The Mind and the Body



My husband and I call the nature walk surrounding our home "the Healing Trail."

 King David said, "A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones." Prov. 17:22.

Just as surely as your mind can make your body sick, it can make your body well.  The mind, the body, and the spirit are all inextricably interconnected. Worry, anger, jealousy, hate, ill will, grudges, vindictiveness, irritation, resentment, guilt, depression, anxiety, lack of joy and happiness, and all other negative emotions and thoughts have a negative effect upon the body and open the door for sickness and disease.

There are now quite a number of cases where a disease or sickness or altered health can be traced back to a mental cause. Many health problems,especially cancer, do not entirely clear up unless the mental aspect is also addressed.There are physiological reasons why the body reacts so dramatically to our thoughts and emotions. Every part of our being, including our cells, sympathize or respond to the positive and negative states of our minds. For this reason, when we are diagnosed with cancer, we must change our lifestyle to alleviate mental and emotional stressors in order to allow our mind to be free to instruct the body to heal itself. 

Some people can handle more stress than others, and some can be so emotionally fragile that just a little pressure can cause immeasurable harm. I had to realize that just because I was capable of performing well under stressful conditions, my spirit was not. Stress can shut down all the vital forces of the body and the mind. The interconnection and sympathy between mind, body, and spirit is so strong that in the treatment of cancer a wise person will pay attention to every part of their being with the understanding that this is essential for total or complete healing.  

Action items for healing cancer: 

1. If at all possible, take time off from work. Make it your full time job to minister to yourself. Your mind can aid in making your body well, but you will need to be actively involved in the process. When I was diagnosed, I stopped working and made it my full time job to be well.

2. Spend time reading books that will assist you in your healing journey. One of the best books I can recommend is The Hallelujah Diet by George Malkmus, It includes stories of survivors of life-threatening diseases that used a full, holistic program to strengthen the body's own innate power to heal. Another great book is You Can Conquer Cancer by Ian Gawler, a miraculous story of healing that was strongly tied to mind-body work and meditation.  

3. Practice Guided Imagery that is specifically designed for healing. You will be relaxing your physical body, emotions and mind, then guided through a visual sequence where your mind directs your body to utilize all aspects of the immune system to fight the cancer. In order to be effective, guided imagery must be administered after you have relaxed your entire body and cleared your mind to receive the healing directives.



When you are fighting cancer, the mind is your battlefront. It is absolutely mandatory that you focus your mind on everything that is uplifting. Realize that when you entertain negative thoughts, you are effectively using negative guided imagery on yourself. Your mind will follow whatever directive it hears from you. You can't leave it up to chance, or up to the fear that resides in your subconscious mind. What can you do to alter the directions that your mind is sending to your body? Using guided imagery frequently throughout the day will reprogram your subconscious mind and activate powerful healing capabilities.

A verse from the Bible talks about the Mind-Body connection this way:

Finally, brothers, whatever things are true, whatever things are honest, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. NKJV

Doctors who specialize in mind-body healing believe that our bodies hold on to negative energy from past hurts and sorrows in our lives. That negative energy can interfere with your health. Many believe that if you don't clear yourself of these past negative emotions, you will not be able to fully heal. This is particularly true of resentment and anger. It is also true for emotions that you suppressed in the past, not wanting to experience them in the moment, that get stuck and can lead to disease. 

If you are ready to take the next step, work through the following Cancer Healing Guide. I chose to write out my answer to each question, one at a time, and read them aloud to a therapist. This is a great place to begin if you want to make sure that trapped negative emotions are not preventing you from healing from your disease. 
The Cancer Self-Healing Guide - Healing Emotions to Prevent Recurrence of Disease