Since our first physical exam as babies, we’ve gone to doctors who have been trained to ask for our family history. It seemed they were letting us know from the beginning that if our parents or grandparents had a certain disease, we were likely to get it because it’s in our DNA. We grew up believing that just as physical traits such as height, eye color or body type are passed down, so are life-threatening diseases.

Please consider the idea that your health future is not in your genes, it’s in your mind.

Dr. Bruce Lipton, a biologist and the author of The Biology of Belief and The Wisdom of Our Cells, has dedicated his life to the practice of moving us from the science of being the victims of our genes to a science where we are the creators of our health. Through his years of intense study, backed up by in-lab experiments, he saw that it was what is going on outside the cell—rather than inside the cell—that dictates its health. Each one of us is a community of 50 trillion living cells. The harmony of those cells is our health and conflict amongst those cells is our “dis-ease”.

The “old” science states that the nucleus of the cell and the DNA within are the brain of the cell, dictating the health or disease of that cell. Our entire medical model in fact, is still based on this science. We go to the doctor and are told that, in essence, there’s something wrong with our biochemistry or our genes, which can be modified through pharmaceutical drugs to bring about health. We are not told that for a drug to work, our bodies need to have a receptor for that drug; if our bodies have a receptor, they also have the ability to create a natural version of that drug that has no side effects.

Can it be then that the brain of the cell is the cell membrane? According to Lipton, it is the same as a computer chip. And much like a computer, the operation of our cells is not determined by their program, but rather by the person or environment interacting with that program. Lipton states, “The cell membrane perceives environmental signals and transforms them into biological signals.”

Take a minute and experience this for yourself. Imagine you have two pieces of fruit in front of you—one is a lemon and the other is your favorite fruit. Imagine cutting the lemon into quarters and taking a big bite. What happens to your body? Does your jaw get tight, do your lips pucker, and are you salivating more? There will be a biological response. In fact your biological response will directly correlate to the strength of your imagination. Notice how differently your body responds to your favorite fruit. This simple example is proof positive that our biology changes according to our perceptions. Every thought, every belief impacts our health in either or positive or negative way. They make us stronger or weaker.

So what does any of this have to do with hypnosis? It’s very simple. To create health we need to change our perceptions, not our genes. Hypnosis is a fast and efficient way to do so. We have the absolute power to let go of all the old misperceptions that have caused our dis-ease—including the one that says we’re doomed because of our genes—and choose new perceptions that will shift us into health on all levels. There are countless cases of disease that have corrected as a result of changes in the mind, including asthma, allergies, IBS, migraines, Crohn’s disease, cancer, hot flashes, diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. This includes many diseases people have been told are incurable. The mind is infinitely powerful and hypnosis can help you access your inner physician to heal and maintain health going forward.

Lisa Zaccheo, MA, BCH, BC, is the owner, lead hypnotist and hypnosis instructor at Mind Matters Hypnosis Centers located in Avon, Guilford and North Branford. For more information, or to schedule a lecture, workshop or appointment, call Mind Matters Hypnosis Center at 860-693-6448 or visit
MindMattersHypnosis.com.

Learn how you can take control of your health with hypnosis by joining Lisa Zaccheo, MA, BCH, BCI, at The Graduate Institute in Bethany CT on May 19 from 7-8:30pm.

The Graduate Institute is an accredited, nonprofit institution of higher education that focuses on holistic, transformative education. It is dedicated to making education convenient, affordable, and highly supportive of personal goals. See ad, page 60.