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Posts Tagged ‘Mind body connection’

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Yoga Nidra: The Key to a Better Night’s Sleep and Optimal Health

In Cell Phones, EMFs and Health Risks, Mind Body Therapies for Cancer, sleep, Uncategorized, Yoga Nidra on October 31, 2018 at 9:27 am

Yoga Nidra is not like other types of yoga where you actively participate in various poses and exercises. It is also different than restorative yoga—the depth of Yoga Nidra is far beyond just relaxation. It is more like a form of meditation that does not require much effort. I can appreciate that not everyone can sit still on the floor for 20 minutes, let alone hours—I certainly can’t. For those who do not enjoy meditating, this just might be perfect for you.  In this highly regenerative meditative state you can restore and rejuvenate your body, heal and recover from illness, re-wire your brain for greater mental and emotional balance and resiliency, and improve sleep.

The process of Yoga Nidra is practiced in a comfortable lying down position. You are guided through a series of breathing exercises and simple instructions. Some of these include visual imagery or a scan of the body, which occupies the mind and prevents it from becoming involved in the usual mind-chatter that absorbs our ordinary consciousness. Within a short time, you become submerged in the alpha state (the period just prior to sleep; also known as our “right brain” activity, or our subjective senses of imagination, creativity, memory and intuition.)

Yoga Nidra puts you in a state of deep sleep while you remain conscious and typically awake. Some refer to it as ‘Yogic Sleep’.  It brings an amazing clarity of mind, calmness and stillness. Tension and anxiety melt away with a profound experience of muscular, mental, and emotional relaxation. It is one of the deepest forms of meditation leading to supreme quietness and insight. During a Yoga Nidra session, you leave your waking state, go through the dreaming state and into deep sleep state, yet may remain fully awake. Some say that restorative power of just one hour of Yoga Nidra is equal to 4 hours of healthy sleep.

Yoga Nidra and Optimal Health

Yoga Nidra offers a passive way to neutralize the damage and lower the risk of disease conditions. Unconscious thinking patterns and resulting biochemical states contribute to ill health, stress, insomnia, depression, anxiety, and trauma. All of these conditions contribute to chronic diseases, including cancer. Some of my favorite meditations are by Lizzy Hill. Her voice guides you to ultimate relaxation, releasing stress and tension in the body. She asks you to begin with an affirmation (an intention). She says intentions are like seeds planted in soil. You can say things like ‘I am healthy and happy’ or ‘I am confident and strong’.

Think happy and healthy thoughts. Believe you can be healthy, that you are healthy.  Your mind will hear this as will the universe. For more on affirmations, please read The Power of Affirmations in Cancer Healing.

Yoga Nidra and Blissful Sleep

One of my favorite meditations to improve sleep and mood is Deep Sleep Meditation with Affirmations: Unstoppable Courage, Confidence & Inner Power | Delta Beats by Kenneth Soares. He starts with guided meditation then moves into empowering affirmations and ends with binaural beats* for deep sleep. This meditation is perfect for those who struggle to fall asleep or have trouble staying asleep. It is perfect even if you don’t. When Soares guides you to take the third breath, I would like to ask you to add a special visualization. He tells you to imagine cleansing your body from head to toe–I love this. I would like to suggest you also envision all of the unhealthy cells in your body washing away at the same time, exiting through the soles of your feet. Very powerful.

If you are like me, you will fall asleep before the affirmations start. They are intentionally low in volume, but you can still hear them when wearing headphones and you don´t need to consciously pay attention to them. Your subconscious mind will absorb and reinforce the words while awake or in deep sleep (use headphones if you want to benefit from the binaural beats and the affirmations).

beach Peace

Most meditations are completely free—you can listen to them anytime on YouTube.  I recommend you lie on the floor close enough to your computer to hear them, but far enough away from damaging EMFs. Place a small pillow under your head and one under your knees, and perhaps cover yourself with a blanket. You may wish to record the session ahead of time to play bedside (never have a computer or cellphone bedside). You can use a common tape recorder for this. If you listen to this via your computer or phone and wish to wear headphones, be sure they are radiation-free (air-tube).  I use Smart Safe headsets. Cell phone radiation exposure increases when using wired hands-free headsets. EchoTubeZ® radiation free air tube headset blocks 98% of your cell phones radiation emission to your head.

Radiation-Free-Air-Tube-Headset-Stereo-Blue1-1024x706Use this code for 10% off on all orders: MHPQMWSMS4KS. 

You can also reduce EMF exposure by using tech that harmonizes EMFs so they are less damaging to the body.

