Symptoms

Symptoms are ways that our body uses to communicate with us, to let us know that something is wrong. For example: pain, a headache, a skin rash or fatigue. Symptoms let us know that we need to pay attention because we are doing something that our body does not like. 

Acknowledging our symptoms is crucial to solve many of our health challenges, because they can provide the information we need to find the root cause of a health problem, and find the best way to resolve it, not just temporarily, but in a sustainable way.

A big challenge that we are currently facing is that, with our fast-paced lifestyle, we don’t have time to deal with our symptoms. We just want them gone. So we look for a way that provides instant gratification, which is generally speaking, the use of medications.  But what do medications do?  They usually supress the symptoms, but not necessarily deal with the root cause of the problem.  So when we stop taking them, the problem is back, and during the long periods of time that we take them to avoid the symptoms, the many chemicals that they contain might damage other organs in our body or bring side effects that we don’t like, and that we have to deal with as well (maybe with other medications?…..).

I certainly acknowledge that there are specific circumstances where medications can be beneficial, especially when dealing with life-threating situations or emergencies.  However, I believe that there are many other ways to start with, when it comes to deal with our symptoms, so we can find the root cause of the health problems we are facing, and find a way to resolve them.  (If you are currently taking medications, please make sure you don’t stop taking them without talking to the health practitioner that prescribed them).

Another important thing to consider is that many times symptoms overlap and manifest in different organs in our body, making it more challenging for specialists to troubleshoot.  People with mental problems usually have physical symptoms too, and vice versa, people with physical problems might develop mental symptoms as well. Then they go to specialists, and specialist usually don’t talk to each other and recommend things that might interfere with other areas in our body. 

I strongly believe that finding the root cause of our symptoms should be a priority, instead of starting by treating them with medications to make them “disappear”, because the sooner we do that, the easier it will be to restore our health. And within this process, sometimes what brings biggest impact on restoring our health, is to work with a health practitioner who understands that when it comes to our health, there is no one-size-fits-all remedy, and who can take the time to listen to us, understand our symptoms and challenges, and take our hand while he or she guides us through our path to wellness.

So, symptoms need to be taken seriously.  If we ignore them or suppress them with medications,  far more severe problems may follow.  Instead of viewing them as a nuisance, we should see them as blessings. 

Here is a question for you to think about: How often do you listen to your symptoms?