For a long time I have held the belief that physical pain is our body’s way of trying to tell us something, just like painful emotional experiences bear a hidden message.

In my life I have had many instances of physical ailments and symptoms, with a medical diagnosis that tells me that there is nothing wrong and yet the symptoms are definitely there.

I had one of those episodes recently.

Midway through my day, I started to feel a pain in my chest which felt like tightness deep within the chest. I took the attitude of ‘wait and see’. By the evening, the pain had increased and spread into my back and left shoulder and still felt like it was deep within. I wanted to rest in Child’s pose but found it unbearably painful in my chest.

That night was difficult to sleep as I felt like there was a big bulge in my left shoulder area which was uncomfortable. I was thinking that I probably should get it checked out, but kept putting it off. My son had pericarditis a few years ago and his experience was pretty much identical to what I was experiencing. My biggest fear was that it was going to be heart related and that I would have to be hospitalised for a few days. On the second evening I started to develop a fever and the pain was extreme to the point where I couldn’t lie on my back or my left side, without experiencing excruciating pain.

The following morning I took myself off to hospital to get checked out. As I presented with chest pain, I was seen to immediately and put under a thorough investigation. I was given paracetamol which did absolutely nothing to ease the pain. To my surprise (and relief), my heart and lungs were seen to be perfectly healthy and I was free to go home.

That evening I decided to soak in an epsom salts bath and was pleasantly surprised that I was able to recline in the bath, whereas only a few hours ago, the pain would have been unbearable. I allowed myself to breathe into the pain and I asked the pain to reveal its purpose. The warmth of the bath water made me feel like my body and mind were melting into relaxation. The pain was melting too. There was a sense of feeling safe to let go. This is when I came to the realisation that it had been a big few days and months for me (and for many others I’m sure, as our worlds evolve and change). I feel like subconsciously I had been holding onto a lot of stress and it needed to manifest before leaving.

After the bath I made a nutritious dinner and had a restful evening. To my surprise, that night I found that I was able to lie on my back and on my left side with only moderate (and bearable pain). I slept well and woke to a new day where I just knew that all would be well.

I continued my therapy with yoga and essential oils and felt my mojo coming back. The pain was still there but very mild and I felt like the worst was behind me.

Am I the only one to feel a sense of mystery when my body is presenting me with so much pain and yet a medical diagnosis shows that all is well?

What is the message of the pain? I’m not totally sure just yet but I am certain that it needed to manifest somewhere in my body before it could be set free.

Have you had the experience of pain with no medical explanation?

footnote: Please treat any medical symptoms such as chest pain seriously and seek medical assistance as needed. Just because I put off seeking medical help, doesn’t mean that you should too!