At times I share with you about my own life, or my work with clients. Today I want to share with you an amazing account, one of the most provocative I have ever read, about the power of the human mind. If it doesn't make a believer out of you, I don't know what will. Dr. Maroslav Borysenko, Tufts University School of Medicine, and visiting professor at Harvard University, cites writer and psychologist Jeanne Achterberg's 1980 case of a young girl who was kidnapped, raped, tortured, and left for dead with both of her arms cut off (Bill Moyers, Healing and the Mind, ed. Betty Sue Flowers and David Grubin. New York: Doubleday, 1993) 187. Here it is~
"Miraculously she walked miles to safety without bleeding to death even though both radical arteries were severed. When asked how she managed to save herself , the girl replied that she thought of herself as the bionic woman, an invincible character in a popular television show of the time. This young girl, who survived through the power of imagining herself bionic, had inadvertently used an indirect form of hypnosis to staunch the flow of blood. While meditation has to do with emptying our minds of images, bringing forth the nonspecific healing physiology of the relaxation response, hypnosis is about creating vivid mental images that our bodies respond to specifically. About one in twenty people are so capable of absorbing themselves in fantasy that their bodies can respond like that of the girl mentioned above."
Dr. Borysenko defines meditation as the removal of mindsets so we can perceive the world freshly. Hypnosis, in contrast, is the cultivation of a particular mind set. Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn, founder and director of the Stress Reduction Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center and Associate Professor of Medicine at the University's Medical School, states: The mind that has not been developed or trained is very scattered. That is the normal state of affairs, but it leaves us out of touch with a great deal of life, including our bodies. All of this is happening below the surface of awareness, which means that our unconscious thoughts are creating kind of a prison which regulates a lot of our behavior.
Thankfully we don't find ourselves in the horrendous situation such as that of the young girl described above. But, what kind of prison do you find your own mind in? Where do your thoughts and feelings take you? Are you in a place of calm relaxation which leads to self control and empowerment? Or do you at times think of yourself as dis-empowered with life and its circumstances?
I will confess that at times in my life I have been in that dark valley in which I have felt very discouraged and dis-empowered. Just like you I have felt an overwhelming sense of loss. I know that right now many of you are dealing with discouragement. I have come to realize that it is not our circumstances, but our response to them that makes ALL THE DIFFERENCE. When my family relocated almost two years ago, my plans suffered several strong, harsh blows. I had losses that brought me to my knees and the brink of despair. About the time I pulled myself up and out, another blow would come my way. I began to wonder if it was endless - would I ever find my way out. I was caught in the web of that prison described by Kabat-Zinn.
Most thankfully, I also had within me the knowledge of the power we each carry within us. And even though dark days sometimes turned into weeks, I always knew that if I hung on, hung in there and worked with what I knew, I would be okay and I could turn things around.
I speak/write frequently about "feeding your soul" and that is a staple for me. When we store up positive thoughts in the form of verses, poems, stories and quotes, (and there is a storage unit so-to-speak in our mind) we can call upon them when we are in times of trouble. They will help to break us out of that prison. Here are a few of my favorites for you to ponder:
Hope is the feeling that the feeling you have isn't permanent (Jean Kerr).
Life is a wilderness of twists and turns, where faith is your only compass (Paul Santaguida).
God puts rainbows in the clouds so that each of us - in the dreariest and most dreaded moments - can see a possibility of hope (Maya Angelou).
When you come to the end of all the light you know, and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on or you will be taught to fly (Edward Teller).
Know that wisdom is thus for your soul; if you find it, then there will be a future, and hope will not be cut off (Proverbs 24:14 NASV).
I hope you will continue to join me on the incredible journey into the understanding of your magnificent mind.
Namaste,
Until next time,
Dr. DyAnn
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