Back yesteryear when a Doctor could not find the cause of an ailment, they were sometimes likely to come up with “It’s all in your mind”. Well, maybe they were closer to the truth than we really want to know.
For decades, medical scientists, doctors, pharmacists and other professionals have strived and struggled to understand disease. Whilst trauma medicine has gone ahead in leaps and bounds, still disease seems to be staying one step ahead of the “cure brigade”.
What is coming to light now is a new paradigm. On some levels it is not new because many have believed this new paradigm for years, even decades. But for some, it is revealing itself as a stunning new reality.
Whilst the current paradigm sees the body as an inter-related set of systems, all functioning independently and together to create a marvelous human machine capable of all manner of things, but prone to malfunction and disease, the new paradigm sees the human form as something quite perfect.
In the new paradigm, there are basically 3 levels of existence.
The primary level is the Genome. This is the part of us that comprises all of our genetic material that makes up what we identify as muscles, bones, blood, organs, skin, etc. If you look at a person, you will see the conglomeration of about 100 trillion cells. The Genome comprises about 10 trillion of these cells.
In November 2015, I attended the Global Wellness Summit and on the last day, Deepak Chopra M.D. delivered a fascinating and powerful presentation on this topic. He posed the question. “Is the human body a noun or is it a verb?” Wow, what a question. He proposed in his answer that it is a verb because it is dynamic and ever changing, completely replacing itself in less than a year in a constant and ongoing cycle.
The next level is the Microbiome which is primarily bacteria. The Microbiome makes up the other 90 trillion cells. Until recently, the Microbiome rarely rated a mention. It was seen as a necessary thing because the bacteria break down food in the gut. But it is so much more than that.
The work being done by amazing scientists like Rudolph E. Tanzi Ph.D. has changed the way we are looking at human life. The Microbiome is in constant and detailed communication with the Genome. In fact, every cell in the Genome is in some way connected to every cell in the Microbiome.
The Microbiome, in a way, create a cocoon that shrouds the Genome in order to create a balanced and harmonious environment in which the Genome can live, function and thrive. The bacteria that makes up the Microbiome is predominantly aerobic (beneficial) and covers all of the external surfaces of the body, especially the gastrointestinal tract.
Most people do not realise that the gastrointestinal tract, GI tract, is actually a continuation of the external surface of the body.
When the Microbiome is thriving and healthy, the Genome will thrive. When the Microbiome is degraded and falters, the Genome is prone to mutation. It has been shown that mutations can be corrected simply by restoring the balance in the Microbiome. It can be that simple.
In the past, we used antibiotics indiscriminately and did terrible damage to the integrity of our Microbiome. A short term fix had devastating long term results. I am even questioning the efficacy of antibacterial hand gels and similar products.
In recent years, we have discovered the incredible benefits of fermented foods and beverages and are seeing how they help restore and maintain a healthy Microbiome.
Then there is the third “level”, the Epigenome. The Epigenome describes the non-physical aspect of us that seems to permeate our entire being. The epigenome has more to do with gene expression. This is an area that can be perceived as either simple or complex.
If we take a look at gene expression in its simplest form, it means living life in a way that aligns with who we really are. Fully expressing our deepest nature and our best talents leads to optimal gene expression. These factors lead to a strong sense of self, happiness and peace of mind.
Coupled with this is how we experience the life that is going on around us. Each of us has a field of awareness that extends out into the space around us. Some call it a bioenergetics field. Dr Chopra was sharing in his lecture that it can be detected and measured out to about 3 metres from the surface of the body.
In some cultures, this is called a person’s aura. Others refer to it as a sensory envelope and others a field of awareness. Whatever it may be labelled, it is an aspect of human life that has been recognised for centuries.
The combination an interaction between how we perceive through this field of awareness and our own gene expression creates an experience called life. Many of us have forgotten that we can actually decide how that experience will be, as opposed to living like a pinball in a pinball machine.
Coming back to this new paradigm the work of Dr Tanzi and his colleagues has demonstrated that it is via the epigenome that we experience life. If we experience life as negative, stressful, frightening and difficult, the resultant impact on the Microbiome can be quite devastating.
If, however we are fully expressing who we really are and sharing our brightest talents, and we are choosing to experience life with appreciation, compassion, curiosity, joy and goodwill, the impact on the Microbiome is harmonising and restorative.
Recent work presented by Bruce Lipton and Dr Bernie Siegal and others in the documentary “The Cure is….”, has shown that a person who is supported to find their true life purpose and begin to fully express themselves can experience a remarkable turn-around in disease causing gene mutation and actually cure themselves of disease.
So it seems that under this new paradigm, the responsibility lands squarely in our own laps. How we experience life determines our well-being. We can no longer claim that we are stressed because of this or that factor. We are stressed because we are not taking responsibility for our perceptions and our responses to certain stimuli.
For example: A person can get really angry because some guy cut you off in the traffic, and work themselves into such a frenzy that by the time they arrive home they cannot even be civil to their family. Or they could choose to look at the guy who cut them off and hope that everything is ok for him. Who knows, one of his children might have just had a terrible accident and is being rushed to some hospital and he is trying to get there as fast as he can.
Learning how to become a master of our own universe, to be in complete control of all of our own responses, and to begin to flow good stuff out to others, is the gold key of life. By learning how to tame our own mind and live more from the joy of our own hearts, we can not only minimise our risk of disease and degeneration, we can also improve life for others around us.
Now, trying to learn to control your mind with your mind is like putting Count Dracula in charge of the Blood Bank. Workplace Wellness Programs that assist people in these areas will do a great deal to bring greater harmony and peace, not just t the workplace but into the homes of employees.