Mind Heals Body; Body Heals Mind

I’ve called my approach to healing Mind-Body Calibration because I’ve found that when our minds collaborate with the intelligence of our bodies, we unearth our greatest potential for wellness and fulfilment.

Holistic wellness works on the premise that our minds and bodies know exactly how to optimally function. So dis-ease of any kind arises when we allow outside influence to stand in the way of our innate wisdom.

Modern living forces our bodies into unnatural shapes, restricts our organic movement and floods our systems with noise, chemicals and addictive stimulation.

And even being born into a family, society and culture means we inherit ways of being, priorities, dreams and fears.

Because we humans evolved by adapting to our circumstances, and this can mean we pick up programmes that may help us survive, but actually prevent us from living full, happy, pain-free lives.

So whether you have physical aches and pains, body system malfunction, or issues with stress or self-esteem, the process of healing requires us to look at the programmes we’re running that keep us from our whole, healthy selves.

What’s fascinating is that whatever level of being your complaint arises at — musculoskeletal, physiological, mental or emotional — they all feed into each other.

If you’re stressed, tension and pain can show up in the body.

If you’re not sleeping well, you’re less likely to emotionally regulate.

If your digestion is off, you may be producing less serotonin (one of the ‘happy hormones’).

If your muscles are overworked, you’re more stressed.

And the cycles go on and on.

So, Mind-Body Calibration is all about getting the mind and body to speak to each other. 

We use relaxation practices to reduce overall tension, release holding patterns, and minimise the experience of stress. 

We work with gentle movement to rebalance healthy joint function by allowing smooth, easeful movement of the joints through ranges of motion.

We strengthen the body with functional movement exercises that help you feel both stable and agile.

And each of these practices is taught with a foundation of fine-tuned awareness. Mindfulness of this kind is the secret ingredient to allowing the body to heal itself, because it is in our unconsciousness that we develop the pain and disfunction that ails us. 

I’m going to be hosting a Mind-Body Calibration series of workshops at Ebb&Flow Yoga in Farnham (book here), which will emphasise the physical aspect of healing. They will each focus on various body parts, so you get a chance to really experience your anatomy and the way your mind and nervous system interact with these parts. Therefore, the workshops are suitable for anyone wanting to optimise their movement or manage stress, as well as anyone addressing a relevant physical issue. 

WHAT BROUGHT ME TO DEVELOP THIS APPROACH?

The process of healing can be approached in many ways, but as a practitioner I can only, in integrity, share the practices I have myself used to heal. 

I’ve suffered at various levels of my being, from anxiety to eating disorders, digestive dysfunction to back pain. And after striving for years to ‘fix’ myself, playing whack-a-mole with my symptoms, I discovered that every complaint was connected to a deep-seated belief that I was unsafe and unwanted in the world. 

Through my studies in yoga therapy, meditation, hypnosis, functional exercise, massage, remedial therapy, and more, alongside my own therapy and practice, I discovered the things that helped to bring me back to a sense of safety and connection.

For many people, the physical body is the most approachable entry point into this work, which is why I’ve developed this series of workshops. Getting to know the body through movement, massage and meditation can be the first step in feeling more grounded, safe, and empowered — the building blocks for your very best life.