Have you ever felt so stressed that it makes your stomach hurt or you get a headache? This is because your mind and body are connected in a way that may not be immediately obvious to us. The mind/body connection is the idea that physical stress translates to mental stress and vice versa. Our mind and body are constantly communicating with each other and an issue with one can lead to issues with the other. When we say mind, we aren’t necessarily talking about the brain. Our mind consists of our thought processes, emotions, beliefs, and attitudes.
An Ancient Concept
Centuries ago, medicine treated the mind and the body as one. It’s only been recently that medicine separated the two. Hippocrates recognized the moral and spiritual aspects of healing in the fourth century B.C. He believed that treatment could only be beneficial with consideration of attitude and environment. The concept that the mind plays an essential role in healing was embraced by Ayurvedic and Chinese medicine, which also date back over 2000 years. By the 17th century, reductionism, or the idea that the body is like a machine with all parts being separate from each other, began to grow in popularity until it was adopted by Western medicine. This was the beginning of the loss of the mind/body connection.
E Pluribus Unum
You’ve probably heard this phrase and seen it on many coins. It is the motto for the United States and translates into “of many, one.” The Founding Fathers adopted the phrase to reflect American determination to form a single nation from a collection of states. The same concept applies to the human body. While it is made of many parts, the body (including a mind) acts as a single unit to sustain life. It’s important to understand the symbiotic relationship our minds and bodies have. If we neglect the care of one, the other will surely suffer.
Our thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and attitudes can positively or negatively affect our biological functioning. Such is the essence of the mind/body connection. One cannot be truly healthy unless the other is. At Avalon Malibu, we provide experiential and holistic therapies to help regain the balance between mind and body. We want you to be an active participant in your recovery. Our comprehensive array of treatment options provide you with a personalized rehabilitation experience designed to meet your unique needs. Located in breathtaking Malibu, California, we offer mindfulness-based therapies, yoga, and acupuncture, in addition to experiential and psychotherapies and 12-Step and non-12-Step support groups. With so many resources available, our dedicated team of mental health professionals can equip you with the right tools to help you attain and sustain recovery. To learn more about how we can help, call us today at (844) 857-5992.