 

Summary of Benefits of Yoga Nidra:

  • helps relieve anxiety, stress, and pain
  • may promote healthy sleep
  • may improve memory and concentration
  • suitable for any level of experience
  • helps stimulate creativity
  • enhances healing
  • helps establish a connection with your inner self
  • helps strengthen the immune system
  • helps you find the sense of happiness, harmony, and inner peace
  • helps balance emotions
  • uplifting and energizing

May I remind you to never overlook the power of the sea–it helps offset the damages from EMFs and restores the mind, body, and soul. May the light from above shine down on you, the sand embrace your toes, and the sea rejuvenate you (okay, so added that here as I didn’t have a photo of Yoga Nidra and it is such a restorative photo 🙂 )

You may also enjoy my article on the power of sound: Healing Cancer: One Note at a Time. Be sure to wear headphones for this as well.

*Regarding binaural beats: Creating the vibrations of sound through music changes brainwave patterns in ways that triggers healing.  As each ear receives its own unique musical note, the sound waves move toward each other and synchronize to produce a new musical note that the brain perceives.  The practice in which sound wave stimuli are purposefully used to alter brainwaves in this matter is called brain wave entrainment (BWE).  Preliminary evidence suggests that BWE is effective in several cognitive domains and can relieve acute and long-term stress, reduce pain, headaches, migraines, and PMS and improve behavior, but may go well beyond.

In your good health,

Elyn

Elyn Jacobs is a holistic cancer strategist and speaker specializing in the prevention and treatment of cancer. She is a Contributing Editor for The Truth About Cancer and is on the Medical Advisory Board for BeatCancer.Org and the Advisory Board to the Radical Remission Project. Elyn has written for numerous journals and publications. She was the former Executive Director of the Emerald Heart Cancer Foundation. To contact Elyn, visit www.elynjacobs.com. Elyn offers consults via Skype, phone, or in person.

This information is for educational purposes only and is not a recommendation to forgo medical advice and treatment.  Yoga Nidra and this post in general are not intended to treat, cure, prevent, or diagnose any disease or condition. This post does not represent medical advice nor should it be considered to be medical advice or a replacement for medical advice.  I encourage you to discuss this information with your integrative oncologist, naturopathic doctor, or conventional oncologist. The information provided is from my research and not to be taken as scientific evidence.

Affiliate Links Disclosure:

Some product links on some posts are affiliate links. This website is monetized in part through the use of affiliate links. This means that if you were to click on a link that is an affiliate link, and purchase an item after clicking on that link, I may receive a small percentage of the sales price. I only recommend products that I love and use often. Thank you for your support!

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The Power of Affirmations in Cancer Healing

In Affirmations, Alternative Cancer Therapies, benefits of Yoga Nidra, Books for Cancer Patients, Breast Cancer, Cancer, Cell Phones, EMFs and Health Risks, Emotional Healing, Healing Cancer Naturally, Uncategorized, Yoga Nidra on October 30, 2018 at 9:08 am

An affirmation is really anything you say or think. Every thought you think and every word you speak is an affirmation. All of our self-talk, our internal dialogue, is a stream of affirmations. Our subconscious hears everything we think, say, and hear. It will work hard to make thoughts become reality. Affirmations serve as a part of the psychological immune system, and can have a significant impact on your quality and quantity of life.

The mind is powerful and controls the body. The healer Ze’ev Kolman titled his book The Mind is the Healer The Mind is the Killer.  He says that if you heal the mind the body will follow. When I spoke with him about it and did a few sessions with him (and other healers), it all made perfect sense. People are only just beginning to learn that our thoughts are powerful and contribute not just to our mental well-being but also our physical health. 

You may not realize it because perhaps your medical doctors have instilled fear and doubt, but it really is a choice. Now, right now, this moment and all moments — you can choose to change your thinking and ignore theirs. Your life, your health, won’t turn around overnight, but if you’re consistent and make the choice on a daily basis to think thoughts that you are healthy and happy, it can make a difference in every area of your life and your healing. Importantly,  negative thoughts will have the opposite effect. If we don’t believe or have confidence that we can be healthy and happy, we won’t be. In other words, if we have doubtful thoughts it will be harder for the mind to make us healthy. 

These days so many people are angry, really angry and express this anger and negative thoughts on social media, believing somehow the world or situation will change by harsh words.  Anger is a strong emotion, often misdirected and rarely useful and causes a cascade of negative thoughts and statements that contribute to stress and ill health.  According to Louise Hay, “Every complaint is an affirmation of something you think you don’t want in your life. [But] every time you get angry, you’re affirming that you want more anger in your life. Every time you feel like a victim, you’re affirming that you want to continue to feel like a victim.”  She says that when people say their affirmations once a day but complain the rest of the time, the complaining affirmations win. They are typically more of them and the are said with great feeling. 

