Hiccups: spiritual meaning and emotional causes

What hiccups are

Hiccups are sudden, involuntary contractions of the diaphragm, the dome-shaped muscle under the lungs that drives breathing. Each spasm makes the vocal cords snap shut, which gives the familiar "hic" sound.

Most bouts last a few minutes and stop on their own. Common triggers are eating or drinking too quickly, fizzy drinks, alcohol, spicy food, a full stomach, sudden changes in temperature, and excitement or stress. Hiccups that last more than two days are rare and are worth seeing a doctor about: they can be linked to reflux, irritation of the nerves that supply the diaphragm, some medicines, or other conditions that need to be looked at. A doctor may treat the cause and, if needed, prescribe medicine to stop the spasms.

The emotional meaning of hiccups

Spiritually, hiccups are linked to something that upsets the body's rhythm from the inside: an inner revolt, guilt, or harsh self-judgement.

Something you cannot stop

Hiccups can be frequent and long-lasting, and they are uncomfortable and unpleasant for the person who has them. The question is whether something in your life, or something you would like to live, is just as uncomfortable and unpleasant, and frustrates you because it does not happen. Are there noises or thoughts in your head that you cannot switch off? Is there a situation you cannot accept, over which you have no control, and that you would like to change or stop, just like the hiccups?

Consistency and being heard

Hiccups also ask about consistency between what you think, what you say and what you do. On which subject do you disagree, while feeling that you cannot be heard? Sometimes the feeling is aimed at a person in authority, and what you would like to say is simply: "That's enough!"

Listening to the inner "OK"

In French, hoquet sounds like "O.K.". The play on words invites a question: do you still listen to your inner voice, and to the "OKs" it gives you?

Fear, impatience and habit

Hiccups can come with fear of something or someone, as a reminder that you need to free yourself of it. Impatience and impulsiveness about an event can sit there too. And sometimes the hiccups seem programmed, such as "every time I drink something fizzy, I get hiccups", which is itself worth noticing.

In folklore

In popular belief, not medicine and not the spiritual interpretation above, hiccups are sometimes said to mean that someone is thinking or talking about you. Folk remedies such as a sudden fright, drinking from the far side of a glass or holding your breath are passed on in many families, but they are habits and stories, not proven treatments.

A gentler way to hold it

• Take life more calmly. Slow down your eating, your drinking and your pace, and notice what changes.
• Savour what you live. Give yourself time to taste and appreciate your life rather than rushing through it.
• Trust that things can be in their place. Some situations are not yours to control, and accepting that can ease the inner revolt.
• Say "that's enough" where it is needed. Find a calm, clear way to voice a disagreement, including to someone in authority.
• Take charge of yourself. The power you do have is over your own choices, and you can use it fully.