Here’s What Using Your Intuition Actually Feels Like

Unsplash/Sammie Vasquez

Intuition can be quite an elusive part of our being. Some people are born with a strong connection to their intuition, some people build that relationship over the course of their lives as their self-confidence grows and matures, and some people never fully jive with that little voice in the back of their heads at all. But regardless of where you fall, there are clear, physical ways in which your intuition manifests itself. Here’s what to look (and feel) for.

You get that twinge in your chest and stomach.

People say, “Go with your gut” for a reason. When your actions are aligning with your intuition, it’s not uncommon to notice a wave of calm fall over your torso, as if you are fully centered and at peace with the world. But when your surroundings are at odds with your intuition, the opposite occurs. You can feel a spontaneous, acute tightening in your chest, a quick flip of your stomach or a flutter of your heart that’s cueing the natural fight-or-flight response in your body. When you react this viscerally to something, even if you can’t exactly put your finger on what that something is, change is necessary.

You easily tune into the emotions of others.

Because intuition and empathy are intricately linked, it’s very common for a highly intuitive person to also be highly sensitive to the emotions of those surrounding them. This connection can almost feel like a sixth sense in reading the room and knowing how to make your way through it. But it can also leave you susceptible to unwanted shifts in your disposition when the negativity or toxicity of others takes over. In one moment, you can feel maternal and protective, and in another, you can feel withdrawn and reclusive. So while this connection is something to be cherished, it’s also one to just remain mindful of.

Unsplash/Yeshi Kangrang

You feel really confident… or really unsure.

People who are strongly connected to their intuition have this uncanny ability to trust entirely in the choices they’re making, even if they seem wildly unconventional to others. People could give them the side eye for days, and they either wouldn’t notice or wouldn’t care because they just know deep down that what they’re doing is right for them.

Conversely, those who struggle to acknowledge their intuition and, therefore, end up at odds with it frequently tend to feel overwhelmed by life’s decisions. They run around with a perpetual case of the “I don’t knows,” asking anyone and everyone for advice because they don’t trust themselves enough to find the right answer within. This imbalance leaves them highly anxious, stressed and out of sorts.

You notice the same path reappearing before you.

People who are highly intuitive also tend to be highly perceptive of patterns appearing throughout their lives. Sometimes, those patterns seem to appear to reinforce a decision you already made. Sometimes, those patterns appear to give an opportunity to adjust course despite not doing so earlier. And sometimes, those patterns appear as gentle reminders that your intuition is alive and well. The end message from your intuition isn’t always the same, but the general acts of observation and contemplation on your part remain.

RELATED

10 Things To Do Before Work To Have The Most Kickass Day Ever

How To Learn To Say ‘No’ When You Really Need To

14 Things We Wish We Knew At The Beginning Of Our Careers