Intuition has baffled me for years.

In theory, intuition is this insightful voice that can inform my decisions and alert me to danger. But in practice, I struggle to separate my intuition from anxiety or arrogance or selfishness. How do I tell the difference? Intuition, is that you?

Here is my thought process so far as I learn and practice in real-time.

I tend to see the world through a binary, all-or-nothing lens. So my first thought is that intuition is either a genie that will keep me from all harm and never lead me astray or it’s completely worthless and not to be trusted. The former perception evaporated after getting ‘burned’ once or twice. The latter means I miss out on any insight - which I have for years. As with most things in life, this binary approach isn’t very accurate or helpful.

What if my intuition is wise AND I need to learn how to notice/understand it? What if this is a kind of relationship and both parties need to contribute? What if I need to better understand the purpose and limits of my intuition?

I had gotten really good at suppressing anything I felt or masking it with another “better” emotion. But over the last several years I’ve begun to acknowledge my feelings just as they are. I’m beginning to notice the physical sensations in my body, though it takes a very conscious effort.

Turns out, my stomach is incredibly vocal - and not just when I’m hungry. My stomach might instantly tense up or even feel nauseous as I think about making a particular decision. My intuition is sending signals through physical sensations.

My relationship with intuition is still evolving. I don’t always listen or notice. Sometimes I have unreasonable expectations (“Why didn’t you give me the answer ahead of time?!”). It doesn’t have all the answers or it certainly doesn’t prevent me from all pain.

But on the whole, I’m discovering how useful intuition is on a daily basis. Little nuggets of wisdom and insight that help inform my decisions.

Intuition, I recognize you now.

To notice today: What does your intuition feel like? What sensations do you notice in your body?