Peristalsis of the Mind

The flow of energy is required for both mental and physical health. So when there is a block to the flow of energy, illness can occur. Our bodies have a built in process called peristalsis, an involuntary mechanism that constricts and relaxes muscles in the intestines to help our body eliminate food waste and other substances that are no longer needed. When there is a block in the lower part of the body that is too strong for peristalsis to occur, the body attempts reverse peristalsis (vomiting) to eliminate unwanted or toxic substances.

Iprofessthatthemind also has amechanismofperistalsis, one that functions differently but has the same purpose. This mental peristalsis uses three feeling guides: interest, curiosity and desire. These guides steer us toward people and situations that trigger or elicit our conscious awareness of unresolved beliefs and emotions, thus providing a way to help us cleanse our non-nurturing and energy-depleting beliefs.

Remember that emotions are the result of beliefs, whether those beliefs are conscious or unconscious. Like physical pain, emotional pain serves a purpose. If we have a problem in our bladder, pain will let us know that something in our bladder needs correction. In the same manner, emotional pain lets us know when something in our mind needs correction.

Over my many years of working with individuals and couples, it has become clear to me that people are often attracted to others because they share a similar vibrational energy even when they are unconscious of this fact. It is said that opposites attract, yet it has been shown to me over and over again that like energy attracts like energy even when that energy is expressed in opposite ways. For example, the husband of one couple I worked with stated that he was attracted to his wife’s assertiveness and sense of security when they met. It was a quality he aspired for himself but did not have. After several years of marriage, he found her assertivenessto bebossy, and shewas unhappy with his lack of assertiveness. 

Through an exploration of their childhoods, I learned that both his lack of confidence and assertiveness and her expression of confidence and assertiveness were rooted in childhood abuse and fear. By helping them to understand the deeper meaning of their behaviors, that is, the fear-inducing beliefs behind their behavior, each was able to re-assess their beliefs and support each other and work out anotherway ofrelating to one another. Though both were unconscious of their own fears and the fear in their partner when they met, their attraction to what was seemingly opposite, combined with the love they developed for one another over the years, helped them to face their pain and bring to consciousness the fears that were similar in each. When two people are on opposite ends of a sphere, they pull each other into and toward the center, toward balance and toward healing.

Understanding your self-healing mechanisms allows you to use them to your benefit. Instead of being upset when you find yourself in a difficult situation, look for what, inside of you, wasseeking resolution, acceptance or appreciation. In this way, you will come to realize that each experience is a gift even when it doesn’t seem to be.