Why the mind-body connection is fundamental to health and healing
The mind-body connection isn’t a new school of thought, the connection has long been obvious in everyday life.
Take, for example, when your cheeks flush in response to a situation you perceive as awkward or embarrassing, or you perspire when you are feeling nervous. These are common examples of what is going on in your brain, your thoughts and your emotions having a direct impact on your physiology. These physical symptoms are triggered by signals that are sent from the brain via the nervous system.
How does the mind-body connection work?
This communication system is central to what we call the mind-body connection. It's not a new concept; in fact, it’s been around for thousands of years. In the 17th Century, the philosophy and science of the time popularised the concept of mind-body dualism; the idea that they were separate and thus treated separately. This understanding continued for 300 years and informed much of the modern medical model.
Over the past 20 years, however, research into the mind-body connection has gained ground as scientists, academics, doctors and the general public re-engage with understanding and valuing this important link between brain and body.
It's fascinating stuff, especially when you start to consider and explore how you can use your brain differently to change physical symptoms.
What do I mean by that? If your thoughts produce feelings, which create a physiological response in the body, like blood rushing into the capillaries in your cheeks when you get embarrassed, it’s clear that what we are thinking and how we are using our brains can have a massive influence on our bodies.
It’s a two-way street; the body also influences the mind
The above examples tend to highlight the negative side of the connection; most of us don’t want to appear nervous or embarrassed! But the interesting thing is that it works both ways. A simple exercise to demonstrate this is gauging how you feel when you stand up straight with broad shoulders in a ‘Superman’ pose. Try it now, take a few deep breaths and notice how it feels. Strong, powerful, confident, right?
Conversely, if you lower your head and slump your shoulders, you’ll likely notice the opposite effect. Your nervous system is a two-way street as information in your body is fed-back and interpreted by the brain and vice versa, in a continuous feedback loop.
When it comes to managing chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and other chronic illnesses, your mind-body connection plays an important part.
How can you use this connection to manage chronic illness or pain?
So, who is really in control of your thoughts (and therefore your body)? At times, it may feel like you have no control and that these events simply happen to you. However, learning to notice and leverage this connection is a key life skill, particularly if you are facing chronic illness or ongoing pain. When you learn how to use your brain to influence your body, you can get it working for you.
You might hear people asking, “if you are using the mind-body connection to fix a physical illness, does that mean it’s all in your mind?” and the simple answer is no. But just like the age-old chicken and egg question, you can’t have one without the other. What you can do is learn how to master your mind to influence your body in positive ways, and this can help with health and recovery.
Are you ready to regain control?
Helping you regain control and master your mind-body connection is what the Lightning Process is all about. It’s training your brain and learning a new skill that puts you back in control of your body and your life.
Want to know more? Contact Liz to discuss how the Lightning Process can help you with your chronic condition.
Hi I’m Liz.
Health & Mindset Coach and Advanced Lightning Process® Practitioner.
I specialise in empowering people stuck with chronic symptoms with the knowledge, skills and support to reclaim their health and transform their life.
If you are ready to learn how to influence your mind-body connection, join me on my next Lightning Process seminar, either online or in Sydney. Check out the next training dates here.
Want to know more about how we can work together, contact me for a free 20 minute discovery call.
