I’ve needed to take some time out from being so active in my writing in recent months. The sudden loss of loved ones does funny things to your attention, priorities and focus…and so I’ve honoured this diversion, following its gentle guidance to nurture that which needed my self-care and caress…and it’s brought me all the way into February.
I’m here now though, grateful and excited to embrace this new space and energy, which I’ve been introduced to in recent months, as a bittersweet bonus to the grief I’ve felt, as well as that freshness, which comes with a new year.
And so I’d like to continue the discussion I began towards the end of last year, by sharing with you my third principal and domain to tune into for balanced health & wellness: our organs and organ tissue. It’s a pertinent place to continue this discussion, given that I’ve experienced grief recently, because we often feel the loss of loved ones very physically, such as in our heart or stomach. Which exact part of the organ is reacting, is the key question, however.
It goes without saying, that if we have uncomfortable physical symptoms, it’s wise to seek medical attention and diagnosis from our doctor as soon as possible. When we delay this action, we run the risk of symptoms becoming a lot worse and chronically debilitating…and no one naturally chooses this for themselves.
That said, it’s the root cause of these symptoms which I’d like to explore further…because, what many of us are not aware of is that not all symptoms are sympathetic in nature (i.e. when the body system as a whole is in a state of stress) as we’ve been conditioned to think and see illness and disease. Many symptoms are actually parasympathetic in their nature i.e. they are the body’s message to us that it is now doing its best to rebalance and regain homeostasis, after a phase of stress and would, therefore, like you to listen to it and oblige by resting and allowing it to do its job effectively, with appropriate support. Inflammation is a good example of this.
In the western health paradigm many of us live in, obvious stressors such as age, diet, exercise, accidents and injuries are explored and made accountable for many maladies which present themselves in the GP surgery or A&E wards. And when it comes to emergency medicine, the western approach is second to none in its life-saving treatments and procedures.
However, we’re seeing a growing number of symptoms showing up in patients and clients within this same medical system, which are given the autoimmune label or even cause unknown as the long term prognosis. Yet how can this be accurate? How can a whole body system, which is so sophisticated in its entirety, all of a sudden begin to turn on itself (such as in the case of autoimmune symptoms) or manifest symptoms, out of the blue, where a cause is not known? As briefly mentioned in some of my own background, I refused to believe this notion as a young person, when given such a prognosis with vitiligo in my 20s. And as a result, I have since found out that it is possible to find the root cause of these symptoms, and so much more, when we understand that the body’s organs and tissues are not separate from the rest of the body’s biology, chemistry and physiology. Our brain, organs and tissues are all intricately connected…!
As much as it is helpful to have specialists in oncology, gastroenterology, cardiology, endocrinology and all the other -ologies in medicine, it’s time we recognised that none of the symptoms, which show up under any of these disciplines are operating as separate systems within the body. We have cells, which become tissues, which become organs, which become organ systems, which are part of the greater whole, that is the human body. And they have all evolved, according to the embryology of three germ layers within our body.
Each of these germ layers (endoderm – inner layer; mesoderm – middle layer; and ectoderm – outer layer) is connected to a part of the brain e.g. the brain stem, which is the first part of the brain to develop is connected to the endoderm layer. Thus, organs and tissue, which also develop in this germ layer will also be connected to the brain stem.
Knowing this gives us valuable clues when it comes to symptoms because each germ layer responds differently when in sympathetic or parasympathetic phases. Our emotions, beliefs and how we respond to subjective stress also impacts organs and tissue differently.
When I work with clients, I work integratively with a medical diagnosis, because it’s vital to know the exact origin of the symptoms I am exploring with my client. When I have this information about which organs or tissues are reacting, it informs me about the biological function of that part of the body…which in turn gives me vital insights into the thoughts and emotions likely being experienced to trigger this organ or tissue reaction. The more specific the diagnosis, the more accurate my analysis is i.e. it’s better to know it’s the epidermis layer of the skin with the symptoms, rather than just the skin because each tissue within an organ plays a specific role in its function within the body as a whole.
So think for a moment about the biological reason why we have the organs and tissues which function in our body as a whole…each part plays a vital and very specific role. It’s the logic of biology – it’s bio logical.
When we take the time to explore and understand our body’s biology and how our organs and tissues are reacting and responding in sympathetic and parasympathetic phases, we gain a very clear insight into the why of presenting symptoms. With this knowledge, we’re then able to determine specific stress themes, which are correlated with that organ tissue, its biological function in evolutionary and embryology terms, as well as the brain layer involved.
With this fundamental detail about the root cause of symptoms, we can then approach options for rebalancing the body system in a more informed and holistic way…as in truly rebalancing the whole person, in mind, body, spirit and social aspects. Without this whole-person approach, we’re missing the point of health and wellness in medicine, where it’s meant to be about supporting people to feel empowered and whole again.
So next time you have some sort of physical symptom, don’t just brush it off. Your body is talking to you…the question is, how well are you listening?
For more information about my work and how I can help you with your symptoms, get in touch now to begin taking back your power over your health and wellness journey.
