The mind-body connection

In my last article (Why Connection To Higher Self Matters) I touched upon the Koshas or ‘sheaths of the body’ as a concept of illustrating that the human body has different layers that have different qualities. Koshas were identified by ancient sages way back when Ayurveda and Yoga were developed over 5,000 years ago! It was observed that humans are more than just a physical body, that the mind wasn’t just in the brain and that humans have a spiritual connection called soul. What these incredibly in tune sage’s realised was that the body has layers that integrate physical with subtle (energetic, mental, soul), and help us understand the mind-body connection.

What is the mind-body connection?

In a nutshell and as you can probably guess it describes the connection that your body and mind have. 

When you practise mindfulness through breathwork, yoga, meditation or self awareness you will notice how connected everything within you is. Through observing emotions, feelings and sensations with your experiences you are creating a strong connection with your mind and body. 

Why is this important?

You are full to the brim with information - in your cells, your organs, your DNA and such. Along with ancient wisdom passed down from ancestors. When you connect your mind and body you are connecting to this innate wisdom and learning the language of your body - the subtle messages through sensation, gut feelings or intuition. You learn what feels right or what to avoid for your wellbeing, why you are the way you are and all those deep and meaningful insights that we are curious about.

When you can connect with yourself in this way it means that you can build a trusting, caring relationship with yourself. It also gives you more opportunity to understand what you need and how you can respond internally as well as being able to express what you need externally. 

Sadly our modern lives and societies have pulled us further from this natural connection and so many people become increasingly disconnected with themselves and find it difficult to know what they need or how to respond meaning they are more likely to look externally for someone else to sort it out for them. 

The other thing that has disrupted the mind-body connection is Western Medicine. Now, I see how valuable western medical knowledge is and how we do need it, however the common way of approaching health is disjointed and looks at the symptoms rather than looking at the root cause or humans in a holistic way (through mind-body connection). 

Fortunately, the ancient sages created Ayurveda, a traditional Indian health care system that actively looks at the human body as a whole and treats each person individually by looking at their mind-body connection through a system called Doshas. This can work in harmony with the western world and we have this amazing opportunity to respond to our healthcare needs from a holistic & medical perspective.

The mind-body connection is more than just healthcare though. Something that I’ve learnt recently is that the mind isn’t just in the head - it's actually in our whole body! From the process of thought to feeling to action/behaviour, the way our hormones affect our moods and subsequently our thoughts to the way our digestive system acts as a second brain and not only digests food but digests our thoughts, feelings and experiences. 

The practices of yin yoga, traditional chinese medicine, acupuncture and kinesiology (to name a few) believe that our internal organs store our emotions and that there are lines that run throughout the body called Meridians that are channels for our energy also known as Qi. When taking part in any of the above practices, you are actively connecting the mind to body and aiding the flow of energy or Qi to unblock or replete the internal organs leading to potentially improving mental and physical health.

Sound good?

This is just the tip of the iceberg - if anything in this article piqued your interest it's well worth having a look into. If you’re anything like me and love learning about the body, the mind, the self or anything holistic you may well go down a rabbit hole and become a little bit obsessed!

Just so you know - there are weekly classes that will help you connect your mind and body - from yin yoga, flow yoga, pilates and meditation. Check out the schedule to try one out.