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Body - Mind Connection
This month I would like to share with you, something that I have found to be a very valuable tool for living a better life and that I have used for years in my various personal development programs, especially public speaking, to help people change aspects of their lives for the better. It costs no money, can be used anytime, anywhere and if used regularly, can help to create greater success, happiness & good health in your life.
HOW? By becoming aware of the way we think. Yes, it is as simple as that. Yet, how often can we sabotage our health, success & happiness by sliding into negative thinking patterns. Even the medical world now agrees, through the results of ongoing research, that many of our health issues can be caused by certain types of thought patterns.
The mental thought patterns that can cause ill health, especially if they dominate,
are- criticism, anger, resentment, guilt.
I'll touch briefly on the scientific side & you can research more yourself on the internet.
In 1970 it was discovered minute chemicals called neuro-peptides, acted as 'communicator molecules' in our bodies, whereby the neurons of the brain can talk to the rest of the body. A few years later it was found, that neuro-peptides were in the immune system & other body organs like the heart as well. The chemicals in the brain form a continuous circuit not only with the receptors of the brain but other body parts, so it is physiologically impossible to separate the mind from the body. A happy person has different chemicals to a depressed person.
Professor Candance Pert says that - "Your mind is in every cell of your body."
If our thoughts control our body, we need to take control of our thoughts!
Catch your thoughts - Change your thoughts - Change your Life!
In 1976, Louise M. Hay wrote the first version of 'Heal Your Body' which has sold millions of copies wordwide. I found it an amazing book. She lists health problems, the probable mental causes & then suggests new thought patterns to help heal the body.
She awakens in people the ability to contribute to their own healing process.
Just last week I came across an article in the Daily Telegraph that said - Of almost 1,500 breast cancer survivors whose views were collated for research, 23.5% blamed stress as having contributed to their cancer. Feeling stressed starts with the kind of negative thought patterns I mentioned earlier.
We all have ups & downs in our lives and can easily slide into negative thinking. I like to use the 80/20 rule. If we spend around 80% of our time thinking positively, we have a better chance to live a healthier life, than if we spend 80% of our time thinking negatively.
A 30yr study by the Mayo Clinic in USA found that optimists tend to live 19% longer than pessimists.
Our mind-set, positive or negative, creates our feelings which then creates our behaviour. The language we use, can reflect what we are thinking, as can the tone of our voice and our body language.
Let me share this example with you. Over the years, I have teamed up with various organisations to run seminars. Most of the people I have dealt with, have been very positive and confident that everything will work out well & it usually does, helped by their positive attitude. Sometimes I have to deal with someone who wants to have a seminar, but uses language & a tone of voice that is full of doubt, already anticipating problems & difficulty in getting numbers to attend, etc. Inevitably that seminar doesn't end up going ahead, because the organiser is already not seeing it working.
It's like driving into a car park & saying to yourself - "The right car spot is waiting for me." Then driving calmly around and inevitably a spot is there. Rather than getting anxious or annoyed & saying things like -"I can never get a spot in this car park" and driving more quickly & missing opportunities.
Also, rather than focus on what you 'don't want' or 'can't do' - turn your thoughts around to what you 'do want' or what you 'could do'. Also thinking of the good in your life instead of thinking too much about what you don't have or being envious of others. These little changes help to think more positively up to 80% of the time, rather than vice versa.
"SOUND MIND - SOUND BODY"
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