Mind body health

Many modern illnesses are the result of stress. Up to 70% of visits to the doctor are for stress-related ailments.

Contemporary Western medical understanding recognizes organic causes of illness - germs, bacteria and micro-organisms, as well as toxic waste, radon gases or genetically inherited diseases. Its perception of the direct influence of a person's mental and emotional state on their physical wellbeing is a relatively new field of scientific inquiry and research. An example of this new investigative interest in mind-body connection is Psychoneuroimmunology, rapidly gaining credibility.

In understanding mind-body health, one accepts that mind and body respond to each other. Mental and emotional states translate into altered responses in the chemical balance of the body, particularly in the immune system. When we cannot or do not resolve express or clarify what is happening on an emotional or mental level, that feeling becomes embodied - i.e. we take it deeper within ourselves until it manifests physically in a state of disease. The role of mind in the creation of disease is supported in the sypnosis of an article published in 2001 in the journal Advances in mind-body medicine. A range of eminent health and medical practitioners nominate the research study they think best demonstrates mind-body connection.

Think about who gets sick and who stays well in your daily life.

When flu is doing the rounds where you work or chickenpox spreads at school, not everyone gets sick, nor are those who become sick always affected to the same degree. This would indicate that our emotional or psychologcial state influences the onset and passage of illness, as well as the ability to heal.

Try this simple exercise on yourself to see how your thoughts affect you.
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Internet resources that inform about the topic of mind-body health include

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Becoming aware of your own body-mind connection helps you

Building awareness of your body-mind connection does not mean your health problems will be solved through awareness alone. In all cases of serious and persisting problems, a qualified medical doctor must be consulted. The human mind-body is a complex interactive and interrelated system requiring input coordination and fine-tuning, the knowledge and practice of which is gained through consultation with professional medical and health personnel of your choice in both mainstream and alternative fields.

Contact us for more detailed exercises and recommended book titles on mind-body health to develop and to promote your level of awareness in mapping your mind-body connections. Listening to your body mindfully is also integrated as part of the life coaching process, as it is one way of providing feedback on how you are realising your goals.

·	comprehensive health sites with different categories of mind-body health and free subscription newsletters, e.g. Health World Online. Mind-body health
·	articles, e.g. Mind-body medicine: an overview; Brain check: health for life
·	homeopathy acupuncture and pranic healing as examples of specific mind-body holistic health practices
·	online self paced courses to deepen knowledge about mind-body connection

·	proactively monitor and manage your personal health
·	enable understanding to invoke healing through the use of techniques such as positive mind states, meditation and art therapy
·	use this awareness to participate more effectively with health and medical professionals in treatment protocols you have chosen to manage specific illnesses