You Have Felt It
You have felt it. That weird sensation when something is off but you cannot explain why. The tightness in your chest around certain people. The calm that washes over you in specific places. We call it 'gut feeling' or 'intuition' like it is some mystical force, but bestie, it is science.
Your Nervous System is Always On
Your nervous system is constantly processing information — way more than your conscious mind can track. While you are having a conversation, your body is reading micro-expressions, tone shifts, posture changes, and energy signals. It is doing threat assessment 24/7, inherited from ancestors who needed to know instantly if that rustling bush was a tiger.
That 'bad feeling' about someone? Your nervous system picked up on subtle red flags your brain did not consciously register. The 'right' feeling about an opportunity? Your body recognized alignment cues.
We Were Taught to Ignore It
But here is the problem: we have been taught to ignore it. 'Do not be so sensitive.' 'You are overthinking.' We rationalize ourselves out of our own bodily wisdom. And then we wonder why we end up in situations that feel wrong, with people who drain us.
Learning to Listen
Learning to listen to your nervous system is a skill. It starts with actually paying attention to your body. Where do you feel anxiety? For some it is the chest, others the stomach, others the throat. Where do you feel ease? What does safety feel like physically?
Start tracking it. That person who leaves you exhausted after hanging out? Your nervous system is trying to tell you something. That job that looks perfect on paper but makes your stomach clench? Listen to the clench.
The next time you get that feeling — the one you cannot explain but cannot ignore — pause. Check in. Your gut is not being dramatic. It is being honest. Trust yourself. Your body already does.