Have you ever stopped to marvel at all the physical processes that are going on in your body? Without even thinking about it, your heart is beating, your lungs are taking in air, your stomach is digesting and processing food, your immune system is fighting off who knows what, blood is flowing, your brain is registering all your sensory input and is instantly putting that data to use—the list goes on and on. Each cell in your body is working hard to provide you with optimal wellness.

And what is the reward we typically give our bodies? Too often it’s an unending stream of criticism, low-nutrition food, soda instead of water, and lots of time being sedentary.

Still, our bodies do amazing things with the low-quality physical and mental resources that we provide it. The majority of people are well most of the time and are able to get through their days doing what they need to do.

Yet, if something in our bodies does start to breakdown, we often feel betrayed, self-critical, or judgmental about the inferior quality of the body we got “stuck” with. Thoughts can run along the lines of, “Out of all the bodies on the planet, mine turned out to be a lemon.”

What would happen if you showed up in the relationship with your spouse or partner the same way you show up with your body? How long do you think your partner would stick around if you spoke nothing but harsh criticism, ignored them, and didn’t do anything to take care of their needs, and in fact often sabotaged their efforts to take care of themselves?

Our bodies are often much more willing to take that kind of abuse than most people would.

And when the body’s ability to take the abuse breaks down and shows up as weight gain, sluggishness, or physical ailments, we often demand instant results for any small improvement in how we treat it.

Is there truly any closer relationship than you and your body?

Everything you think or do impacts your body. Your positive thoughts and feelings generate constructive anabolic energy, and the negative ones generate destructive catabolic energy. What this means is that your thoughts literally create hormonal responses that either build up your cells or tear them down.

Ultimately, your thoughts, feelings,  what you eat and drink, and the amount of sleep and exercise you get is all part of the love language that you use to communicate and interact with your body.

How possible is it to live the life of your dreams if you don’t feel physically well? What can you do today to treat your body with love and appreciation?

Together we can do it!