The Mind-Body Connection

“The Mindful Body” is a fascinating book that dives into the mind-body unity, in that our thoughts and perspectives have a profound effect on our physical well-being.

I often hear “maybe I’m just getting old” in discussions with patients about their pain. While yes, certain physical changes can become more prevalent as we age, that DOES NOT mean that everything about us diminishes or can’t improve despite getting older.

The author of the book, Ellen Langer, is a professor of psychology at Harvard and highlights a study of hers that supports the concept of mind-body connection.

In the study, called the “counterclockwise study”, a group of men lived in a retreat that was retrofitted to resemble life twenty years earlier in every way possible. They watched old news broadcasts and movie/ TV favorites from that era, listened to a jukebox, and were tasked with talking about things in the present tense, as if things were happening in real time. Another group lived in the same retreat for a week but discussed the same topics in the past tense.

Prior to this experiment, biological, psychological and physical markers of the men were measured. At the conclusion of the study, scores on several of those measures including hearing, memory and grip strength improved for both groups.

For the group that spoke about things in the present tense, they demonstrated improvements in vision, joint flexibility, manual dexterity, IQ, gait and posture.

Symptoms of arthritis also decreased for this group.

This study has since been replicated, yielding similar results.

The only thing that changed for these men was their interpretation of the world around them, making them feel 20 years younger, although they obviously didn’t change in age.

Their minds told them they were younger, and their physical properties improved as if they actually were younger. You can imagine, if this works one way, it can work the other way as well. If we think and believe that our pain is related to getting older, then that pain will likely remain for the rest of our lives, possibly even progressing as we progress in age.

This book goes far more into detail about mind-body unity, and I highly recommend reading it for yourself!

But if you don’t, just know that how you think becomes how you feel. So, if you’re struggling with a pain or injury, keep optimistic and thinking positive thoughts and you’ll be sure to see and feel the benefits of this!