The mind-body connection - by Ross Taylor

In my years of being involved with many cancer patients, I could not help but be fascinated with the connection between the body and the mind. I was amazed how often patients who were told by their specialist that they had only three months to live, would almost always die within three months, yet patients who developed their own 'healing program' whereby they were able exercise some degree of control over their illness, would on many occasions enjoy a significantly improved standard of general health, and often achieve a much improved prognosis. So it is with people who set out to improve their general health and well-being. Those who undertake a strict diet, for example, but fail to embrace what it is they are doing, or maintain an underlying self-doubt about their ability to succeed at anything, including the diet, inevitably fail. Similarly, those who are constantly stressed and feel under pressure need to do more than just take drugs. They need to consider not only their mental attitude but also examine their diet, as there is a definite connection between the food we eat and our levels of stress and general well-being. Simply mentioning the concept of the mind playing a role in the quest to becoming well, makes some doctors feel very uncomfortable. It is easier, of course, for a doctor to prescribe some drug to assist with stress or weight loss for example, for this is 'scientific'. Using the mind to assist in the healing process is 'unscientific'. Yet every day we witness the immense power of the mind, without giving it a single thought. Consider the concept of cutting your finger. Within seconds the blood clots in order to save you from bleeding to death. Why does it it instinctively know how and when to do this? It is because we have been blessed with a natural 'live' mechanism that aims to keep us very much alive! Imagine what is taking place in a person's normal daily routine, which simultaneously involves the mind in a stunning range of complex decisions and co-ordinations. The act of thinking, eating, renewing our cells, expressing emotions, blinking, and even using the toilet, involves processes which could not be directed by the world's finest computers. Recently, whilst watching a game of cricket, I considered the processes involved in a batsman hitting two runs. In order to do this the batsman has 0.2 of a second to calculate the velocity of the ball, it's rate of decline and the angle of descent to decide in what direction the ball is to be hit, what degree of power, at what time the feet and arms are required to move and in what direction, and the adjustment of the eyes for vision. This whole process takes place in just 0.2 of a second; and we call this 'just hitting two runs!' A friend of mine, who must be described as a true sceptic when it comes to the power of the mind, believes that there is no proven connection between the mind and any physical changes to the body. I thought about this and looking down at his trousers announced that he had left his fly undone. "Oh! Excuse me", he said, clearly embarrassed and blushing slightly. To his surprise his zipper was very much in the correct place, but it was interesting to note the red blush still evident across his face. I asked him to consider this small incident, and think about the fact that just a few words could set in motion a whole range of chemical responses throughout his body resulting in his face actually changing colour. The mind does have the capacity to bring about physical changes. To watch people under hypnosis being told that they are standing in the Antarctic is equally interesting as inevitably they break out in 'goose-bumps' and start to shiver with cold. Yet their physical body is in a television studio under warm lighting! In 1998 a leading USA University conducted an interesting experiment with some 120 students. The students were shown three separate movies at the campus theatre over several days. The movies they watched, in order, were a film about the holocaust, then a video about gardening, followed by a story about the life of Mother Teresa. After each movie, blood samples were taken from every student. The samples were then tested to measure each student's immunity level. The results showed that following the first movie the immunity levels of most students fell. After the gardening video was shown, the immunity levels of the students remained steady, yet following the movie about Mother Teresa a significant increase in immunity was detected. There is no doubt the mind is incredibly powerful and used in conjunction with good eating habits, exercise and stress reduction, complete well-being can be achieved. Self-image is the key.... The goal of weight-loss or general well-being needs to incorporate positive mental images. When embarking on a program to become well again, many people become frightened to consider the mind-body connection. Yet an underlying mind-set that reinforces the automatic failure mechanism will almost certainly ensure that the goal is never achieved and the person is left with reinforced feelings of being a failure. Self-image plays a critical role in those suffering from disease as they try to heal themselves. Hippocrates summed up the importance of the mind-body connection when he said he would rather know what sort of person has a disease - than what sort of disease a person has!
This is an extract from 'Creating Health....Yourself' a book by Ross Taylor with Dr Ian Brighthope. This book is available from Lifeforce Seminars In'tl, PO Box 125, Greenwood WA 6924 Australia.