However,  saying affirmations is only part of the process. The secret to having your affirmations work quickly and consistently is to prepare an atmosphere for them to grow in. Affirmations are like seeds planted in soil. You will hear that from Lizzy Hill in her Yoga Nidra guided meditations (I relax, I release, I let go). She says that the intention (affirmation) you make in the beginning of the session plants a seed for transformation in your body.  You can say something like ‘I am happy and healthy’ or ‘I am calm and relaxed’ or some other short, positive statement in the present tense. Feel your intention throughout your body and know it to be true. For more on the effects that Yoga Nidra has on the mind and body, read Yoga Nidra: The Key to a Better Night’s Sleep and Optimal Health.

The benefits of daily affirmations have been scientifically supported and can help a lot of people. Optimistic people tend to be healthier, more productive, and generally happier than those who view themselves less positively.  People who practice daily affirmations don’t sweat the small stuff because they have a better grasp on what is important in their life. They are able to think about the big picture and not get overwhelmed with minor nuisances.

The more you choose to think positive thoughts, the quicker the affirmations work. Consciously choose words that will either help eliminate something from your life or help create something new in your life. Think happy, healthy thoughts — it’s that simple. You can do it! The way you choose to think right now is your choice. Believe you can be healthy, that you are healthy.

One of my wonderful healers, April Fontana, recommends adding a ‘why’ before each affirmation. For example, ‘why is it so easy for me to be 100% healthy?’ or why is it so easy for me to understand that I control my body with my mind?’ and ‘why is so easy for me to love myself and be happy?’ You can come up with others.  She says when you don’t put a negative word in there and start it with the word “why”, there is no resistance in your subconscious.  She believes you can have complete control over your life if you do this. Say each one three times out loud. Do this as often as you need to.

You may also wish to write your affirmations down. Saying good things about yourself aloud is good, but writing them down increases their potency. Writing an affirmation down allows your mind one more way to absorb the positive message.

“Be mindful of your self-talk. It’s a conversation with the Universe” – David James Lees 

It might seem silly or trivial at first, but the outcomes are real. People are just happier  and more productive when they practice daily affirmations. Many years ago in my Wall Street-days my boss sent everyone to a Dale Carnegie training session. We learned just how powerful affirmations could be. I still remember the yellow sticky notes on my bathroom mirror (you may wish to do that too).  Sales increased and we all had a more positive attitude. 

Here are some sample affirmations to help you get started:

  • I am calm and peaceful
  • I am grateful and at peace
  • I am healthy and happy
  • I am thankful for my family and friends
  • I am confident and able to handle any obstacle thrown in front of me
  • I am a being of light, love, and bliss I radiate love in every cell if my body

Your body is listening to everything, everything you are thinking and saying. Do you really believe you have self-worth, believe you are healing? Can you talk to your own body and know it is listening? Every day you can talk to your body and tell it you can feel it healing. It is your choice, it is up to you! remind yourself with conscious intent. You can heal, just believe in yourself.

For more about the healers I have and still used and learned from, please read my healing story.

In your good health,

Elyn

~~If you don’t know your options, you don’t have any~~

ej portrait 150res

Elyn Jacobs is a holistic cancer strategist and speaker specializing in the prevention and treatment of cancer. She is a Contributing Editor for The Truth About Cancer and is on the Medical Advisory Board for BeatCancer.Org and the Advisory Board to the Radical Remission Project. Elyn has written for numerous journals and publications. She was the former Executive Director of the Emerald Heart Cancer Foundation. To contact Elyn, visit www.elynjacobs.com. Elyn offers consults via Skype, phone, or in person.

This information is for educational purposes only and is not a recommendation to forgo medical advice and treatment. It is not intended to treat, cure, prevent, or diagnose any disease or condition. This post does not represent medical advice nor should it be considered to be medical advice or a replacement for medical advice.  I encourage you to discuss this information with your integrative oncologist, naturopathic doctor, or conventional oncologist. Consult your doctor before beginning any supplement program. The information provided is from my research and not to be taken as scientific evidence.

Affiliate Links Disclosure:

Some product links on some posts are affiliate links. This website is monetized in part through the use of affiliate links. This means that if you were to click on a link that is an affiliate link, and purchase an item after clicking on that link, I may receive a small percentage of the sales price. I only recommend products that I love and use often. Thank you for your support!

