The Mind-"Booty" Connection
December 20, 2007
Lately, there has been a lot of discussion about the mind-body connection. Of course, this discussion has been going on for thousands of years; and the new consensus matches the old — there really is no “connection” — the mind and body are the same. The body is simply the visible repository for those things we hold in our mind; the body is the physical representation, or reflection of, the mind.
In a way, though, I still say they are connected simply because of this obvious RELATIONSHIP — which, to me, implies “Connection.” At any rate, the shape of your body — and the size of your booty — is intimately related to the shape of your mind and thoughts. If your mind is cluttered with old junk-thoughts, so will your body and life be cluttered with old junk. Keep your mind, body, and life fresh; change your mind often.
Here’s how the mind-”booty” connection works:
Your brain stores memories of all the things your body has experienced; and it is believed that your DNA stores memories of anything that IT has ever experienced — all the way back to the beginning of humanity. Now, your DNA hasn’t experienced everything everyone else’s DNA has experienced; but all DNA is “Original” and has been added to over the ages. Your DNA is in the middle of each of your cells; and it has never seen the light of day — no living DNA has. SO, your cells have lifetimes of “cellular memory” stored in them; and your brain and body has one-lifetime of memory stored in it — even if you can’t access or recall it easily.
It is with these memories that we form the filters of perception through which we see ourselves and the world in which we live. Any new experience is quickly compared to the old experiences stored in your memory; and a decision is made about your safety, or survivability, based on those past experiences and outcomes. For example, when you hear a loud “Boom!” and see a bright FLASH, your memory may tell you that you have seen and heard an explosion. Depending on where you live, your response could range from, “What was that?!” to “Oh no! They’re coming again and this time we’re going to die!” Explosions mean many different things to many different people.
If it was the 4th of July, and the explosion and flash was up in the sky, at night, during a festival, your memory banks — the stuff you “know” — will likely tell you that the purpose of the explosion is to entertain you rather than destroy you; but if you live in an active war zone, the nature and purpose of the “fireworks” is much more ominous. Your filters of perception, in other words, help your brain determine if your body is safe, or in jeopardy of non-existence. This is an “On-Off” or “Yes-No” decision; and if the verdict is “Possible danger,” your Stress Response is activated — much like we call the fire department when are in certain kinds of physical danger.
When you sense stimulus that matches a past experience in which things went badly, or could have gone badly for you, the “packet” of sensory information is delivered to a part of the brain that compares and decides if you are indeed in danger. If there is the slightest chance that you are, a signal is sent from a part of your mid-brain activating what many people call, “the Fight-or-Flight” mechanism (stress response). Technically, this chain of events is often referred to as the HPA-axis, because the “danger-signal” is sent to the Hypothalamus, which triggers the Pituitary gland to release a hormone called ACTH, which then acts on the Adrenal cortex, causing the release of stress hormones — such as adrenaline and cortisol. Hypothalamus — Pituitary — Adrenals (HPA).
More simply, researchers look at the overall “domino-effect” as it goes from: Psyche (Mind), to Brain (Nervous System), to Body — hence, “Mind-Body Connection.” Yes, there are many “little pieces” to this system; but the bottom line is that you are either in a state of stress, or you are not. And, in either case, it is your thoughts — your perceptions of things — that cause what your body experiences. (And then, we judge those “feelings” and sensations; but that’s another story…)
Stress hormones are great when you are really in danger; but they are not so great when you are exposed to them for prolonged periods of time. Chronic stress — constant, long-term stress — is related to practically every known medical problem; and it is the cause of most unwanted, or excess, weight and body fat. Stress hormones increase your heart rate, respirations, blood-pressure, anxiety, and cause blood to be directed away from your vital organs and into your arms and legs. Stress hormones also cause oxygenated blood to be forced from your brain’s “reasoning centers,” in the front, to its “survival centers” in the hind-brain. When you are stressed, in other words, you are literally “dumber” than you are when you are relaxed.
The stress response also shuts down your Immune system, Reproductive system, and Digestive system; as they are not considered to be vital in a life-threatening emergency. Unfortunately, our perceptions have made it so that most people consider everyday events, such as noise, bills, relationship difficulties, etc, as threats; and even if they don’t do this consciously, their subconscious thoughts often trigger the stress response for them. Most people know when they are stressed. Most people don’t, however, understand this process or what it is doing to them. If they did, they’d surely spend more time learning how to manage their stress by better managing their thoughts.
How does stress make you fat?
Stress causes you to produce and store fat for many practical reasons. The way the body makes fat is really quite simple. First, you perceive your life; then you judge it as a threat — or inconvenience that has threatened your peace, or status quo. As your stress response is activated, your digestion is slowed, or stopped; this causes such things as: Indigestion; IBS; Crone’s disease; Diarrhea; Constipation; Gas; Acid-reflux; and other gastrointestinal problems. Since you aren’t digesting, processing, and eliminating food; you must hold on to it (kind of like the thoughts you are holding on to…).
As part of this process, your body produces Cortisol to help convert the food you are holding on to into fat for storage. Fat is a part of our stress response because: 1. We can’t leave the food in our digestive tract for prolonged periods of time; and 2. Fat provides many practical advantages for a person in stress (under attack, in danger, etc…). If you are chronically stressed — often angry, sad, depressed, grieving, worried, anxious, afraid, etc. — it doesn’t matter what you eat — or how much you eat — your body will try to protect you.
It may surprise you, but food doesn’t make you fat. Of course, fat is made out of food; but so is every other cell in your body. It is your body that decides — based on your thoughts and perceptions — what to do with the food you eat. Food, like every cell in your body, is simply combinations of elements — Hydrogen, Carbon, Nitrogen, and Oxygen, mostly. When you eat steak, for instance, it doesn’t stay intact and migrate to your biceps; and when you eat ice cream, it doesn’t stay intact and migrate to your hips. Your body breaks these things down and uses the raw materials to build whatever you need. Cows are made of muscle (meat); but they eat only grass. And they produce milk (cheese, butter, ice cream, etc…) without drinking milk. Where do cows get all the fat? They make it out of grass and water; and you can do that, too, if you are stressed.
Stay tuned…
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