Think Yourself Well

When people are doing everything "right" -- eating veggies, avoiding red meat and processed foods, exercising, sleeping well and so forth -- we should expect them to live long, prosperous lives and die of old age while peacefully slumbering, right? So why is it that so many health nuts are sicker than other people who pig out, guzzle beer and park in front of the TV or the internet phone? I have come to believe that the purely physical realm of illness -- the part you can diagnose with laboratory tests -- is only part of the equation. It's a big part, mind you, but not the whole shebang. Many people have never heard of Ayurvada and that is a very sad thing. Western medicine has taken precedence of the other arts of healing and many of those people that practice their medicine in the East have become known as quacks and not real doctors. The mind of a human is connected to the body in more ways and more intimated than we have ever thought. The lifestyle choices you make can optimize your body's relaxation response, counteract the stress response and result in physiological changes, leading to better health. The body doesn't fuel how we live our lives. Instead, it is a mirror of how we live our lives. So if you're not feeling well, despite doing all the "right" things, take a deep breath and ask yourself: What do I think might lie at the root of my illness? What does my body need in order to heal? If you're honest with yourself, the answers could save your health -- and your life.