It’s important to note that “mind” is not synonymous with the brain. In our definition, the mind consists of mental states such as thoughts, emotions, beliefs, attitudes, and images. The brain is the hardware that allows us to experience these mental states.
Mental states can be fully conscious or unconscious. We can have emotional reactions to situations without being aware of why we are reacting. Each mental state has physiology associated with it—a positive or negative effect felt in the physical body. For example, the mental state of anxiety causes you to produce stress hormones.
Mind-body therapies
Many mind-body therapies focus on becoming more conscious of mental states and using this increased awareness to guide our mental states in a better, less destructive direction.
Mind-body medicine
Mind-body medicine focuses on treatments that may promote health, including relaxation, hypnosis, visual imagery, meditation, yoga, and biofeedback.
Over the past 20 years, mind-body medicine has provided evidence that psychological factors can play a significant role in such illnesses as heart disease, and that mind-body techniques can aid in their treatment. Clinical trials have indicated mind-body therapies to help manage arthritis and other chronic pain conditions.
There is also evidence they can help to improve psychological functioning and quality of life and may help to ease symptoms of the disease. You can’t imagine how it’s working?
The Lemon Experience, or is it possible for you to increase salivation in your mouth willingly?
Sit down and increase the salivation in your mouth. It’s not working? Of course, human beings can’t increase their salivation by will.
Now do this mental exercise:
If you don’t mind, let your eyes gently close as you take in a nice abdominal breath. Imagine or pretend that you’re at home in your kitchen. Look around the room and pay attention to the sounds the sights and the light. Listen for the sounds of the refrigerator.
Walk over to the refrigerator, and as you do pay attention to your footsteps as you walk across the floor, you may, or you may not hear your steps on the floor. Open the door to the refrigerator and feel the cool air as it spills out onto your body.
Today whether you usually have one or not – today there’s a lemon in your refrigerator. Look at the lemon and pay attention to its color as you reach in and take the lemon. Notice the texture, the temperature, the size, and the shape.
Now take the lemon over to a place where you would typically cut up fruits or vegetables. Take out your favorite knife now and slice the lemon. You may slice it lengthwise from end to end or down the center in small pieces. You may have noticed the juice as it drips out on the cutting area. Reach down and take a slice and bring it up and smell the fragrance. You may see memories being created.
Now open your mouth and take a big bite into that lemon.
Feel and taste the juices … experience the increased salivation and notice the feeling at the corners of your jaw. Now swallow the lemon juice.
Open your eyes.
What did you notice?
What did you experience in your mind and in your body?
What senses were stimulated?
This is the way how hypnosis works.
Have a wonderful day
You have any questions? Write a mail to birgit(at)drzottmann.com