Powerful Suggestions Can Cause Real Issues
Whether it’s an ache or pain, an itch or a twitch, most people’s first port of call is the doctor. But what happens when a small phantom pain becomes a more long-term issue?
Health is only a thought away
Whether you like it or not, a suggestion from an authoritative body or person can manifest itself into a real life problem for you. It is very possible for a person to visit the doctor with a headache caused by the effects of slight dehydration. This is something that could be easily rectified by rehydrating correctly and staying more relaxed and calm. However, if the doctor suggests that you may be suffering with migraines, then the unconscious mind can take up that suggestion and actually cause the person to suffer the symptoms of a migraine.
Just like the placebo effect and the old saying “be careful what you wish for”, we humans really do need to have our wits about us and about what we think.
It’s been suggested that our unconscious mind is processing about 2 million pieces of information per second about our surroundings, our health, and many more things. However, consciously we are only able to process about seven pieces of information – give or take a few – at any one time.
The simple act of focusing on an ache or pain, or a feeling within our bodies, allows our mind to access that area more readily and bring it into our conscious awareness. An example would be as you are reading this you’re probably not paying any attention to the way your feet feel right this moment, or perhaps you haven’t given it a second thought to the temperature of your back right now!
The simple act of drawing your attention to a part of your body allows it to become one of your conscious “pieces” of processed information.
So, always be aware of comments or suggestions made by doctors or people within the medical profession about how you feel. I do advise you to listen to your doctors, as in most cases they do know best. Perhaps its just that they are not the best at delivering the message to a person in the best possible way so that it is understood both consciously and unconsciously and then processed correctly.
Your unconscious mind is able to produce the most phenomenal effects on your body. Unconsciously, your body beats your heart, grows your hair, grows your nails, makes you perspire to ensure that you moderate your temperature, controls all of your internal organs so that you can digests food and absorb nutrients – all without a second thought. Your unconscious mind is also responsible for certain levels of fear and panic and even depression. Suggestions made by others have the possibility to further exacerbate these issues and manifest into real-life physical ailments. This post on suggestibility and negative suggestions explains this is detail.
The trick to managing all of this!
Make your own positive suggestions daily. As Emile Coue puts it, “every day in every way I’m feeling fitter and healthier” or perhaps “every day in every way I’m feeling stronger and happier”. You really can make your own positive affirmations up to ensure that certain negative suggestions do not take hold.
Michael Sweet is a Hypnotherapist, NLP Pracititoner and Coach who runs a successful practice in London’s Harley Street
