Although Western culture is beginning to acknowledge the true depth of the mind-body connection, psychosomatic ailments are widely misunderstood – and are consequently, often mistreated.
After working with thousands of people internationally, author and behavioural development expert, Evette Rose, has carefully tracked patterns of how this mind-body connection presents itself and has shared these patterns in a 722-page book called Metaphysical Anatomy. After an exciting interview with her, we learned a lot about the depths of the mind-body connection!
Your Body Is Trying to Communicate
Emotional and physical pain are forms of suffering that the body produces to make you aware of what isn’t currently serving you. For example: if you’re overworked, you’ll begin to feel tired, which is your body’s way of telling your mind that you need a break.
Under this same methodology, physical conditions that are unexplained by injury or illness are often rooted in emotional turmoil – if you feel overwhelmed, you may get an inexplicable headache. If the majority of North Americans have experienced “medically unexplained” pain in their lives, isn’t it time to ask ourselves what the true source of that pain is?
How are the Mind and Body Connected?
The mind and body are undeniably connected. In fact, they are one. Let’s look at the example of trauma to demonstrate this.
The human body stores trauma in several different ways. Traumatic experiences cause a release of neurochemicals such as cortisol and norepinephrine within the amygdala, hippocampus and prefrontal cortex.
People who experience extreme emotional trauma can actually trigger a permanent change in different areas of their brain as a result of these neurochemical imbalances. These neurochemical reactions are sent throughout our body, impacting our nervous system, heart-rate, breathing patterns and motor function.
An extension of this research brings us to psychosomatic pain. Since emotions, like stress, can measurably alter the physical brain, how is the mind able to harm or heal the body, and in what other ways can our emotions affect our bodies?
The Brain is Wired for Safety
When considering this question, it is important to remember that the human body inherently works to keep you “safe”. From a young age, we develop coping mechanisms that protect us from bad experiences and help us to move forward in life.
As we mature, however, our coping mechanisms can actually become misaligned with what we authentically want, creating internal conflict that can then be expressed as a form of psychosomatic pain – like headaches.
Imagine, for example, that you fell out of a tree as a child and broke your arm. Your mind then develops a fear of heights to protect you from getting yourself in a similar situation in the future. However, if as you grow up you decide you want to become a pilot, your outdated defense mechanisms may prevent you from living authentically and pursuing your passion. This lack of fulfillment could then manifest into migraines as you grow frustrated with your substitute job and could result in both physical pain and unhappiness or depression.
How Can We Move Beyond Mind-Body Limitations?
In this interview, Evette shares that one of the biggest challenges people face is change. We can become quite limited in our ability to align with our truth when the subconscious is innately resistant to change. It perpetuates what is learned at a young age, and often causes you to sabotage new goals and ideas if they are outside of what the subconscious is used to.
When you feel like your coping mechanisms may be kicking in, it is essential to ask yourself what your body is feeling, and what it is trying to tell you. Ask yourself if your mind is genuinely protecting you from something that is actually happening right now, or if you can trace it back to a past experience and old reactionary pattern. By doing this, you’ll be able to better identify what it is that is limiting you, and the ways in which your body is affected by the turmoil in your mind.
What You’ll Learn From Evette
As mentioned, Evette is a personal development expert, intuitive, international speaker and accomplished author. During this interview, Evette takes us through a guided body scan to discuss different psychosomatic causes of specific ailments.
You’ll learn about mind-body connection patterns, the profound enmeshment between our subconscious and physiology, the impact of epigenetics and how “identity overlap” plays a massive role in storing traumas in the body.
Why You Should Watch This Interview
Evette provides unique insight on how to heal emotional trauma, and how to better understand the relationship between your mind and body.
Her newest book, Metaphysical Anatomy, delves into further detail about what your body is trying to tell you, and contains incredibly insightful information that will help heal and connect to the deeper layers of yourself. Psychosomatic pain, at its core, is your body begging you to listen – and when you do, you’ll become your best, and most authentic self.