Currently viewing the category: "visualization"

It’s Done With Mirrors

By On · Add Comment · In brain, hemiplegia, imagery, limbs, neural, neurological, paralyzed, stroke, visualization

Here’s a tripper: Japanese scientists have discovered that recovery from stroke is faster when using a mirror to create the illusion that paralyzed limbs move in tandem with healthy ones. Just another study showing the incredible healing power of the mind.

Stroke causes hemiplegia–a condition where one side of the body becomes paralyzed–one of the more serious complications of this dreaded brain injury. Rehabilitation of hemiplegia is especially tricky, and regaining full use of the paralyzed half isn’t always successful.

But now with mirrors the rehab has gotten easier. What researchers did was place a mirror on the side of the stroke patient’s body. As the patient moved his or her healthy arm, it appeared that the paralyzed arm was also moving due to the impression in the mirror. This bilateral image of limb movement, the researchers found, actually tricks the brain into believing that there is normal motion. Apparently this visual imagery is necessary to create and maintain neural motor function, the ability to move.

This is simply fascinating to me. If the visual imagery caused by mirror trickery works on a neurological level, then what are the implications for other types of healing? And why would it only apply to mirrors? Wouldn’t simply visualizing healing processes also work? What does this mean for cancer patients? Or AIDS patients? Or people with high blood pressure? I mean, can’t we extrapolate these findings to other healing mechanisms? Well, we don’t know yet. But my guess is that adding visualization to any treatment or therapy–be it chemo or drugs–should do wonders to help the healing along.

As Kazu Amimoto, one of the study’s authors said, “The mental aspect of rehabilitation has far greater importance than previously understood and should be paid far more attention.” Indeed, Kazu–I think it’s coming.

Hypno-Colon Relief

By On · Add Comment · In bowel, colon, hypnosis, inflammation, mental, ulcerative colitis, visualization

You are getting sleepy, sleeeeepy….

Ever tried hypnosis? Good stuff I tell you. I’ve done it several times and I got it right away. Hypnosis is the practice of taking the mind through mental and visual processes to help control the physical and material plane. Huh? Let me rephrase that: If you’ve got a physical problem, hypnosis can help guide you mentally to change your physiology. And, if you want to create or change an experience in your life–quit smoking, lose weight, gain confidence, reduce fears–hypnosis can also help there by guiding you through visualizations and help change mental patterns. Think it’s BS? Well check this out:

British researchers have found that hypnosis may help reduce bowel inflammation seen in ulcerative colitis. Ulcerative colitis is a disease that causes chronic inflammation in the lining of the colon and rectum, leading to symptoms such as abdominal pain and diarrhea. Although the standard medical treatment is drugs, a small study suggests that hypnosis may aid in the healing process.

In the study, scientists looked at 25 people with ulcerative colitis. Seventeen were taken through 50-minute session of “gut-focused” hypnotherapy aimed at relaxation and relief of inflammation, while eight simply listened to music of their choice for the same period. What they found was astounding: blood levels of IL-6–a marker of inflammation in the body–fell by 53 percent in the hypnosis group, whereas music listeners showed no substantial change. And they found a decrease in other chemical markers of inflammation as well.

The researchers were not sure why hypnosis eased inflammation but think that it might have direct effects on colon activity or it might affect people’s pain tolerance or perceptions of their symptoms. To me it’s quite simple: you cannot separate the body from the mind. In fact, all physical processes–both health and illness–have their origins in the mind. Trip on that for a minute. And if that’s true, then they must have mental solutions (components) as well. That’s my belief, anybody disagree?

I know two very talented hypnotherapists that I love to send clients to, one in Los Angeles and one in The Valley. Check them out–they work magic.

Insomnia Helped by Visualization

By On · Add Comment · In behavioral insomnia, breathing, guided imagery, healing, insomnia, relaxation, sleep, visualization

Suffering from insomnia? Trouble falling asleep or getting back to sleep after waking up in the middle of the night? Visualization might be just the thing for you.

About one in every eight persons suffers from some form of insomnia. Not being able to sleep stinks. I’ve been there and it’s miserable. If you don’t know beyond a rough idea how important sleep is to your body’s functioning, please read my eye opening article on the subject.

Insomnia can be caused by many things including stress, anxiety, drugs/medications, caffeine and other stimulants, jet lag and overeating. There’s even something called behavioral insomnia which is when a person worries too much about not being able to fall asleep (me when I have to be up especially early the next morning) and tries too hard to do so. For a great piece on insomnia with excellent tips, check out this great article.

A recent study has shown that by doing a practice called guided imagery – the use of mental visualization to promote physical healing or attitudinal or behavioral changes – insomniacs have been able to improve both the quantity and quality of their sleep. According to Dr. Yara Molen, of Federal University of Sao Paulo in Brazil, subjects “listened to an audio CD right before bed that teaches breathing, relaxation and guided imagery that helps them get rid of their worries and imagine drifting off to sleep.”

I’m not all that surprised of these results, since I’m a huge advocate of visualization in general, and am certain that these techniques can move mountains, let alone get you sleeping restfully. The mind is a powerful thing, and when you think about it, it’s all in our heads anyway. In my upcoming book, The Six Keys To Optimal Health, I discuss in detail the nature and function of sleep, insomnia and some of its many causes (particularly the behavioral aspect), and the power and practice of visualization. Check it out this August on the book’s release.

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