Many people have probably heard the term “listen to your body.” This is the only body you get and it’s important to know that if your gut is telling you there is something not working right, there probably is. The difficult part though is taking time to set aside from a chaotic schedule to focus on what your body needs.

If you think about it, the body is pretty amazing. It does what we want when we want it and it never crosses the mind that one day it’s not going to work as well anymore. Sometimes it’ll slow down even before then for people who aren’t taking care of it. Our body sends us signals all the time and it’s important to act on them.

A lot of us are too busy to even really think about this. Getting sick is normal and it’s easy to treat, but there are times we don’t know what’s wrong. It can be easy to go through daily life and not even worry there could be something wrong. Fatigue? Frequent illness? Dizziness? These are just a few indicators when the body isn’t working properly yet we never actually think there could be something wrong.

This year, even these few months, I believed I could do it all and the truth is that I couldn’t. I was working everyday and stressing about catching up in school and I was just going back and forth between my jobs just to come home and work some more. Anyone could see that I wasn’t taking care of myself; I would forget to drink water, skipped meals if I was too busy then just grab fast food later, not sleeping, etc. However, over time I started to see the effects and it was kind of a wake up call. I wasn’t feeling normal and my friends and family saw that and made me go to the doctor even though I didn’t think there was anything wrong. Turns out I had developed something called anemia and severe dehydration.

That was just my experience, but I’ve seen many people who have had a similar experience to where they don’t find time to take care of themselves and aren’t listening to the signs their body is giving them. Everyone should take some time and really focus on what needs to be changed, make sure your getting enough rest and healthy food, but also checking and being aware if anything abnormal happens and seeking treatment for it.

Sincerely,

Sydney