Video: Respiration & Health

How we breathe is intimately connected to our state of health. We can speed up breathing to energize or slow it for a calming effect. Practice becoming more aware of the speed and depth of your breathing. Breathing diaphragmatically at 6 to…

Horrific Memories Can Contribute to Illness

Memories are Physiological Our imagination allows us to go beyond remembering past events and to actually re-experience them. In fact, vivid memories are commonly associated with the same physiological changes we experienced during the original…
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Experiential Avoidance is the Opposite of Mindfulness

Experiential Avoidance of Thoughts and Feelings Becoming aware of the ways we avoid unpleasant thoughts and feelings as well as activities that we fear could trigger those thoughts and feelings is an important step toward mindfulness. Conversely,…

Video: Mind-Guided Body Scans to Detect Very Early Signs and Symptoms

Discussion with psychophysiology expert Dr. Erik Peper about the ways that the mind can be trained to detect prodromes (very early symptoms). The discussion also includes the use of the imagination during the scan to improve immune function,…

Cognitive Fusion is More Dangerous Than Nuclear Fusion.

Examples of the Extreme Danger of Cognitive Fusion A researcher by the name of Herbert Specter did an experiment about twenty years ago when he was the head of molecular biology research at the National Institutes of Health. He injected mice…
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Chronic Medical Challenges and the Mind

Cognitive Fusion with New Symptoms A primary source of emotional distress for those living with many diseases relates to panic over new symptoms. Even experienced mindfulness teachers can find it difficult to recognize that the frightening…

Video: Shifts in Consciousness Improve Recovery Rates for Cancer and other Diseases

This discussion explored shifts in consciousness that are associated with improved recovery rates for cancer and other diseases. Patients with a sense of control and who are empowered tend to heal faster. Acceptance for our present circumstances,…

Identification with One’s Illness Worsens Disease

In earlier posts, I presented theories of suffering, describing several mental patterns in which the untrained mind can easily become trapped, contributing to unnecessary suffering. Here I will tighten the lens and examine unnecessary suffering…

Experiential Avoidance of Thoughts and Feelings is Unhealthy

Psychologist Steven Hayes popularized the term experiential avoidance, which is a term that originated in contextual behavioral science research. It refers to a common psychological pattern to which we are all susceptible: the attempt to avoid…