Conscious Body Awareness – What Has Changed?

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The resolve a health issue through conscious body awareness, three questions are of importance: When did it start? What has changed? and What can I change? In this article, I discuss the question: What has changed?

After you’ve identified when a certain affliction or its signs began, you should look at what has changed just before that moment. That is, what changed at that point in your circumstances? Think here of things like your environment, food, habits, behavior, and so on.

But, before I continue, I want to point out that I don’t take emotional issues into consideration. They can also be a cause of or contribute to bodily complaints, but in the context of this article and conscious body listening I focus on physical changes.

Another thing I want to stress is that afflictions can show up suddenly, but may have been very long “in the making,” for instance, due to a genetic disorder, an unhealthy lifestyle, or an unwholesome work or living environment. In these cases, asking yourself what has changed will not be very helpful.

In addition, complaints may come up with no apparent reason. Therefore, if a specific complaint doesn’t go away in a “reasonable” amount of time or if you experience sudden sharp pains, bleeding, or other serious or life-threatening conditions, please first consult an appropriate healthcare provider.

Having said that, let me give you some examples of things that can change in your life and may affect your body negatively.

For instance, the new office chair you got two weeks ago can make your sitting posture become inappropriate, perhaps resulting in gradually increasing back, shoulder, and neck pains.

The introduction of other types of food in your diet may cause allergic reactions, resulting in a severe itch on your back, sleeping problems, or low energy levels. You name it.

One day, you wake up with neck pains that don’t go away even after some regular stretches and massage. While looking at what can be the cause, you realize that you bought a new pillow five days ago.

Of late, your breathing has become somewhat constrained and shallow, and thinking about it, it dawns upon you that your move to the city last month for that new job exposes you to increased air pollution.

For the past three weeks, you have been experiencing increasing upper back pain. Reflecting on what has changed, you realize that around the same time you bought a new kitchen cutting table, which is lower than your previous one. This lower height places excessive strain on your upper back, shoulders, and neck while you prepare food —whether chopping, kneading, or seasoning.

Of course, I can go on giving you examples. The main point is that when you suddenly or gradually notice a bodily discomfort, tension, or pain coming up, finding out what has changed in your circumstances or in the things you do may give you clues as to what is the cause.

And, knowing what a possible cause can be, inevitably leads to answering the following question: What can I change?

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