"We feel emotions in our bodies," wrote Dr. Arthur
Barsky, professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School in his book Worried Sick: Our Troubled Quest for Wellness. And
some emotions can deeply harm us. Learn how to achieve a healthier state of
mind.
Writes Dr. Barsky: “We
‘burn’ with anger, ‘tremble’ with fear, feel ‘choked up’ with sadness; our
‘stomachs turn’ with revulsion. Everyone tends to experience unpleasant
emotions as unpleasant bodily symptoms and thus to feel physically distressed
when emotionally distressed.”
That’s the bad news,
teaches lifestyle experts like Dr. Coral Arvon, Director of Behavioral Health and Wellness at the Pritikin Longevity Center in Miami, Florida.
The good news is that
we have the power to change negative thoughts and feelings into positive,
rational, motivating thoughts, and in doing so, help create a healthy mind in a
healthy body.
This transformation,
which is part of emerging fields in psychology focused on mind-body health, is
very important because it can greatly boost our chances of achieving what we
want in life, including a fitter, healthier lifestyle.
“By changing our
minds, we really can change our lives,” asserts Dr. Arvon.
The Healthy Mind and Body Connection
Mind-body medicine
originated more than 4,000 years ago, when physicians in China noticed that
illness often followed periods of frustration in their patients’ lives. Today
in western societies like the U. S., medical professionals also share the view
that emotions, life events, and coping skills can have a very strong influence
on health.
Healthy mind-body
medicine is now part of exciting new fields such as psychoneuroimmunology and
behavorial cardiology.
Chronic stress can make us fat – and sick
It is the long-term
consequences of an anxiety-filled existence that are particularly troubling.
Over time, chronic emotional and psychological stress can:
·
Promote fat storage
·
Retain salt in the body
·
Destroy the body’s resistance to cancer, infections, and illness
·
Cause infertility and sexual dysfunction
·
Exacerbate diabetes
·
Deposit cholesterol in blood vessels
·
Accelerate heart rate and increase blood pressure, and thicken
blood so it clots more readily, which makes you more prone to suffering a heart
attack or stroke
Calming the Mind
To guide people toward
healthier states of mind, emerging throughout America are major medical centers
with wellness divisions offering stress management, relaxation training, guided
imagery, and cognitive therapy techniques.
Guests at Pritikin are
also introduced to and practice many of these techniques. “Add them to healthy
eating and exercising,” encourages Dr. Arvon, “and you maximize your control
over your well-being.”
Stress Hardiness
Attitudes, feelings,
and behaviors that are linked with a healthy mind and body
A key goal of
mind-body techniques is achieving an overall approach to life known as stress
hardiness. Stress hardiness is associated with four important personality
traits that buffer the impact of stress and improve coping. These
characteristics of the stress resistant or healthy personality are identified
as:
v Commitment
An attitude of
curiosity and commitment to yourself, your loved ones, your work, and the
world.
v Control
The belief that you
can respond effectively to situations that arise in your life, rather than
feeling hopeless and incompetent.
v Challenge
The ability to see
change as exciting and an opportunity for growth rather than viewing it as
frightening and fearing failure.
v Connection
The enduring assurance
that you are understood and validated by those you are closest to.
Healthy Mind, Healthy Body
Other attitudes,
feelings, and behaviors that are linked with good health include:
Social
support
Social support,
explains Pritikin psychologist Dr. Arvon, is protective against the effects of
stress and has been found to be associated with longevity.
Emotional
disclosure
By keeping a journal
or speaking with others, emotional disclosure helps people cope with events.
Also, people who use these strategies have lower blood pressure and report
fewer health problems compared with people who don’t.
v Humor
Humor has been
demonstrated to have “stress-busting” qualities and reduces the body”s
physiological response to stress.
v Healthful Choices
Healthy behaviors,
such as developing and maintaining the Pritikin nutrition and exerciseprogram, are
crucial for optimal health.
Healthy Mind-Body Education at the Pritikin Longevity Center
Change the attitudes,
feelings, and behaviors that are holding you back:
To maximize emotional
well-being and the ability to make positive changes, Dr. Arvon guides guests at
Pritikin through a five-seminar series, entitled:
·
Healthy Mind, Healthy Body
·
New Thoughts, New Behaviors
·
Taking Charge of Stress
·
Listening and Being Heard
·
Managing Your Moods
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