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You are what you think

We have all heard the saying , “you are what you eat”, but most people haven’t heard, “you are what you think.”

Intention has an amazing role in healing and medicine. Even in Western medicine the power of intention and the placebo effect has been scientifically proven to exist.

Because of the placebo effect drug trials in people have to be double blinded, meaning that both the patient and the doctor administering the drug are not told if they have the real drug or the placebo.

Did you know that drug trials in animals also have to be double blinded? Obviously the animal doesn’t know if they are being given the real drug or not but the doctor or researcher also needs to have no knowledge of this. They have found that if the person administering the drug knows if it is the real drug or the placebo, then the results will be influenced by this knowledge.

Yes there is a placebo effect in healing for animals but it is created through us! That’s pretty amazing when you think about it.

So how can can we use this power of intention in helping our animal friends heal?

Primarily we can believe that they can heal. If we have confidence that our animal companion can heal they can sense this and it will help them also believe in their own healing. When we think positive thoughts we release certain chemicals in our body which affect our nervous system in a positive way. This enhances our immune system and helps direct our body back to homeostasis.

Because our animals are deeply connected to us they are also calmer when we are positive and get the same positive immune and nervous system response. While we can often share disease with our animal friends, we can also share health.

Many studies have been done on the power of intention. One of the most well know was a study done on reducing crime by meditation and positive thought in Washington DC in the summer of 1993. Though meditation alone the rate of crime was dropped by almost 25%. A National Demonstration Project of Transcendental Meditation. Other studies have also been performed with similar results.

Here’s some simple exercises you can do to help your animal if they are sick

  • 1. Take five minutes each evening and morning to picture your animal in health. Picture their body healing and imagine them happy and pain free. Sometimes it helps to visualize them in an activity that makes them happy such as running through a field, playing at the beach, or chasing butterflies.
  • 2. Take some time to calm yourself either through meditation or some other activity that relaxes you. Meditation is a simple practice that can be done for as little as five minutes a day. Most cities have groups which ofter free meditation classes and there are many CDs and books available which will guild you through how to practice. Other activities that can help are things such as running, yoga, tai chi, qi gong, or just taking a few moments to stop and breath deeply. Do whatever is right for you! By taking care of yourself you are helping your animal friend.
  • 3. If you find yourself starting to worry about your animal’s health, acknowledge it, and then try to think positive. Don’t push your worries away or try to suppress them. Often times just saying the words, “I’m worrying, ” will help. “I’m worrying but now I am going to think about what it would feel like to have my friend feel better and how that would make me feel.”

    • It is amazing to see how the little things we do can help our animal companions!

    Here are links to three very good books and audio tracks on meditation
    A Path with Heart: A Guide Through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life
    Meditation for Beginners
    How to Meditate with Pema Chodron: A Practical Guide to Making Friends with Your Mind

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    This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 18th, 2009 at 7:59 pm and is filed under health. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

    4 Responses to “You are what you think”

    1. Erika Feuer Says:
      February 19th, 2009 at 10:34 am

      I feed six feral cats that I had spayed. Even though they are very shy, they do know when I am feeling really down. One cat in particular, Honeybunch, will come much closer to me and sit and stare at me for a long time.

    2. pamela Says:
      March 6th, 2009 at 10:23 pm

      Open your mind to animal communication. Mary Getton is an animal communicator. I have take a few of her courses. One with learning to communicate with animals and the other one wit nature.

      She also has a book call Communication with Orcas, a whales perspective. It is about the Orcas in the San Juans. pod J(if I remember correctly). She is NOT psychic, she helps you communicate with your animals. As Lena does she gets in “tune” with your animals. She has helped me a lot with my own animals and some of my rescues and has been spot on.

      http://www.marygetten.com

    3. Carnival of Healing #215: Explorations « Wild Reiki and Shamanic Healing Blog Says:
      November 14th, 2009 at 1:37 pm

      […] Did you know that what you think can influence your animal? Lena McCullough, DVM of A Path with Paws explores how the power of intention can affect your animal companion, and offers three easy-to-use exercises to improve healing in You Are What You Think. […]

    4. Carnival of Healing #215: Explorations Says:
      November 14th, 2009 at 4:02 pm

      […] Did you know that what you think can influence your animal? Lena McCullough, DVM of A Path with Paws explores how the power of intention can affect your animal companion, and offers three easy-to-use exercises to improve healing in You Are What You Think. […]