Does gratitude & joy make your immune system stronger? Enjoy this excerpt from my online course UNDEFEATED: Your Passport To A Powerful Immune System.
From UNDEFEATED:
It is important to look at health in a holistic lens, as “health” does not just encompass physical health – but also in equal parts emotional, mental, and spiritual health.
Even the research shows that the more subtle aspects of health affect your immune system. This study (one of many) shows that gratitude improves sleep and mood, lessens fatigue, and reduces inflammation (a sign your immune system is fighting something off).
Emotions & Your Immunity
The language of our mind is thoughts. The language of our hearts is emotion. When the heart and brain are working together, it creates an atmosphere of coherence where many miracles can happen. I love Dr. Joe Dispenza’s work. He has dedicated his life to the study of how what we think and how we feel affects our state of being after he healed himself with his mind from a catastrophic accident that broke his back in many places.
He explains how we are “hard-wired” by the age of 35, with very strong subconscious patterns of what makes up our personalities.
“Our Personality creates our Personal Reality,” Dr Dispenza often says, as he explains to his students that our personalities are made up of how we think and how we feel, and that in order to change our personal reality, we have to change our personality.
Why & How To Bring in More Gratitude & Joy
“Gratitude is the ultimate state of receivership.” -Dr. Dispenza
Immunoglobulin A is a protein produced by plasma cells and lymphocytes and characteristic of these types of cells. Immunoglobulins play an essential role in the body’s immune system. They attach to foreign substances, such as bacteria, and assist in destroying them. It is better than any vaccine or immune booster you could take.
When cortisol goes up in the body, IGA goes down. In a study Dr. Dispenza did at one of his events, he measured 120 participants’ cortisol and IGA levels at the start and the end of the workshop. Here is what they found:
“During the course of our four-day workshop, we asked our 120 study participants to move into an elevated emotional state such as love, joy, or gratitude for nine to ten minutes, three times a day, to determine if we could do the reverse. If we could elevate our emotional states, could we raise our immune system and reduce stress hormones like cortisol? We discovered at the conclusion of the event that the cortisol levels of our participants dropped by three standard deviations, and their IgA levels shot up on average from 52.5 to 86. These are significant, measurable changes.”
In short: Feeling love, gratitude, and joy strengthens your immune system.
Positive emotional states set off powerful chemicals and hormones within your body. When you practice the feeling of a positive emotion with a clear intention, there is a change in our personal biology.
The chemistry of gratitude can:
- Help to lower blood pressure
- Improve hormonal balance
- Help our nervous systems
- Improve our brain function
- Strengthen immunity
- Keep you youthful by releasing telomerase according to Dr. Bruce Lipton (These are key in how we age)
How do you invite more joy & gratitude into your life? There are many, many ways to do so, and some ways may speak to you and some may not. I encourage you to try a few to see what helps spark joy & gratitude! Here are some suggestions to get you started:
- Writing a quick card to someone about why you love them or are grateful for them daily, weekly, or monthly (I challenged myself in 2013 to write one hand written thank you note to one person a day for 365 days. It was a game changer for me. I felt more love, was always seeking gratitude, felt appreciation for the simple things and was always looking for the good in others. My entire perspective changed.)
- Listening to some awesome music & dancing! (Alone or with a partner or group)
- Going to meet up with a friend
- Listening to a gratitude meditation
- Meditating for a few minutes daily
- Writing in a gratitude journal
- Putting less things on your to-do list
- Learning something new, like an instrument or a language
- Watching or going to a comedy show
- Watching a funny movie
- Playing a lighthearted board game
- Creating something with your hands – painting, baking, woodworking, etc.
- Going for a walk/run
- Playing a sport
- Calling to chat with an old friend
- Smiling
There are so many more options! Do what makes your heart sing!
Here are a few more Resources on joy, gratitude, & emotions (see more in the UNDEFEATED online course):
- 5 Reasons You Should Meditate During Uncertain Times (Amber Bodily)
- How To Start Your Day In An Empowered Way (Amber Bodily)
- 5 Simple, Natural Ways To Relieve Your Stress (Amber Bodily)
- The Scientific Secret To Permanent Stress Reduction (Amber Bodily)
- 5 Survival Tips For Parents During A Global Crisis (Amber Bodily)
- How To Go From Fear To Fortitude: Empowerment In A Global Crisis (Amber Bodily)
- The Cheap & Effective Self-Care Tool You Need To Know About (Amber Bodily)
- Gratitude Meditation (Emma Seppälä)
- A Gift of Loving Kindness Meditation (Emma Seppälä)
- Feelings Buried Alive Never Die by Karol K. Truman
- Molecules of Emotion by Candace B. Pert, PhD
- The Biology of Belief 10th Anniversary Edition: Unleashing the Power of Consciousness, Matter & Miracles by Bruce H. Lipton
- Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself: How To Lose Your Mind & Create a New One by Dr. Joe Dispenza
Find UNDEFEATED and other online courses at ABH Academy.
Get a 20% off coupon when you purchase my Tools For Cold & Flu ebook for only $7! Find the digital coupon code in the Downloads once you purchase.
Ignite the healer within,
Amber Bodily