Follow Elyn on Facebook

Follow Elyn on LinkedIn

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Elyn’s Blog

In Uncategorized on September 9, 2011 at 6:42 pm

A Positive attitude

There has been so much controversy over the need for a positive attitude.  A positive attitude does not mean you have to be upbeat about your cancer or prognosis.  It simply means that if you convince yourself you are going to die, then it could just become a self-fulfilling prophesy, and the reverse…if you convince yourself you will live a long-healthy life, you are on the road to achieve this goal.  I recently benefitted from Reflexology, so I decided to blog about the benefits.  However, in picking up a book on Reflexology, The Art of Reflexology by Inge Dougans, I came upon some words I wish to share.   I have much confidence in modern medicine, and I sincerely believe it has its place.  I owe my life to my cancer team, but I have also suffered greatly from doctors treating other issues.  The narrow-minded view of treating symptoms with little regard to the true cause of the problem has caused me much pain and suffering.   My wish is for people to be offered the option of combining the best of conventional medicine with the benefits of complementary medicine. 

The following is adapted from a portion of The Art of Reflexology, a Totally New Approach Using the Chinese Meridian Theory.

Disease (is) not an entity but a fluctuating condition of the patient’s body, a battle between the substance of disease and the natural self-healing tendency of the body.                                                                            HIPPOCRATES

Holism is a recently rediscovered concept in healing.  According to the holistic approach to medicine, health is defined as a positive, glowing state of mental and physical well-being, not merely the absence of disease.  Prior to the advent of modern medicine the manifestation of disease was recognized as being the result of disharmony in the physical, emotional and spiritual spheres, and health perceived as a balance between these three.  Thus no symptom or disorder could be treated in isolation.  Holistic healing methods, therefore, always treat the person as a whole.  They do not work specifically on an impaired organ or malfunctioning system, but on the whole person with the aim of mobilizing the body’s own healing powers to restore the organism to a state of equilibrium.

 For thousands of years it was accepted that illness resulted from a disturbance in man’s internal environment.  Then came the orthodox scientific approach dominated by the germ theory.  It has been the focus of medicine ever since.  Once it was known that micro-organisms could invade the body and flourish into specific diseases, the search was on to seek out, identify and combat them.  Man came to be perceived as a sum of working parts and the approach to disease dominated by symptomatic diagnosis and palliative treatment. 

The germ theory has been quite convenient, as most of us prefer to believe that illness is the result of external forces.  This approach is now seen to be far too simplistic.  The failure of the germ theory to combat the vast and intricate realm of disease has resulted in increased interest in, and demand for, natural therapies; therapies which recognize that the problem of health and disease does not lie in identifying symptoms but in the greater understanding of people and their needs as individuals.

 Disease is generated by a combination of circumstances both inside and outside the body.  The main object of holistic healing is to help correct the life condition that predisposes a person to disease.  A vast number of factors can initiate disease—particularly in our modern, highly industrialized, polluted environment.  Yet one of the most important factors in the development of disease is state of mind.

 The mind is immensely powerful and the relationship between mind and body should never be underestimated.  Because all life is based on energy, health is considered to be the harmonious interplay of energies within the body.  Negative thoughts and emotions restrict the free flow of these energies, causing congestions which ultimately manifest as disease if not corrected.  It is now widely accepted that a positive attitude is a major step towards creating a healthy body.  This is so eloquently expressed by Dr Randolph Stone who said: ‘As you think, so you are.’  He wrote in Health Building: We become what we contemplate.  Negative thoughts and fears make grooves in the mind as negative energy waves of despondency and hopelessness.  We cannot think negative thoughts and reap positive results, and therefore we must assert the positive and maintain a positive pattern of thinking and acting as our ideals.

 Igne has a new version of this book, The New Reflexology – A Unique Blend of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western Reflexology Practice for Better Health and Healing. This edition also has a small section on breast cancer relating the issue to specific meridians.

 Elyn Jacobs

elyn@elynjacobs.com

https://elynjacobs.wordpress.com

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Elyn Jacobs is President of Elyn Jacobs Consulting, Executive Director for the Emerald Heart Cancer Foundation, a certified cancer coach and a breast cancer survivor.  She helps women diagnosed with cancer to navigate the process of treatment and care, and she educates about how to prevent recurrence and new cancers.  She is passionate about helping others get past their cancer and into a cancer-free life.

You can visit my blog It’s a Strong Tree that Withstands a Hurricane at http://elynjacobs.blogspot.com Thank you!