People try to listen to their brain more than their gut. That has softened because we can’t get over the idea that we have to listen to our feelings- we are closer to logic than we are to feeling. We typically don’t trust our feelings because we have been disappointed by them, or we have been led in the wrong direction, so why would we do that again?
Sometimes, it’s necessary to trust your gut, even if that means you look ridiculous or sound ridiculous – but ridiculous is better than being dead, or in tremendous pain or danger.
Recently, a member of my family was so violently sick, and this family member is notoriously stubborn (maybe this is because he is a man). Nonetheless, he did not want to go. In fact, he made excuses – he claimed he was fine, and he thought he would be alright.
Only, he was wrong; thankfully, someone else in my family had a strong gut feeling this was not just the flu. Or a stomach bug. And they were right.
Had they not pushed to make him go to the ER, the outcome could have been far worse. Instead of planning a funeral, we are instead planning for Christmas.
Listening to our gut didn’t make us ridiculous after all. It made us lucky and grateful. And for our family, the decision to react to something that felt wrong was a life-altering experience, and not just for the patient.
Everyone in our family has been impacted by this situation in some way, and not all of the ways are bad.
We have learned we can help each other. We learned that in terrible situations we can find common ground and support one another in ways that matter.
We are surrounded by people who love us; people who care for us and who just want to help us. My family member got to realize how much of an impact he has on people and he finally got to witness how incredibly loved he is.
In the end, I am just trying to tell everyone to start trusting your gut. Not everything is logical. Not every feeling of yours needs to be overthought. Just trust yourself, and trust your gut instinct.