Skip to content
Modern WisdomModern Wisdom

Signs From the Body You Should Never Ignore - Dr Tara Swart

Go see Chris live in America - https://chriswilliamson.live Dr Tara Swart is a neuroscientist, senior lecturer at MIT Sloan, and an author. What is intuition? We’ve all heard the phrase “trust your gut,” but where does that feeling actually come from? Is it grounded in neuroscience or something more mysterious? And most importantly, can you rely on it, and how do you get better at listening to it? Expect to learn what it means to trust your instincts and what really mean “trust your gut” actually means and comes from, how to tell the difference between anxiety-driven thoughts and genuine intuitive insight, what role inflammation plays when it comes to brain function, why you should be focusing on the importance of connective fascia tissue, if there really is a metaphysical element to intuition and much more… - 0:00 Why Do We Ignore Our Instincts? 2:05 Choosing What Feels Right Over What is Right 6:14 Is There a Difference Between Instincts and Intuition? 8:11 What is the Serotonin Hypothesis? 11:53 How Can We Determine What Feels Right? 21:27 When Logic, Intuition and Emotion Clash 23:34 Which Archetypes Struggle with Intuition? 28:35 The Effect of Brain and Gut Health on Intuition 36:21 How Do Relationships Impact Our Intuition? 43:18 The Benefits of Gratitude Practice 51:13 How to Train Yourself to Listen to Your Intuition 59:04 How Much Does Chris Trust His Intuition? 01:01:52 What is the Difference Between Being Psychic and Trusting Your Intuition? 01:04:43 Receiving Signs from ‘Beyond’ 01:13:14 Can Signs Be Explained by Psychology? 01:16:44 What Might We Discover? 01:20:43 Find Out More About Tara - Get access to every episode 10 hours before YouTube by subscribing for free on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2LSimPn or Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/2MNqIgw Get my free Reading List of 100 life-changing books here - https://chriswillx.com/books/ Try my productivity energy drink Neutonic here - https://neutonic.com/modernwisdom - Get in touch in the comments below or head to... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact/

Chris WilliamsonhostDr Tara Swartguest
Sep 6, 20251h 21mWatch on YouTube ↗

At a glance

WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT

Reclaiming Intuition: How Body, Brain, And Gut Guide Decisions

  1. Chris Williamson and neuroscientist Dr. Tara Swart explore why modern life overvalues logic while undervaluing intuition, emotion, and bodily signals, and why those "soft" capacities may become superpowers in an AI-driven world.
  2. Swart explains the neuroscience of intuition, distinguishing it from instinct and anxiety, and shows how patterns from lived experience are stored not only in the brain but also in the gut, fascia, and muscles via mechanisms like serotonin and inflammation.
  3. They discuss how stress, loneliness, and poor gut health impair decision-making and intuitive access, and how journaling, embodiment practices, relationships, and diet can strengthen trust in one’s inner signals.
  4. The conversation broadens into near‑spiritual territory—signs, synchronicities, and the limits of scientific rigor—arguing that some subjectively useful phenomena may be worth trusting even before science can fully explain them.

IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING

5 ideas

Treat intuition as pattern recognition, not magic.

Swart defines intuition as judgment based on deeply stored life patterns—an aggregate of experiences held in the limbic system, gut, and even bodily tissues—so it should be used alongside logic rather than dismissed as irrational.

Distinguish intuition from instinct and anxiety.

Instinct and anxiety are often loss-avoidant and change-averse, pushing you to stay safe; intuition tends to point toward growth, and often feels like being both nervous and excited, especially before meaningful opportunities.

Support your gut to sharpen your judgment.

Because about 95% of serotonin is produced outside the brain and the gut–microbiome system strongly influences mood and cognition, diverse plant foods, fiber, fermented foods, and possibly targeted probiotics can improve clarity and intuitive access.

Reduce chronic stress to avoid ‘low-power mode’ in the brain.

Prolonged cortisol elevation causes inflammation, dehydrates the brain, redirects blood flow away from higher cognitive functions, and erodes immunity—leading to brain fog and poorer decisions; stress management, hydration, magnesium, and sleep are essential.

Use journaling to build a data set on your own intuition.

Recording decisions, whether you followed your gut, and how outcomes unfolded—then re-reading entries—reveals repeating patterns, where you ignored red flags, and where intuition served you, gradually building trust in inner signals.

WORDS WORTH SAVING

5 quotes

Intuition is wisdom and judgment based on patterns you've picked up through life that are stored deeply in the brain and all the way down to the gut.

— Dr. Tara Swart

Your brain will work much harder to stop you losing something than to let you take a healthy risk for a reward.

— Dr. Tara Swart

We have this weird sense that we were going to be able to prove the world to us, and now we’re going back to a focus on effectiveness over rigor.

— Chris Williamson

When I feel nervous and excited at the same time, that’s been the case just before the biggest successes in my life.

— Dr. Tara Swart

Whatever happens, I know that I can roll my sleeves up and deal with it—and I trained myself to be like that.

— Dr. Tara Swart

Difference between logic, instinct, intuition, and anxietyNeuroscience of the gut–brain axis, serotonin, and trauma in the bodyImpact of chronic stress, cortisol, and inflammation on decision-makingRole of relationships, psychological safety, and social circles in intuitionJournaling, gratitude, and embodiment as tools to access inner wisdomAge, experience, and profession in shaping intuitive confidenceScience, spirituality, and the idea of “signs” and collective consciousness

High quality AI-generated summary created from speaker-labeled transcript.

Get more out of YouTube videos.

High quality summaries for YouTube videos. Accurate transcripts to search & find moments. Powered by ChatGPT & Claude AI.

Add to Chrome