and tend to my body’s needs regardless.
Body trust is a two-way street. The more I act on my body’s guidance, the more it trusts ME. The more I follow through with this guidance (and actually DO take a break to have a sandwich), the louder and more specific the guidance can be from my body. I may then hear things like “Call your friend and tell her your feelings” or “Journal about that dream from last night” or “I know you feel hurt, express gratitude and love toward your partner anyway.”
Over time regular practice may make your listening journey easier. Listening to that “still small voice within” has helped guide me on paths that would otherwise have been impassable. Listening can help us heal, grow, and live our life.