Your belly as your guide

You might say to yourself how can your belly be a comfort remedy?  Well, I decided to deliberately place this blog entry under comfort remedies in hopes that we can begin to see our belly’s as just that, our own internal source of comfort and alter how we view our bellies.  Often those of us with UC, CD or other gastric or digestive related dis-eases tend to disassociate ourselves with our bellies as if they are the areas of our body we are trying remedy and therefore are not in themselves helpful resources in our healing process.

Recently I had some pains in my belly, gnawing pains that came and went sporadically.  My first reaction was utter panic with the thoughts of the possibility of another flare and the fears of what that all meant.  I froze with these negative thoughts, but when I thawed out and allowed for my emotions to take a different path, I was able to take a step back and place my mind and heart center and I could see that this was a wonderful sign, a signal from my belly to me, a method of communicating.

I had been running around a lot, tiring myself out, not taking naps and coming to the table eating quickly.  I had not given myself a chance to slow down and relax nor had I been having the best sleep.  So it was inevitable that my belly would reach this state and in its gentle yet effective manner, ask me to take a step back from my routine and slow the pace at which I was going.  So I did and wouldn’t you know my belly pains subsided.  It was my belly that gave me the comfort remedy, sleep and rest and I am all too grateful for it.  So what has your belly been encouraging you to pay attention to that could guide your healing process?

13 Responses to Your belly as your guide

  1. sasha says:

    I can tell how my body is doing by looking at my face. Bags under my eyes, dry skin etc… So true, we need to listen to our bodies and act upon what they are telling us.

    • safara says:

      Yes, our bodies are incredible at letting us into what is going on and really can be a wonderful resource for us during any phase of our journey. They are our vessels for life for a reason.
      Thanks for your post!

    • Mayron says:

      Easy, EAT HEALTHY, and EXCERCISE!!!!!!!!For a healthy diet, you need to be aietng small to medium meals regularly. 4 or even 5 times a day. Each meal (apart from breakfast which should preferably be fibre rich), should contain a balanced ammount of carbohydrates for energy, (from potatoes, rice and pasta, etc) protien (from fish, chicken, occassional red meat is fine, soya is good too) and plenty of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants (simple fresh fruit and veg). Eat like this and make sure you are well hydrated (fruit juice is as good as water, any fluid counts, but some fluids have negative effects too, such as alcohol or caffiene rich drinks.)You can have a wide range of healthy meals with this, from Thai, Chinese, Italian, British, Indian, etc. Just make sure each meal contains balanced ammounts of these three.This doesn’t mean you cant have chocolate or pizza/takeaway/etc, just save them as very occassional treats.The big secret to keeping a healthy weight and staying healthy is EXCERCISE, particularly cardio excercise (running, swimming, cycling, etc).Cardio exercise will not only burn calories and reduce your body fat levels, but will also improve your resting heart rate and lung function, making you healthier.Strength training will help you strengthen and tone your muscles. Heavy weights with short reps/sets will build your fast twitch muscle fibres and build size, power and strength, but if you use light to medium weights with lots of reps/sets, you wont build size, but you will tone up your muscles body and train muscle endurance. This will obviously make you look’ healthier and more toned, but will also increase your metabolism (as your muscles demand more energy) so you will burn calories faster.As far as excercise goes, you should aim to strike a balance between cardio training and strength training, this way you will build good strong and toned muscle, but also keep your body fat levels down and increase your heart and lung performance, making you much fitter and healthier.Hope this helps. Was this answer helpful?

  2. anju says:

    hello,

    on being 70% raw food , i a having severe hair fall, very brittle nails, and dry skin,,

    which was never the case before in my life. and i am having this conditon almost an year, yes i did enjoyed my weight loss. but seriously all this symptoms are scary.

    and i am confused and frustrated.

    what could be the reason , could u pls help me.

    thanks
    anju

    • safara says:

      Hi Anju,
      Love your name does it have a meaning? Im sorry to hear that you are dealing with hair loss, brittle nails and dry skin.
      I don’t know enough about nutrition from a clincial perspective to say, nor do I qualify as I am not a licensed physican to diagnose or treat your condition. From my own experience I will say that I too suffer from such symptoms when I am under nourished, ie. when I have a flare or I am coming out of a flare. I was terrified, I thought I was pre-mature aging and my system was breaking down. I was so upset with myself and it was difficult to feel good about myself. Its taken me about a year and a half to have my hair grow strong with some life to it. My nails have never really been that thick and strong however, I do see them growing more now and my skin is much more supple and has color to it. I give thanks when I look in the mirror and take the time to remember that my body is forever so be kind to myself no matter what shape I am in.
      Some tips that have helped me are:
      1. Coconut oil-rub into cuticles and anywhere you would like to get a good moisturizing base going. I usually do this to my feet and hands, particularly before bed, but I have known people to apply it all over their body and really soften and moisturize their skin.
      2. Almond or Jojoba oil- add to your face moisturizer this is wonderful and wont break you out.
      3. Avocado mask- mix up avocado with olive oil and apply to skin or to hair is incredible, yummie too! hehe
      4. Eat nuts- nuts are incredibly good to get the protein but also for their oil content, try flaxseeds meal added to a smoothie for example.
      5. Olive oil- I love it, I eat it regularly and its wonderful to add to a bath and rub on skin.
      5. Patience and Good thoughts- with all the bells and whistles that are out their for beauty, patience and being kind to your body is key.
      Keep this in mind as you apply these tips and know our biological systems are incredibly strong and malliable. In good health, Safara
      Thoughts to consider-
      Is my diet balanced?
      What foods am I consuming that help with biotin, elasticity, bone density?

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