Unlock The Healer Within

  Knowledge is essential when first learning about the powerful connection between the mind and its role influencing the body’s physiology. Knowledge builds belief however without belief that this is your brain and perceptions of symptoms (see predictive coding via Dr. Schubiner, Dan Buglio or Charlie Merrill) causing the symptoms to continue (no matter how they started, although this can also very much matter for connecting the dots between knowledge and belief), it’s going to be hard to actually get over the symptoms. This is due to in part the 5 F’s that those with chronic pain regularly engage with on the level of thought or treatments. These were first named by Dr. Howard Schubiner and include fear, focus, fixation, frustration, fight. With a little direct, non-judgmental observation, it’s easy to notice that you may engage in these 10s to 100s of times per hour on the level of thought and multiple times a day “fixing” the pain with physical treatments. To suspend perhaps the largest F, fear, it’s essential to believe that the symptoms are neuroplastic (due to the brain) and can be overcome or more accurately, go away as you suspend fear of them.

However there is a difference between actually knowing on a deep level and just being able to explain things intellectually. Intellectual knowledge can over time become deep level knowledge or belief and reinforced by evidence and experience (see Dan Ratner for more on this theme!). However forcing belief is also a way to breed resistance in many of those who have an analytical mind or have long standing experiences or schemas in their mind that must be observed, examined and then reconditioned (belief worksheet below to get started).

Beliefs need not take long to take. In fact they can be changed rather quickly during a-ha moments where the connection is felt/seen (i.e. not analyzed). This can only be seen with knowledge of neuroplastic symptoms and their common behaviors (see FIT criteria in the resource section created by Dr. Schubiner). Beliefs are also fluid and its normal to have doubts at time especially since when we have a long standing belief we look for evidence to fit that belief and dismiss evidence that does not. This is where being curious and open minded are so important.

Different ways to build belief are successful with many patients. These include evidence sheets, connecting the dots between symptom onsets and upticks and emotions or situations, understanding purposes the symptoms may serve (what they are protecting you from; i.e. subconscious secondary gain), PRT (this gets right to experiencing symptoms through a lens of safety), journaling and seeing if this increases or decreases symptoms and possibly one of the deepest ways is through direct observation. This direct observation is a form of mindfulness as you watch your emotional state, thinking patterns from an objective point of view (without judgements or analyzing) and observing how symptoms change. 

It can be alarming to see how much our psychological and emotional state (felt sense) change our physiological experiences including extreme pain, dizziness, fatigue, tinnitus, even swelling and discoloration (see Rita and Tamara’s blog in the resource section). It can also be frustrating when first starting to understand mindbody syndromes because the pain may stay there or bounce between different places. Staying alert can be essential but staying process focused and continuing to cultivate the life you want with the knowledge that your body is not damaged is the key to success.

In the end however those who seem to truly overcome symptoms are able to know through deep belief that even when extreme, acute pain comes up it’s due to a danger signal being activated. This signal is deeply ingrained with past experiences, traumas and stressors and usually activated without much awareness till the symptom pops up as a warning that something in their life is occurring and needs to possibly be addressed or simply just known to the patient. Often those who become so deep in their belief need not change much of anything besides acknowledge what is going on and know that the pain is a danger signal but not due to structural damage. Dr. Sarno discovered this, then prescribing patients to think about or journal about different categories of psychological stressors in their life. He divided these into separate columns which included past experiences, current stressors and personality traits that the inner child finds threatening (perfectionism, goodism, etc.). Nicole Sachs further built upon this with her well-known journal speak program that has helped so many overcome pain. 

Through connecting the dots with different mind body practices that lead to greater awareness and the foundational knowledge around neuroplastic pain, new beliefs are then cultivated. Airing out the grievances that the psyche is holding onto, the limbic system is greatly downregulated, symptoms decrease or change enough so for the mind to slow down or turn off the danger signal. For some this occurs quickly and without much resistance. For others this can be a process with shifts occurring in chunks or in a non-linear trajectory. One thing is for sure though, once you spend any time learning of these principles and applying them, you can’t unsee the connection and have a platform to grow your foundation. Consistently embodying this conscious and curious persona takes practice and persistence however its not without reward or for that matter risk. The risk of becoming painfully conscious but also leaving a literal painful past behind. 

Resources for cultivating belief:

• Dan Bulgio: painfreeyou.com
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf-E4BWu05E. an amazing story of the power of the mind elucidating both the principles of Dr. Sarno and Dr. Joe Dispenza
• Dr. Dan Ratner: crushingdoubt.com
• Nicole Sachs podcast on spotify: The Cure for Chronic Pain
• Charlie Merrill: watch Instagram videos, Merrill Performance
• Steve Ozanich: website + The Great Pain Deception
• Alan Gordon: The Way Out, PRT
• Michael Beckwidth: “I am ____, you are ____, she is ____” technique
• Dr. Joe Dispenza: website + meditations 
• Dr. David Schechter: The Mindbody Workbook on Amazon

• Any Dr. Sarno book for foundational knowledge

Changing Belief Exercise Through Goal Setting:

• Tips:
  • *Read through this in the morning after you have completed it as a way to remind yourself consciously through the day what you are working towards, observe old thought patterns, and work on new ones
  • Visualize yourself and how you will feel achieving this goal, embody this, feel this, feel the emotions associated with achieving this, add your own spin (doing so frequently throughout the day especially when the old thoughts creep in and when you wake up or before bed is a great way to engage the subconscious and provoke deep change on a biological level (see Phil’s story and Dr. Joe Dispenza stories of transformation/meditations as well)
  • Act how this person would act, pause and ask yourself in challenging situations what the person in your vision would do and try your best to do that and act from this state of being

• Goal: what do you want to achieve?
  • I.e. I want to feel I am worthy no matter what, I want to find a job that fulfills me, I want to
• Perceived limits and beliefs:
  • I.e. I have never felt this way before that I can remember, I don’t know where to start, I have to first get this before I can go for that, etc.
• New perceptions:
  • I.e. I have had times where I have felt good about myself and can build on that, I have done hard things before even if I did not at first know how to
• Steps:
  • I.e. I will start with some steps as mirror affirmations, visualization through meditation, searching for activities I find fulfilling and finding job opportunities that might exist within this realm, etc.