Satisfy the Beast!
- Owl C Medicine
- Nov 17, 2021
- 6 min read
Updated: Jul 16
Here’s the truth: your body isn’t broken — you’re just not using it the way it was designed. Which isn’t your fault. None of us are.
We tend to think of ourselves in terms of our mind: our thoughts, emotions, personality, goals, or opinions. But that self-image ignores something crucial — your biology.
You live in a body, and that body has very specific needs built into it by millions of years of evolution.
That body — your “meat suit” — is the tool you use to do everything. But like any tool, it only works properly if you use it as designed.
The modern world has stripped away many of the natural, species-expected experiences that body was built for. Without those experiences, your tool malfunctions — and so do you.
I call this principle Satisfy the Beast.
It’s a simple way to remember that if you want to feel good, think clearly, and live well, you have to care for the animal you are. Let me explain what that means — and how you can start.
You Are an Animal
Your body is the most sophisticated machine on Earth. It can compute where to place your hand to catch a ball faster than a supercomputer — and it even has the arms and hands to do it.
But it was designed for a very different world than the one you live in.
For almost all of human history, people lived in small, cooperative groups. They moved constantly — walking, squatting, climbing, crawling, carrying. They worked together to gather food and build shelter. They spent their days outside, exposed to sunlight, cold, heat, and wind.
They faced acute stress — a predator, a storm, hunger — and then escaped or overcame it. And when danger passed, they rested and recovered.
Your body still expects that world.
Modern life gives you something very different: chairs, screens, fluorescent lights, air conditioning, processed food, and chronic, abstract stress about things you can’t control.
No wonder so many of us feel restless, anxious, sick, or disconnected.
You’re using your tool in ways it wasn’t designed for — and when you misuse a tool, it breaks.
Why “Satisfy the Beast”?
We’ve spent generations learning to control the beast — to sit still, suppress impulses, and fit in. And that’s a good thing — civilization depends on it.
But controlling the beast isn’t enough. You also have to satisfy it.
Your body — this ancient machine — is your primary tool for everything you care about. Your mind, mood, and energy all depend on how well the animal is cared for.
Satisfy the Beast is just shorthand for this truth:
You are an animal first, a person second.
If you don’t meet the animal’s needs, everything else — your health, thoughts, relationships — suffers.
What the Beast Needs
So what exactly does the beast need?
Your body expects certain experiences — not as luxuries, but as built-in requirements. Without them, it can’t work properly.
Here are the most important ones:
1. Movement
Your body was built for constant, varied movement — not just sitting all day with a 30-minute gym session thrown in.
It expects squatting, climbing, crawling, rolling, carrying, balancing, and walking. Not just once a week — daily.
Modern life has outsourced movement to machines, and our bodies pay the price. Joints stiffen, circulation falters, digestion slows, and mood darkens when we don’t move enough.
Start simple. Walk more. Squat while you wait for your coffee. Climb stairs. Try standing on one leg while brushing your teeth. Roll around on the floor.
Movement is the most essential way to satisfy the beast — and the one we’re most deprived of.
2. Nature
Your body is wired to sync with the natural world.
Direct sunlight, even on a cloudy day, resets your internal clock, improves sleep, and boosts your mood. Morning and evening light are especially powerful — they tell your body what time it is, and even what season.
Step outside every day. Feel the air. Let your skin and eyes register the natural light.
No, sunlight doesn’t count through glass — your body needs the real thing.
3. Social Connection
We’re social animals.
Your body expects to touch, play, and cooperate with others. Even imperfect or awkward interactions count. Physical contact — even a handshake or hug — calms the beast and reassures your nervous system that you belong.
If you isolate yourself for too long, your beast feels unsafe and starts to panic.
4. Manageable Stress
Your body was built to handle stress — but the kind you can escape from.
When ancient humans felt threatened, they ran, fought, or hid. Once the danger passed, the body could relax.
Modern stress — emails, news, bills — never really ends. You feel endangered, but you can’t escape. That’s when the beast starts to break down.
One way to “trick” your body into resolving stress is to move — especially walking. When your brain sees the world moving past you, it concludes you’ve escaped whatever was chasing you.
Walking is not just exercise — it’s a signal of safety.
5. Listening
Your body talks to you all the time. But we’ve forgotten how to listen.
When you’re anxious, tired, or tense, don’t just think about it — feel it. Ask yourself what your body is asking for.
Is it movement? Water? Food? Rest? Touch?
Your body will answer, but you have to learn to listen.
Why Modern Stress Breaks the Beast
You care about the world. You want to stay informed. That’s admirable.
But watching hours of news or scrolling through tragedies you can’t change floods your system with stress hormones meant for immediate, resolvable danger.
Your mind imagines what it would feel like to be in those situations — and your body reacts as if it were actually happening. But since you can’t act on it, the stress lingers.
This is called secondary trauma, and it’s exhausting.
You feel the fear and grief of others — but you never get the resolution they get when they escape or recover. Meanwhile, your health suffers.
The beast was not built for endless tragedy piped into your living room.
Limit your exposure. Stay informed, but not flooded.
Why It Matters
A well-fed, well-moved, well-socialized beast is calmer, healthier, and more resilient.
When you satisfy the animal, the human thrives.
Your moods, energy, focus, and relationships all depend on how well you care for your body — your primary tool.
Civilization happened because we learned to control the beast. But thriving requires that you also satisfy it.
How to Start
Treat yourself the way you’d care for an animal you love — because you are one.
Here’s a simple daily checklist:
✅ Move your body — in as many ways as possible.
✅ Spend time outside — especially in morning and evening light.
✅ Connect — talk, hug, play, or even just be around people.
✅ Drink water, eat mindfully, and rest.
✅ Notice what your body is asking for — and give it that.
✅ Limit stress you can’t do anything about.
If you’re already feeling overwhelmed, start small:
Take a walk, even if you don’t feel like it.
Step outside and breathe.
Stretch or crawl on the floor for a few minutes.
You don’t have to do it perfectly. You just have to start.
Some Practical Examples
Here are a few easy ways to bring more species-expected stimuli back into your life:
While watching TV, stand on one leg or sit on the floor and stretch instead of slumping on the couch.
Crawl up and down your stairs on all fours.
Use a playground — climb, swing, hang from the bars.
Knead bread or do yard work with your hands.
Sit outside in the morning with your coffee, even if it’s chilly.
Join a casual sports league or take a dance class — anything that combines movement and socializing.
When you feel overwhelmed, go for a walk instead of opening another app.
These might seem silly or small, but they’re exactly what your body is craving.
Why You’re Worth It
You’re living in the most advanced machine in the known universe — a machine capable of creating every wheel, widget, and rocket ship humans have ever built. But that machine can only talk to you.
We outsource listening to our own bodies — to lab tests, apps, and articles — but you already have the information you need inside you.
Every sensation is a message. Your mind may say “I can’t”, but your body usually says something clearer, like “walk”, or “breathe”, or “drink water”.
And here’s the beautiful part: the more you satisfy the beast, the better it works — and the more clearly it speaks.
The Bottom Line
When you feel anxious, restless, tired, or disconnected, don’t just sit there and think about it.
Check in with your meat suit.
Ask the beast what it needs.
Then give it what it was built to expect.
You are an animal.
A sophisticated, self-aware, confused animal living in a body designed by millions of years of trial and error.
Civilization taught us to suppress the beast.
But happiness, health, and belonging come from caring for it, too.
Satisfy the beast.
Your tool only works when you use it as intended.
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