But there is another important piece to our symptoms - they give us valuable, sometimes life-saving information. If an appendix didn't cause excrutiating pain before rupturing we would die, if an infection didn't cause a fever we might not know it was there. Doctors know this is true. They appreciate the vital information in their patients' symptoms and want to know even more about them - what kind of pain is it, how severe is the pain, point with one finger to where it hurts, when did it start, have you ever had it before, etc.
The same is true for our emotional and mental symptoms - they are giving us extremely important information, and it is essential we listen to them.
When we have panic attacks, a pit in our stomach, sadness, anger we can't control, heartache, loneliness these are important pieces of information our body, mind and soul are sending to get our attention and motivate us to make a change.
We tend to want to run away from symptoms - we avoid, distract, escape, blame, attack, condemn; we might make a rash decision such as quitting a job or ending a relationship thinking that will "fix" our troubles.
There are reasons for our emotional pain. If we can stay present and listen to our symptoms we might learn important information that can lead to real, lasting peace.
We might realize that we allow ourselves to be mistreated, that we dismiss our emotions and/or needs, that we've forgotten who we truly are or what makes us happy, that we're ignoring deep grief/pain, that we've lost our voice and don't speak up.
The next time you feel anxious or upset listen to your symptoms and emotions, be curious about them, like the doctor, and ask yourself when did these feelings start, are they getting worse or better, what was I doing/thinking when it began, how severe is the discomfort, etc. You may discover that there is important information in your discomfort telling you that it's time to end a toxic relationship, set limits, speak up, make a change.
