The mind can make decisions, learn new things, and feel emotions — it might also be able to heal the body. Is there any evidence that the mind can completely and utterly destroy all signs of disease from the body?
One of the worst things to hear from your doctor is that you have a serious illness. The plans will be altered and your life will now revolve around treatments and medications, right? In most cases, this scenario proves to be true. In those few cases, this couldn’t be further from fact, especially if you know how to think correctly.
You may have heard about the claims that it is possible to heal yourself with thought alone. So let’s try to find out whether there is any evidence of this idea.
Miracles may be one way to look at healing the body with the mind, and science could be the other way. With miracles, we place our lives in the hands of a great deity, praying that our ailments will go away. Science, on the other hand, provides a physiological explanation for this phenomenon.
Lissa Rankin, during a recent TEDtalk, explained the reality of healing with thought alone. It seems that the placebo effect has great power over the way we think and function, repairing our imperfections.
This talk has shaken the medical profession. Doctors have a problem believing their treatments and medications could potentially become useless. If the mind heals the body and itself, then this is true. But is it so?
Of course, the only way to convince those who may be a little skeptical would be to reveal the results of the latest placebo tests. People with various diseases such as HIV, cancer, and heart disease, 3500 to be exact, were tested using the mind healing placebo effect. After the test was completed, the illnesses were improved or healed completely.
According to a paper published in the Journal of Projective Techniques in 1957, a man called Mr. Wright was given a medication and told that the drug would cure his cancer. After taking the medication, his tumors shrunk drastically.
Upon realizing the drug didn’t really work, his cancer grew again. He was then administered, what he was told, was a better version of the same drug, and his tumors shrunk once again, half the size!
Unfortunately, news broadcasts reported that all versions of the drug were worthless. The next day, the cancer patient died.
It looks like because of his beliefs, his mind took control over every aspect of his body and repaired what was wrong. When the placebo was revealed for what it really was, the doubts, depression, and frustration defeated the patient’s will to live.
It has also been understood that patients suffering alone are not as likely to survive as those who use health care. Doctors and nurses do more than administer drugs, they also provide comfort during the illness. Even when these doctors may be administering fake treatments, they are also providing a positive environment, which the body needs.
The mind basically works through stress response and relaxation. There are many stress indicators throughout our day which contribute to an unhealthy system. Relaxation stimulates the brain to heal from the stress.
When these things are out of balance, they can produce illnesses or make us more prone to contracting illnesses. Basically, the body’s defense system is not at peak performance when the brain is occupied with other issues. Studies confirm the adverse effect of stress on the immune system.
In balance, the brain can work wonders. While the scientific community is still quite skeptical about this notion, a growing number of studies show promising results regarding the effects of meditation and positive thinking on physical health.
With this being said, since the essential idea of staying healthy and living a long life seems to come from the power of the mind, it is obvious that our environment plays a huge part in how we think as well.
Surrounding yourself with positive situations and people may just be the secret to maintaining a healthy body and stimulating the natural human control center — the mind.
To learn more about healing the body with the mind, watch the video below:
View Comments
I agree. Chronic pain. Muscle tension. Caused by chronic stress and anxiety. Found meditation to be the answer. Creative brain reprogramming.
Meditation is amazing. The hard part is remembering it's importance. Many people tend to forget just how important meditation is to our health, both physically and mentally. We should try to make meditation a routine part of our day, to be honest - we should replace the unhealthy things we choose every morning, afternoon and night...
Interesting
Thank you, Donah, for reading.
Yep } )
Thank you for reading, Madelyn
What if the brain itself is sick?
I am happy you brought this up. I suffer from mental illness, and it's incredibly difficult to muster up the motivation to exercise or get things done. I know that exercise is beneficial, not only for my physical health but for my mental state of being as well because it is the push we need to then meditate. Unfortunately, my mental state can be so bad sometimes that I cannot get moving. Can you see the pattern here? So, if the brain is sick, then there has to be an incredible push. This push can come from support from others, or by listening to inspirational music or movies. You must alter your thought processes just enough to get a tiny bit of motivation. The small amount of motivation can get you up and move about. Hopefully, the results of this activity will give you the mental boost to do more. It's not easy, but it can be done. Oh, and remember to always give yourself praise for moving forward and getting better, no matter how small the steps may be.
Here's a secret too...as exercise helps the brain get a boost, hence this boost gives us the better ability to clear our thoughts.
It's true!!!
Thank you for reading, Rakotovelo