The More You Listen, The More You Hear: Relearning the Language of Your Body and Mind

Understanding the Mind-Body Connection

The body, the mind, thoughts, emotions – we have a lot going on in our daily experience. Seemingly separate aspects, and often treated so, but inextricably linked. Sometimes this is directly tangible, and at other times less so. How do they affect one another, and which comes first? It can feel like a never-ending exploration once we begin, not helped by the fact that over 90% of our brain activity is subconscious.

How Unprocessed Emotions Affect the Body

In BodyTalk, we work from the perspective of top-down causation. What occurs at the mental (and subconscious) level filters through to the physical. In an ideal world, we would have time to pay attention to emotions as they arise, and find a way to process them. Emotions are a window to past experiences that are not healed.

If something is triggering, there will almost always be an associated memory from the past that we have not dealt with. We do not always have the time – or wish – to explore and feel fully all uncomfortable emotions. When this occurs, our body will find somewhere to store the unprocessed emotion. Ideally this will be temporary, but if it continues to be ignored this can become longer-term.

The Body’s Natural Drive Towards Healing

This is when the body will begin to speak. Its goal is to gain our attention in a way that cannot be ignored. This forces us to pause, rest and deal with what is happening.

This can be a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with ourselves. In my experience, the more we listen, the more the body – and the mind – will begin to speak. Things which were unconscious can come to our awareness to be dealt with.

Our bodies have an innate healing wisdom. They know how to heal and will take those steps if they can. This will include your body, and intuition, nudging you into – or out of – a direction that is not right for you. And the more we pay attention to these nudges, the louder they become.

Becoming an Observer of Your Inner World

Thoughts, emotions and intuitive nudges are our mind’s way of communicating with us, and physical symptoms are our body’s voice. Once we take a step back and become a gentle and non-judgemental observer, we can deepen our relationship with both and learn their language. The more we listen, the more they speak.