as Published in Conway Daily Sun
When we imagine an amazing dinner, a walk
on the beach, a new romance, or just getting home to relax, the images in our
mind are very real to our brain and our body. These images can change our heart
rate, our breathing, our stress levels... the brain does not know the
difference between real and imagined. If you close your eyes and imagine you
are on a giant rollercoaster… slowly, slowly, rolling up toward the sky…
looking almost straight up… you feel yourself leveling off at the top…the track
disappears in front of you… your stomach senses the impending drop… you feel that?
Even as you sit safely on the ground, reading this article, you can create a
physical reaction in your body. Your brain sends the same signals raising your
blood pressure and stress levels, and releasing cortisol and adrenalin as if
the event were real. If you have ever blushed when embarrassed, or if your
stomach churns when you speak in public, you are already a believer in the
mind-body connection. It is so easy to demonstrate how our brain affects our
body whether the event in our brain is real or imagined. Somehow, when it is
suggested that our brain has a role in disease, illness and physical pain, we
tend to prefer a reliance on western medicine, pharmaceuticals and hard
science. As science advances to explain phenomena that only a few years ago were
considered too hokey for mainstream consideration, it begs bigger questions.
If the brain has such influence over the
physical body, imagine the influence it has over our emotions, fears, hopes,
inhibitions and even our most strongly held beliefs. Humans are born with only
two natural fears – the fear of falling and the fear of loud noises. Everything
else is a learned fear, based on some experience or outside influence. The
things we hold most dear in our belief system are all made up and placed into our
minds by our parents, teachers, preachers, TVs and experiences. Imagine if just
some of the things you were convinced to believe were false. What if you could earn a living doing what you love?
What if you could find the perfect
mate? What if being fat (or skinny/short/bald/poor/stupid) was not in your
genes? What if you were smart enough
to pursue what you want? What if guilt did not exist? What if money was not the root of all evil? What if
you were pretty enough? What if you were strong enough? What if the
neighbors’ opinions did not matter? What if thinking of yourself was not selfish? What if worrying and was
unnecessary? What if suffering was optional? What if you were not subject to
harsh judgment for every mistake you make? Would you be willing to consider
just the possibility of some of your beliefs being untrue?
This concept affects everything we do at
home and at work. If we believe we are always subject to harsh judgment for
mistakes, are we less likely to take risks at work or in business? Does being
successful at work require taking some measured risk? For many people, just
speaking an opinion or idea out loud, even when solicited by the boss, is too
intimidating due to the fear of being judged stupid, naïve or unqualified in
some way. It is easier to stay quiet than take the risk. A low-trust
environment may have influenced this, or more likely, it is the perception of
fear based on our imagination. Somewhere in our childhood, we made a decision
about how the world works. We all have vivid memories of mini-traumas; maybe it
was that time in the third grade when you raised your hand, made a silly
comment and everyone laughed at you. Maybe your parents sarcastically said you
would never be a brain surgeon. Whatever it was, maybe it is time to reconsider
your beliefs. After all, a belief is just at thought that we keep on thinking.
Once we think something, we start to find and store evidence to prove our
thoughts correct. Then we keep thinking it and it becomes a belief.
When I work with private clients, they have
amassed evidence to prove their beliefs. In a typical session we identify the
original thought that started the belief and uncover a mountain of evidence
that would prove alternative beliefs. Armed with new evidence to consider, it
is then possible to make new choices about how their world works for them.
Having witnessed this transformation too
many times to count, I know we can choose a new truth. We can show up at work
ready to serve and prosper, while helping others prosper. We can come home
every day, fulfilled and eager to enjoy our loved ones. We have the power to
use our brains to alter our physical state in an instant, which means we have
the power to use our brains to create whatever experience we want in our lives.
Sure, it takes a little training and sometimes a lot of clearing of old ways,
but consider the payoff. What if dreams really do come true? What if anything
really is possible?
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