Listening in to the Little Voice

First they come as a whisper, an under-the-breath protest that things aren't quite right in the inner recesses of your body and mind. Those in tune with their inner voice or little symptoms will stop and check in with themselves, take stock and adjust; others will push on.

Next comes the spoken protest, it's more definite and it's accompanied by more persistent physical symptoms. At this stage your body and mind are definitely wanting your attention. They're saying "listen up, we're not happy, things are not going well". Are you listening? Or will you push on with more seemingly important things? Pop an aspirin, down a coffee, light a cigarette.

If we ignore the early warning signs, eventually they'll get louder and more insistent. They may even start to shout and scream via various unwelcome symptoms and states of mind.

At this stage, it's really hard to get anything done effectively and there are really only two choices:

1. ignore the genuine needs of your body and mind at your great cost

or 2. listen up and start trying to put things right.

Be prepared though that this will take time. There are no quick fixes once we have insulted our bodies to this extent.

Ayurveda, the oldest known healing science, provides excellent advice for self-care and prevention from illness. It's practical wisdom is supportive and nurturing in a very complete and logical way. It teaches how to heed and respond to the slightest signs of imbalance. How to keep calm, positive, supple and energised. Over the coming weeks I'll be sharing more of what I've learned from Ayurveda here - I hope you'll join me.