Guest post by our brilliant, Claire MacDonald – find more here

Being in Your Body – It Might Save Your Life

What does that even mean?

And why bother?

Well, it’s free… and it might even save your life.

My 15-year-old was recently talking about the bloating symptoms she regularly experiences. She even asked my advice on how to stop it (a heady moment for a mum of a teenager). But she also mentioned that most of her school friends experience bloating too — and that they all see it as normal. Just a side effect of eating, life, or whatever explanation they’ve come up with.

When I explained that bloating is often a sign that something in the body isn’t doing its job properly, she point-blank refused to believe me. In full teenage mode she declared:

“It’s normal. It happens to everyone. It’s not a big deal”

Well… no. It doesn’t happen to everyone. And it is a big deal!

More on bloating in my next post. For now, back to being in our body.

When did ignoring what our body is telling us become normal? When did the body’s little tell-tale signs that something isn’t right become things we just brush aside?

I see reflections of this every week in clinic. People ignoring fatigue, pain, skin complaints, digestive issues — all treated as things to be tolerated. Often explained away as getting older, having a busy life, or “it runs in the family.”

Sometimes this happens out of fear:

• What if there is something serious going on?
• What can I do even if there is a problem?

And sometimes it’s simply that we struggle to look after number one when we’re busy looking after everyone else.

More worryingly though, I think it’s become cultural. We’ve moved so far away from trusting our instincts — and the wisdom of the people around us — that we no longer listen to what our bodies are telling us. We’re busy. We push through symptoms and just crack on.

And while there can be something admirable about stoicism, it should come from awareness — not avoidance.

If things get really bad, we might end up having an invasive test or procedure that shows something is irritated, inflamed, overworking or underperforming. At that point medication or further treatment is often required to suppress the symptoms. And of course, modern medicine has an incredibly important place.

But those early signals from the body — the ones we ignored along the way — often hold the clues that could have prevented things escalating in the first place.

Listening is where it starts.

When does it hurt?
When do I get that headache?
When does my knee flare up?
When do my stools become loose?
How stressed have I been?
How much exercise have I taken?

Be your own detective.

Small lifestyle changes can make an enormous difference.

Things I See in Clinic

Here are a few real examples from my clinic where small understandings made a huge difference.

The runner with ankle pain

A woman came in with ankle pain and numbness in her foot. Running was her passion, but she hadn’t been able to run for months and had a surgical consultation booked in a few weeks.

We went through the usual movement and neurological tests, but also talked about her daily habits — work, routine, lifestyle.

She worked from home on her sofa and had a habit of sitting with one leg tucked underneath her. That position was twisting and compressing her foot for hours each day.

Once she stopped sitting like that, the ankle pain resolved within a week. She was back running — and the surgical consultation was no longer needed.

Coffee and blood pressure

A 55-year-old man came in with high blood pressure and had been prescribed medication.

He had a demanding job and a very full life. But as we talked more, it emerged that he was drinking between seven and ten cups of coffee a day.

He cut down to one cup (there were some headaches while he detoxed the caffeine), began paying more attention to his stress levels, and started walking in nature regularly.

I kid you not — his blood pressure normalised.

His GP was delighted, and over time they reduced his medication.

Constipation and headaches

I’ve also seen many patients with constipation and headaches whose symptoms improve dramatically simply by moving more, drinking more water, and reducing tea and coffee.

Sometimes the body just needs the basics.

Prolonged symptoms should always be checked by a doctor. But while you wait, making small lifestyle changes can make dramatic positive changes.

More often than not, the answer lies somewhere in how we’re living.

And the earlier we notice the signals and make small adjustments, the less likely we are to need major interventions down the line.

As my mum would say: A stitch in time saves nine.

A couple of simple hacks

When it goes off, take three slow breaths. As you breathe out, bring your awareness to your body and notice where you might be holding tension or stress.

Attending classes such as Pilates or yoga — or any form of exercise — can also help reconnect you with your body. You might suddenly realise you can’t lift both arms equally, or that one leg feels weaker than the other.

Understanding how we are moving and interfacing with the world is the first step.

Because ultimately, you are your own first-call physician.

In my next post I’ll come back to the topic my teenage daughter raised — bloating — and why it’s one of the most common signals the body sends when something isn’t quite right