As a mentor to moms looking for support, the very first step I have my clients take is to slow down, tune-in and listen to their inner expert.

We are so conditioned to believe we have to find the answers elsewhere, we forget that we may know intuitively, particularly when it comes to ourselves and our children.

I’m not suggesting that pediatricians, doctors and researchers aren’t valuable, just that your own inner wisdom, that voice inside you, may be already telling you exactly what you need to hear.

I once worked with a mom whose daughter was having extreme abdominal pains that were getting worse. My client was researching everything she could find. She had taken her daughter to GI specialists. She had tried allergy testing, elimination diets and essential oils, among other possible remedies. She was actually at the unhappy point of considering exploratory surgery.

I asked her to step away from the computer and to start to keep a journal. She was initially irritated by this exercise, but what we found from her entries was that the word ‘soy’ kept cropping up. The mom dismissed the possibility of soy being an issue, as she had been told by all kinds of doctors that her daughter wasn’t allergic to it.

I suggested we follow the markers that she had almost unconsciously made, and eliminate soy for a short time. After a week the little girl’s pains were almost gone. After a month, she had no pain.

The information rollercoaster

“The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift” – Albert Einstein.

Motherhood is an incredibly vulnerable place. We desperately want someone to reassure us that if we just do x, y, or z, our precious babies will be safe.

Just a few generations ago, we would have turned to our mothers, sisters, aunts, and community to support us as parents. Now we have doctors, books and Google. Parents searching now for a remedy for a childhood illness, for help deciding whether to vaccinate or even for guidelines on the safest car, are met with a plethora of options from experts, who often aggressively disagree with each other.

The stakes are particularly high for parents dealing with chronic or serious illnesses or delays. We read books, analyze data and devour research. And also have to wonder, does the author have a conflict of interest? Who funded this study? Can I trust them?

Research and information can be incredibly valuable, but blindly trusted, they can also be dangerous. I’m suggesting that we counterbalance what we find from outside sources by tapping into ourselves, and using our brains, hearts and guts.

Strengthening yourself

How can you listen to your own voice if you are also overscheduled, overwhelmed and undernourished?

I ask my clients to look after themselves, as well as their children. Taking a different approach to life and parenting is challenging and scary. And yet it is so empowering to find out that the answers you were seeking were there all along.

You can start by taking a breath. Listen to yourself. Acknowledge the noise of other voices in your head, but begin to listen to that one voice that is your own. Slowly ask questions from that voice. Speak from that voice. Trust that voice. One day you may even see your own child doesn’t need to turn to teachers or peers, but is actually trusting his own voice too.

I believe the pendulum is swinging back toward following our intuition. My hope and vision for the world and our children, is that alongside research and technology, we will use our inner wisdom to guide our children and heal our earth.

Amara Wagner is a Certified Health Coach and educator. She empowers moms to trust their intuition. She guides them, with tools and information about using whole foods and natural remedies, to support their family’s health and well-being. Amara provides individual and group programs, locally and nationally. For more information, visit Amara Wellness or find her on Facebook.