Can People Think Themselves Well?
Thoughts matter. They generate physical reactions in the body almost identical to external experiences and input whether a person is consciously aware of them or not. Scientists have measured the dynamic physical changes that can be triggered by mere thought, ranging from hormonal and gastric juice secretions, electrical impulses, neurochemical explosions, increased heart rate, breathing alteration and more blood flowing to hands and feet. The body is programmed to produce chemicals that allow it to feel exactly the way the mind thinks. Likewise, the brain is programmed to generate more thoughts that correspond with what it is monitoring and evaluating in the body. But can people consciously influence reality and possibly think themselves well?
How Thought Shapes Reality
Joe Dispenza, a chiropractor, researcher, and contributor to the popular film What the Bleep Do We Know!? and author of the 2007 book Evolve Your Brain from Health Communications, Inc. became fascinated with the power of thought in producing physical changes in the body following a serious accident that forced him to decide between risky surgery or the self-healing practices he had spent his life practicing and studying. Dispenza's choice to forgo medical intervention and focus his attention on supporting his body's innate recovery potential with a combination of holistic practices and mental training yielded amazing results. Faced with potential life-long issues with pain or even paralysis, Dispenza returned to normal activity within weeks and has hardly ever had pain in his spine since. He is convinced his thoughts literally shaped his reality.
Beliefs That Activate "Mind Over Matter"
Having experienced the power of the mind and body working together firsthand, Dispenza wanted to know if there was a physiological and scientific explanation for “mind over matter,” and if it could be explained in such a way that others could attempt it without resistance or criticism based on conventional beliefs. He began interviewing other people who had experienced spontaneous remission or healing from a recurrent and unresponsive illness or injury. He was looking for similarities. As he began to investigate in more depth how his subjects, most of whom had been given dire diagnoses from doctors and were considered foolhardy, misguided and irrational for not taking standard routes of treatment, had recovered or revitalized their health, he found a distinct set of personal beliefs among his subjects.
- They all believed in a higher power, consciousness or intelligence that exists within that knows more than one can possibly know. They felt that by tapping into that power, it would benefit their healing or recovery greatly.
- They all accepted that thoughts directly affect the body, and used that belief as a basis for changing their lives. They felt that their own thinking processes had contributed immensely to their current condition or situation.
- His subjects agreed that it is possible to reinvent themselves, and that a commitment to observation and curiosity coupled with consistently “rehearsing” a new vision of what they could become was essential to the process.
- Each person Dispenza interviewed made the process of changing their minds the most important thing in their lives, so much so that they became grounded in the present moment and sometimes lost track of relative space and time.
Evolving the Brain
Dispenza believes that current neuroscientific and quantum physics research is beginning to explain "miracles" and how thoughts influence reality in ways never imagined. He concludes his discussion in Evolve Your Brain about the commonalities of people who think themselves well with this: "As human beings, we have the privilege to make our thoughts more real than anything else, and when we do, the brain records those impressions in the deep folds of its tissues. Mastering this skill is what allows us to begin to rewire our brain and change our life."
View a trailer of Joe Dispenza'sEvolve Your Brain Seminar.
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