Your Ultimate Self

Wealth | Health | Wellness

Tag: Wellness

  • Resistance: Friend or Foe?

    Resistance is a feeling that is opposition to the goals we set for ourselves and ideals we wish to achieve. Too often it is the silent enemy that is the cousin of procrastination. The insidious nature of resistance is tied to the fact that it is intangible, but also nurtured by the individual it plagues. 

    What if we didn’t have to look at resistance as this antagonistic force that resides within? What if it could be used as a guide or an indicator; similar to how a treasure hunter on a beach uses a metal detector to sweep the shifting sands for gold and silver. How can we use the feeling of resistance to fuel us towards our goals as opposed to something that shrinks us away from the possibilities within ourselves?

    If you think about it, resistance only appears when we attempt to become better. There is very little resistance when we are trying to indulge in a destructive habit: like eating cookies on a diet, skipping our workout, or avoiding an important conversation. When spiraling downwards we don’t deal with resistance hardly as much; however when trying to climb the ladder of success or elevating our selves it seems like resistance is at every corner. 

    With this being said how then can we use resistance as a guide or a sensor instead of a looming feeling that puts us in a state of paralysis? Awareness is the first step; awareness that resistance is a precursor to improvement and change for the better. When we can understand that we feel resistance when we are improving we can change our relationship with resistance and how we interact with it in our day to day lives. 

    Instead of seeing resistance as something discouraging we can flip it into a feeling that lets us know we are on the right track. Feeling resistance can now be used as a marker for the things that desperately need to be done. Whether that’s resistance in writing the book you’ve always dreamed of, starting your YouTube channel, or telling someone how you truly feel; instead of seeing it as something that drains you and makes you smaller than you are it can be seen as what it truly is: a signpost that you are on the right path doing exactly what needs to be done. 

    If you are interested in learning how to shift your mindset and working one on one with a professional to overcome your own inner resistance and limiting beliefs then feel free to reach out and send a message. 

    Dr. Shaikh M.D

  • Interoceptive Awareness, the 6th sense

    We spend most of our days with our bodies functioning in tandem with our minds, a kind of autopilot that allows us to focus on more complicated tasks. However, some type of internal disturbance may break our focus or flow we engage in. This disturbance can range from the hunger pangs of an empty stomach to the feelings of urgency of a full bladder. Our ability to sense these internal states within our own bodies is what is referred to as interoceptive awareness. 

    To clarify, the way we sense the outside world is through the 5 senses of taste, touch, hearing, smell, and vision. That is how we process information external to our own bodies. Interoception, however is the means in which we process information within our body; signals from the gut, lungs, heart, musculoskeletal system, etc. Think about the the last time you had a “gut feeling” or felt off about a new person you just met. 

    Of course, it wouldn’t be of much use if all of our internal sensations were being brought to the forefront of our conscious awareness 24/7. However, being able to tap into the more nuanced signals our bodies send can serve those that have the awareness. Research has shown that some of us are intrinsically better at others when it comes to interpreting and receiving signals from within. This would serve to explain how some of us are better at regulating our food intake when we look through the lens of the obesity epidemic in the U.S, or how some are able to understand the triggers of anxiety when it comes to self management. 

    With all this being said, interoception is still a phenomena being studied and current understandings are being expanded upon. Whether scientists perform research on the vagus nerve and its connection to the stomach or the areas of the brain such as the insula, we can be assured new insights into the 6th sense that allows us to remain in communication with our own body as time goes on. 

    If you’d like to learn more about how I incorporate interoceptive awareness into my transformational coaching practice and how it can be used to increase your cognitive, physical, and emotional health use the contact form to send me a message and lets connect.  

    Dr. Shaikh M.D