What are your health priorities? By asking this question, I am asking you to think about what aspects of your health are worthy parts to investigate. For some people, cleaning up their diet is the most important starting point. For others, their diet may already be optimized, and their physiological priority may be elsewhere.
Step 1: Change How You Think
The human body is a complex network of systems, cells, tissues, organs, and glands. If there is communication breakdown, havoc can ensue. A lot of people talk about wanting to get better, but actually have no idea of how to make this happen. Most people think that symptom removal is synonymous with good health; that by taking supplements, or being told what to do, their problems will suddenly go away. Only if it were as simple as that.
The majority of people are accustomed to following what they are told routinely. Recovery from illness or healing from a disease has almost nothing to do with treating the disease, but has everything to do with supporting the health of the body, and improving upon the normal, physiological processes. This takes a lot of responsibility. It takes listening to one’s own body and making responsible choices, as well as changes in how one thinks and functions.
There are many more mechanisms at play than just the physical and tangible. Not to mitigate the importance of physiological testing, but in many instances, one’s own mindset regarding their state of health, may actually be a central obstacle on the road to health.
For example, many people whose health suffers, have the tendency to associate with their actual health issue, clinging to the diagnosis as if they wear it around themselves like a decoration, or as a type of self-flagellation. Recognizing and working through this type of false self identification is part of the healing process. Attaining higher levels of health is about acceptance of one’s own patterns and ways of thinking.
Body-Mind Connection
The human body is more complex than we give it credit. The body-mind connection is well documented. Not only can our thoughts make us sick and unwell, but our thoughts can also make us well and healthy. In many ways, our actions are not only being propelled by our conscious thoughts and desires, but many would argue that unconscious thoughts, fears and desires are driving our actions.
Some of the primary benefits of practices such as meditation, yoga, Qi gong and Feldenkrais method, is body-mind awareness. By harnessing our unconscious, we become more conscious of our decision-making processes. In this case, when we do act, we are more attentive to what we are actually doing.
Healing The Whole Person
As one develops a deeper inquisitiveness about the way that they think and feel, this clearly has a very positive influence upon their physical health. Simply by practicing the act of self awareness, there is an immediate loss of stress, we can breath and think more clearly. But the sense of false self-identification appears as a result of not being aware of one’s true sense of self. When we think and act from a false place, we become stressed because we’ve lost our center, our grounding and foundation.
This concept of clinging to a false sense of self is often a result of unfulfilled desires, and/or a sense of general unawareness about ourselves. This is type of thing is seen when there is compulsive eating, or compulsive behaviour to feed some sort of addiction, instead of eating or acting in a way that will truly nourish ourselves.
The paradox is that no matter how hard we try to get rid of our addictions, fears or desires, we are never successful at eliminating them. This is because we haven’t looked deeply from where these sensations arise. The only way to deal with the “monkey on your back” is by embracing it, accepting the truth of oneself, as horrible or as embarrassing as that may be. Once the truth is revealed and seen for what it is, we are free.
How This Relates To Health
By making conscious choices, we are taking a step towards healing. It is an unfortunate reality that many forms of healthcare are based in provoking a sense of fear and desire on the part of the consumer or patient. Through marketing propaganda, people are persuaded to talk to their doctor about some new drug.
The bottom line is that humans are preyed upon and exploited because of their unresolved unconscious desires and fears. This doesn’t bode well for our health, because again, if we are driven by our unconscious fears, rather than our rational faculties, how can we make healthy, rational choices?
There is a need to free oneself from the entanglements of unawareness. The simple act of inquisitiveness into our true nature is as good a starting point as any.
Interested in meditation as a means to tapping into your self awareness? See this 3 part guided meditation for adrenal fatigue.
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