Learn How to Listen to Your Body For a Healthier and Happier Life

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Your body tells you things every day. When you’re hungry, it means that you need to eat something. The same applies if you’re thirsty or tired. These are all your body’s ways of telling you that you need to do something to make it feel better.

However, sometimes it can be hard to listen to what our body has to say. Here are a few other ways it tries to communicate with you every day and why you should listen. 

Eating and Drinking

This is the easiest example because most people already understand when they’re hungry or thirsty. However, this isn’t to say that you should drop everything when you first have a hunger pang and eat the first thing that you come across. It also doesn’t mean that consuming any liquid is the best option.

As well as normal hunger pangs, you might be tired and grumpy when you’re hungry. You might also start to feel slightly nauseous. Sometimes you crave something incredibly specific, which could either mean that you just want it because it came into your mind, but it could also mean you need specific nutrients. 

As a general rule, you should try to fill your hunger pangs with something satisfying and healthy. Eat slowly, as if you rush, you might still feel hungry even when you’ve actually eaten enough. If you’re still hungry after a meal, wait a few minutes before getting more food.

Likewise, you might have other signs of being thirsty as well as classic thirst. A dry mouth is often a good sign, as is feeling headachey. Often, if you have a headache, a glass of water is all you need to fix it. Water is the best hydrator, and it’s best to reach for water before other beverages to quench your thirst. If you’re drinking alcohol, then have a soft drink with you so you don’t drink alcohol too quickly because you’re thirsty.

Temperature Control

While a bit of discomfort won’t kill you, it’s better to listen to your body when you feel too hot or too cold. 

Heat can be particularly dangerous, especially if you’re too hot for too long. Heat exhaustion and heat stroke can become serious conditions if you don’t treat them quickly enough. If you are hot and notice that you’re tired, dizzy, nauseous, and have palpitations or difficulty breathing, you should cool down as quickly as possible. If this condition lasts longer than half an hour, the symptoms get worse, or your temperature is above 104°F, you should seek medical attention.

To cool your temperature, take off unnecessary clothing and get to a cool place. Drink water or a sports drink and use cool water or cold flannels to cool down the skin. Don’t do anything too extreme like have an ice bath, because this can cause you to shiver.

But what if you’re too cold? Hypothermia and frostbite are also serious health conditions, but unless you’re swimming or hiking during the winter or up a mountain, they are less common. Still, it’s best not to let yourself get too cold, as you could make yourself uncomfortable or even cause chillblains if your extremities get too cold. Women’s thermal gloves from HeatHolders can be great for keeping your hands and fingers warm, whether you’re on a hike or just out and about.

Rest and Exercise

It seems like a no-brainer that, if you’re tired, you should either go to sleep or get some rest by sitting down and relaxing. But what if you’re lethargic all the time and don’t have the energy to do anything more than your work and daily chores?

As counterintuitive as this may sound, this could be a sign that you need to do more exercise. Exercise is tiring, yes, but it can make you feel more energetic on a daily basis. You have a higher level of energy if you exercise often, rather than only ever resting when you’re not working.

We are designed to move, it’s as simple as that. So if you have a physical job and lifestyle, maybe you don’t need to exercise that much to stay healthy. But if you have an office job, then exercising each day or at least a few times a week might be just what your body needs.

However, you should also pay attention to your mental health, as lethargy can be a sign that you’re struggling. If you have a low mood or you don’t enjoy your hobbies anymore, you may need help.