How often have you fallen sick only to ask yourself, ‘what did I eat or expose myself to that may have triggered my illness?’ The truth is, illness isn’t always caused by something physical. Although modern medicine often sees it this way, only seeking to treat the physical symptoms or focus solely on the perceived physical cause.

Our mind and body are innately interconnected and at times it can be our mood, emotions and traumas that influence our biochemistry, and in turn, our overall wellbeing. This is known as the mind-body connection.

What is the mind-body connection?

If you feel butterflies in your tummy when you’re nervous, or flush red with embarrassment, then you’ve experienced the mind-body connection. When you think or feel a certain way, neural pathways made of neurotransmitters, hormones and chemicals transmit signals from the body to the brain, especially the emotional cortex. 

These influence how our body functions and reacts in certain situations. For instance, feeling chronically stressed can lead to an overload of cortisol which can manifest physically as high blood pressure. 

When we suppress or hold onto trauma (and our bodies are continually responding to feelings of being under threat) the trauma stores in our body’s somatic memory. 

Long-term exposure to stress or trauma makes us more susceptible to falling ill. In fact, trauma survivors are about three times more likely to deal with conditions like irritable bowel syndrome, chronic pain, and fibromyalgia. This may be partially due to stress diminishing white blood cell response to infected cells.

Your gut: love it and listen to it

You’re told to ‘trust your gut instinct’ for a reason. Often referred to as the ‘second brain’, the gut is inherently responsible for the mind-body connection. Connected directly to the brain via the vagus nerve, the gut is where 95% of serotonin is produced. In fact, the gut has 500 million neurons, which is five times more than the brain’s!

Consider the gut as a fragile and diverse ecosystem that needs to remain in homeostasis to keep the mind-body connection functioning well. A healthy gut biome will be nourished with probiotics. 

Probiotics create the right environment for the right kind of bacteria to flourish, prevent inflammation, and increase the production of those all-important neurotransmitters. When the gut is out of balance it can cause issues like anxiety, depression, fatigue, and brain fog. Eat a diet rich with probiotic foods like natural organic yoghurt, kefir, kimchi, and tempeh to keep your gut and mind-body connection happy.

How can I cultivate a strong mind-body connection?  

Remember that what you think, do, and feel affects your physical and mental state. So, aside from nourishing your gut, you can foster a stronger mind-body connection with a mindfulness practice. 

Perhaps this means just sitting for fifteen minutes somewhere quiet before you start your day or before you go to bed and emptying your head of all thoughts. Allow what comes into your mind to float by and not engage or get caught up with thoughts.

Yoga and other gentle forms of movement and exercise like tai chi and qigong are also effective mind-body therapies that help you reconnect to your inner self.