Intuition

I believe there is a direct link between the mind and the body. I also believe the theory that time is an illusion and therefore we can know the future because in reality everything is happening at once. I bring this up because of an incident that happened yesterday.

Now, I don't think I'm psychic, but I do think I have strong intuition. I have noticed that my body seems to know when something is going to go wrong. It can be big things or little things; it doesn't matter. That brings me to what happened yesterday.

I was antsy all morning and the feeling eventually morphed into full-on anxiety. I was jumpy, on edge, and stressed out, and I had absolutely nothing to worry about. There was no big issue I was dealing with, no stress coming from anywhere in my life. So, I tried to ignore it. It turns out this is not the best approach, because the anxiety's intensity increases every time I push it down.

When I left for work, I was snippy and rushed, and I started to get heart palpitations. Ridiculous! I couldn't figure out what I was so worried about. As I sat at the gas station filling up, I happened to check my cell phone. There was a message. A student's parent had left a message saying his son wouldn't be able to meet today. It was my first student, so I drove back home.

As soon as I walked in the door, I realized my anxiety was completely gone. It was as though my body had been sending me signals all day about this student and I wouldn't listen. As I drew nearer to the time of his lesson, the anxiety increased because my body really wanted me to know about it and I'd been ignoring it all day. It was trying to save me from making an unnecessary trip.

I've also had these reactions while driving up to a student's house, and it always means I'm going to encounter some kind of difficult situation. My heart rate increases and my palms get sweaty. It's not that I'm nervous...it's always with students I'm comfortable and familiar with, so I know something different is happening.

I've now decided to listen to the anxiety, and take whatever steps I can. Maybe it means calling ahead to appointments, or giving myself a little pep talk that I can handle whatever is coming my way. The wise words of my therapist are coming to mind too: I can thank my body for the information and then calm myself down. That would be so much better than hours of jimmy legs and stomach pains!

I think these messages have recently become so prominent because I got rid of the high level of anxiety I previously experienced. Now that my body isn't in constant fight-or-flight mode these messages from my body stand out in contrast to feeling relaxed. It's a strange thing to recognize because it is so mysterious. But it's also pretty cool.