Self healing is the process of your body and emotions correcting their imbalances. Ancient teachings and modern science concur that your body, mind and emotions are one integrated system.
Practicing self-healing may be one of the hardest things to do. It means sitting with tough feelings such as sadness or rage.
Meditation
Healing meditation is an effective self healing technique that activates the body’s natural ability to heal itself. Deep relaxation re-balances the nervous system and reduces the effects of stress, which is often at the root of many health issues.
Meditation doesn’t require you to stop your thoughts or feelings; instead, it teaches you to observe them from a distance and remove judgment and attachment. This helps you respond to challenging situations with greater ease and wisdom.
The benefits of this practice are so powerful that some experts have begun to replace medication with meditation. It’s even proven that the hippocampus of the brain shrinks when you are under stress, but meditation can reverse this effect and improve your memory. It also helps you become more resilient to pain and illness.
Yoga
Yoga is a practice of self healing that includes body movement and breath work that has the potential to boost your immune system and decrease the likelihood of getting sick. It also helps to create mental clarity and calmness, increases body awareness, reduces chronic stress patterns, relaxes the mind, and centers the attention.
Modern physics is showing us that the subatomic particles in our bodies are connected to all of existence. That means that what you think, feel and believe impacts the entire universe. Yoga helps you to detach from what is ephemeral, like the compulsions of liking and disliking people and things, in order to embrace all that is.
Therapeutic yoga, which is a type of yoga that addresses specific health conditions, has been shown to improve the quality of life and alleviate pain. It has been proven that the physical benefits of yoga include improved muscular strength and flexibility, decreased pain and inflammation, and better breathing and heart rate regulation.
Deep Relaxation
Relaxation techniques help reduce stress, slow the heart rate and breathing, lower blood pressure, relax muscles and restore balance to body and mind. They are often used to combat depression, anxiety and chronic pain conditions, as well as aid in healing cancer, migraines, fibromyalgia and other health issues.
In the deeply relaxed state, people are much more receptive to positive affirmations and guided imagery. These mental states have been shown to effectively treat PTSD in war veterans, break negative patterns of drug and alcohol addictions, and improve coping with migraines and fibromyalgia.
Deep relaxation may require time and practice to develop. It is recommended to find a relaxation technique that works best for you and incorporate it into your daily routine. The benefits are long-lasting if you stick with it.
Gratitude
Cultivating an attitude of gratitude can help to balance out negative emotions and increase your ability to cope with the slings and arrows of life. It can also strengthen your relationships with others. Researchers have found that being grateful decreases stress hormones, improves mood and increases positive feelings.
Writing down things you are thankful for can help to boost your mental health and improve the quality of your sleep. It can also help to combat negative thoughts, which can lead to depression and anxiety.
In one study, participants who focused on finding ways to be grateful for troubling experiences demonstrated fewer intrusive memories of the event than those who didn’t take this approach. Consider expressing your gratitude verbally by letting friends and family members know how much you appreciate them.
Self-compassion
People who practice self-compassion tend to have lower levels of anxiety and depression. This is because self-compassion allows for forgiving and nurturing yourself. It is also a way of connecting with yourself with kindness and intimate understanding. Compassion for yourself includes care, concern, solicitude, sensitivity, tenderness and love.
Practicing self-compassion also involves having the ability to recognize suffering and imperfection as part of a shared human experience. This helps individuals take perspective when they feel a sense of failure or personal inadequacy.
Some people come by compassion naturally, but it is a skill that can be learned. It may be helpful to seek a coach or counselor who can teach it to you. Self-compassion is an important component of mindful practice, which teaches you to be present with painful emotions without getting swept up in them.
