Occasionally someone asks, “What is whole being wellness, actually?” The best answer I’ve been able to offer has its roots in shamanic theory and quantum physics (which are both based on the principle of the interconnectedness of everything): what goes around, comes around. We get back what we give out. Why? Because the energy that we emit, the energy that we are, attracts similar energy. Therefore if we consider ourselves robust and healthy creatures, that tends to be what we experience. If on the other hand we believe we are weak and vulnerable to every passing disease or accident, we’re liable to see a good bit of that in our lives.
Take “flu season,” for example. What on earth is that?!! Folks rush out to get a flu shot, assuming that this will immunize them against the flu (remember, there are many variations on the theme of “flu”), and then they’re unpleasantly surprised when they come down with it.
Think about it. You’re going along, having a fabulous time all summer–enjoying swimming, picnics, camping, neighborhood barbecues, outdoor music festivals, gardening, or just hanging out with your family and friends while you watch fireflies chase each other around your back yard. Weeks pass and soon it’s September and everyone’s back to school or work, the days grow shorter and the nights a wee bit cooler, the garden sinks back into compost, and our thoughts turn inward. Encouraged by the medical icons of our culture, we begin to think of…yep! Flu season! Time to get our annual flu shot. Especially if we’re “over 60, an infant, or have health issues such as asthma or a heart condition.”
How much of the flu is actually the virus itself, and how much of it is our thinking about being sick? Our fear of illness?
Shamans teach that we call into our lives the very things we fear. Sounds scary, right? But if you consider the possibility that we are so much more than our bodies, that we are spirits having a human experience, and that as such we are far more powerful than most of us care to imagine, you begin to understand that we can think ourselves into states of illness or wellness.
So whole being wellness might best be described as the ancient Greeks and Romans described it: Mens sana in corpore sano. A healthy mind in a healthy body.
And what constitutes a “healthy mind?” I believe it is the mind of a person who is open to new ideas, yet able to follow life-affirming and positive core beliefs. It is a mind that turns to gratitude– at least once a day and preferably more often– for life’s many gifts. It is the mind of one who can laugh at himself and laugh with others– one who is more often joyful than sad, and when sad, can calmly investigate the cause of that sadness and find balance and comfort in connection with Spirit, God, Goddess, Source, Great Mystery– whatever name you want to give your higher power. It is the mind of a person who can work hard for what she believes in, play like a child when the work is done, and go with the flow of events in her life, knowing that she is guided and protected by Spirit no matter what happens. It is the mind of someone who trusts Life, who offers unconditional love to others and accepts it without condition.
This is what whole being wellness is, and what Wholebeing Wellness counseling encourages clients to achieve.
The next several posts here will address specific physical conditions with suggestions of how to move out of dis-ease and into healing. Questions are always welcome, so feel free to share yours!