Episode 3-Season 1-Spring! Why is it that a wellness center that focuses on natural healing with food as medicine spends so much time on mindset?
As a speech language pathologist, I was part of a brain injury rehabilitation team that consisted of physiatrists, neuropsychologists, neurologists, occupational, physical, and recreational therapists, and counselors. Each of us brought in our area of specialty and focus that was critical for the recovery of the patient following a brain injury whether it was due to a trauma such as a car accident or an acute condition such as a stroke or a degenerative disease such as cancer or ALS.
As you can imagine, these patients were ALWAYS in crisis. One cannot experience a brain injury without it completely upending your life. Very few patients can even recall their hospital stay and rehab experience because the brain’s protective mechanism is in survival mode.
Despite the incredible insult to the brain, the relatively short window for ideal recovery, and the massive amount of skill and resources that go into this type of intervention; do you know what the best predictor of outcome is? It is universal and incredibly independent of these things. It is mindset or belief.
Do each of these specialists, the timing of intervention, and the severity of the injury matter? Of course they do! Are caregivers, families, and community important? Of course they are! Do the medications and foods matter? Of course they do! But what is so incredible to witness is that they are not the most important piece.
The PATIENT is the most important factor! Remember, we are talking about a brain injury…your hardware if you will. Your brain is where we think, regulate, initiate, and comprehend. Yet, somehow, the mindset seems to supersede that with an innate override.
Here’s what I’m talking about…
More examples than I can count, in fact, as I reflect I can’t think of an instance where the outcome was correlated to the severity, intervention, and circumstance as much as it was the patient’s desire to heal. The belief and tenacity of better days ahead and the fight to regain lost skill is inspiring and creates a momentum of change within the person.
But the opposite is also true, and sadly, as I reflect I can’t think of an instance where the outcome was correlated to the severity, intervention, and circumstance as much as it was the patient’s fear of not healing. Specifically the fear of not living the way they used to live or being a burden to those around them. In every instance, recovery was not achieved and they eventually died although often after a long and arduous battle being dependent and limited in function.
The point is that the same diagnoses, conditions, and circumstances would often yield completely different results depending on the patient’s mindset, even with a broken brain. INCREDIBLE.
Despite the crisis, the diagnosis, or the condition those who have belief and tenacity of better days ahead always seem to be healthier and happier. Likewise, those who have fear of not living the way they used to or being a burden to those around them often end up being limited and experiencing the very loss and burden they are afraid of.
Incredibly, the belief or mindset seems to be the greater indicator of outcome than any other factor. Again, it’s the INDIVIDUAL that determines the outcome. Healing really is an inside job!
Understand that mindset, belief, love, energy, faith, and healing are all words that you will hear in programs or services at the Living WOW Center intertwined with nutrition and self care. Because it is my experience both personally and professionally that they are all co-existing. If we feed our bodies, mind, and spirit well, healing and thriving in your best life is inevitable not impossible.