Mind Body Balance

Our thoughts, feelings,  beliefs and hopes are simply chemical and electrical activity in the nerve cells of our brain. Every thought or emotion we experience involves a cascade of biochemical reactions which create changes in our minds and throughout our bodies.   Because our biochemistry and physiology are intimately tied to the rest of our lives and experiences, by changing our thoughts, we can change our biology and our health. Our belief systems are one of the foundations upon which all other systems act and have their effects.

The fascinating science exploring the interactions between the mind, the endocrine system, the immune system and the nervous system is referred to as psychoendoneuroimmunology.   Because medicine has until recently been biased away from mind-body research, the field of pni is in its infancy.  There is pretty good evidence that mind-body techniques improve chronic pain, headache, insomnia, premenstrual syndrome irritable bowel disease and  asthma.  Preliminary evidence also suggests that practicing mind body techniques can affect susceptibility to and treatment of cancer and heart disease and improve all of the following:

• Joint pain
• Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
• Hypertension
• Repetitive strain injury
• Cardiac disorders
• Chronic pain
• Infertility
• Migraine headaches
• Diabetes
• Perimenopause/menopause
• Gastrointestinal disorders

Relaxation response:
Meditation
Positive psychology
Yoga
mindfulness
links to related websites/articles: