1. By Victoria Costa

2. Power of the Mind Ever meet an insanely optimistic person that always seems to be perfectly healthy? Or perhaps a pessimist who is always sick?

3. This makes me wonder… What affects does the mind have on the physical body?

4. Why do I wonder this?  For years I have listened to my mom say “the power of positive thinking” when I am not feeling well or not happy with a particular physical aspect of myself.  Also, I will be entering the healthcare field where I will encounter many sick patients. I would love to have a concrete reason to tell them that positive thinking will lead them to good health and wellness.

5. Prior to my research I was wary on the affect the mind has on the body. I didn’t completely believe one way or the other.

6. So... What do researchers say?

7. “We’ve known in the healing arts of a placebo effect. A placebo is something that supposedly has no impact and no effect on the body, like a sugar pill. You tell the patient that this is just as effective, and what happens is the placebo sometimes has the same effect, if not a greater effect, than the medication that is supposed to be designed for that effect. They have found out that the human mind is the biggest factor in the healing arts, sometimes more so than medicine.” -The Secret

8. Laughter is the best medicine.  The Secret presents two stories of individuals with diseases, one deemed incurable, who endlessly watched comedic movies to get a good laugh.  This allowed them to release all negativity, as well as the disease, and won their battle. NOTHING IS INCURABLE

9. “Disease is held in the body by thought, by observation of the illness, and by attention given to the illness. If you are feeling a little unwell, don’t think about it – unless you want more of it. If you listen to people talk about their illness, you add energy to their illness. Instead, change the conversation to good things, and give powerful thoughts to seeing those people in health.” -The Secret

10. “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is be.” - King Solomon  This means that what you believe is true, will be true.  The Power described how people are more afraid of disease than they are confident in being healthy.

12.  The Power explains that we have control over what the cells in our body believe. If we believe we are sick, we will be sick.  The cells receive the message of the illness simply by thinking about it, thus creating the symptoms.

13. Water represents our cells… “When water is exposed to positive words and feelings such as love and gratitude, the energy level of the water not only increases, but the structure of the water changes, making it perfectly harmonious. The higher the positive feeling, the more beautiful and harmonious the water becomes. When water is exposed to negative emotions, the energy level of the water decreases, and chaotic changes occur, negatively affecting the structure of water.” -The Power

14. …Our cells are mostly water, so imagine what you are doing to them when you are thinking negatively!

15. Marasmus Emoto’s “Hidden Messages in Water”  Examined water crystals after exposed to different stimuli.  Positive stimuli changed the molecular structure in a beautiful and intricate way.  Negative stimuli produced a disorganized structure.  Click Here for a Visualization of Emoto's results Click Here for a Visualization of Emoto's results

16. Personal Experiment  For 4 weeks I recited positive affirmations daily directed towards improving my skin complexion and recorded how I felt each day and how it corresponded to my skin. “I am a Divine expression of life. I love and accept myself where I am right now.” -Heal Your Body

17. The Outcome…  While some days were better than others, I found no significant improvement in my skin or other physical aspect.  Therefore, I was not given proof to believe that the mind will effect the physical body.

18. Why might it not have worked?  “All stress begins with one negative thought.” Maybe I was not addressing the right problem. Is my stress the cause of my ailment?  Perhaps my experiment was not long enough to support the research conclusions.  Was I really free of all negative thoughts?

19. In conclusion  After examining all research and conducting my own personal experiment, I think that the concept of the mind affecting your body is complex.  Although my personal experiment did not produce results supporting the research, I overall believe in the idea that the mind does affect your body because I was satisfied by the findings in my research.

20. However..  I think that being positive is easier said than done. While you may not consider yourself a pessimist, negative thoughts are inevitable for many of us.  There is negativity all around us. How do we escape it all to produce the outcome we want?

22. And where do we draw the line?  Is there a point at which positive thinking simply will not work?  Example: I’m short and would like to grow taller. Can I simply believe I will grow and it will happen?  My answer: Definitely not. I think think the mind holds a lot of power over the body, but it can only work within your limits. If you were not meant to be six feet tall, you will not be six feet tall. But, if you once had unblocked arteries and now suffer from cardiovascular disease, your mind CAN make a difference. By giving gratitude to the food you consume making it have an intricate molecular structure and by truly believing that you are healthy the disease will be cured.

23.  I believe in the research I have found supporting the idea that the mind does affect the body.  Negativity does NO ONE any good.  Be as positive as possible.  Believe in what you want to happen, and it WILL happen

25. Bibliography  Byrne, Rhonda. The Power. New York: Atria, 2010. Print.  Byrne, Rhonda. The Secret. New York: Atria, 2006. Print.  Hay, Louise L. Heal Your Body: The Mental Causes for Physical Illness and the Metaphysical Way to Overcome Them. Santa Monica, CA: Hay House, 1988. Print.  "Water Crystals." What the Bleep Do We Know RSS2. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Apr. 2014. http://www.whatthebleep.com/water-crystals/  "Positive Psychology Center." Positive Psychology Center. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2014. http://www.ppc.sas.upenn.edu/index.html  "Water, Consciousness & Intent: Dr. Masaru Emoto." YouTube. YouTube, 13 Mar. 2009. Web. 16 Apr. 2014. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAvzsjcBtx8