We, as a society, glorify the idea of busy. We brag about working extra hours, burning the candles at both ends, and sacrificing sleep, but that is not an ideal way to live a healthy life. When we move fast through life, we often miss cues and warning signs that our bodies may be trying to communicate to us. I am going to share some recent experiences I have had, and although minor in the grand scheme of things, they serve as an essential reminder to take the time to listen to your body.
Earlier in 2020, I was noticing a pain in my left-hand pinky finger that would radiate down my wrist, and arm. It was seemingly random and annoying. I considered going to the doctor, but feared I would be prescribed medication, possibly physical therapy, and maybe even surgery. Of course, our minds always go to the worst-case scenario. I assumed this was caused by all the typing I did to finish my dissertation. I tried to ignore it (another common, although not recommended coping mechanism), but the pain was not going away. I then decided to start paying attention to what could be causing the issue. Pretty quickly, I discovered that my pinky finger was bracing the way I hold my smartphone in my left-hand predominately. Could this have been causing me pain?
In hopes of solving my ailment naturally, I purchased a pop socket and guess what happened? The pain stopped. The point in sharing this story is to emphasize the importance of slowing down and paying attention to our bodies. I could have continued to ignore the pain, taken meditation, gone to the doctor, etc. It is highly likely, however, that if I had gone that route, I would have never discovered the origin of the issue and solved it on my own. This is not to say that we should not go to doctors, of course, we should, but sometimes going to the doctors does not get us to the source of the problem, but instead provides us with a way to manage what we are experiencing. I prefer to solve problems at their root cause whenever possible.
A second example along the same lines has to do with our skin. The skin is the largest organ in the body and an often neglected one at that. We tend to focus on our face looking youthful while not paying much attention to the rest of our skin. I had noticed that I developed these unsightly, tiny, red bumps on my forearm. Not necessarily harmful, but they were bothersome to me. I tried exfoliating in the shower, different lotions, and nothing seemed to help. This time, I conducted a little research. Although going down the WebMD rabbit hole is not something I promote regularly, it is helpful for something minor. It turns our that the tiny, red bumps were something called Keratosis Pilaris. An overproduction of Keratin was causing buildup at the hair follicles on my arm and causing these bumps. To rectify this, I turned to Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) and used it as a scrub in the shower during my Abhyanga practice. After a very short period of time, the red bumps went away, and my skin feels and looks healthier. Another example of how we can heal our bodies if we are willing to take the time to do so. Not to mention, I discovered another use for ACV.
Do you have any examples of times you were able to slow down and pay attention to your body and heal yourself? I would love to hear them.
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Stay well,
Dr. MC