Dear Dick
articles about wide ranging psychological issues
from "The Local Bulletin" (Brisbane Australia)
by Dick Rigby
©all articles are copyright 2006

July 2004
How many times do we hear “If you don’t look after yourself, you will get sick”.  Well it’s true.  If we are stressed and our eating patterns are poor, our immune system is lowered and we are more prone to get sick.  So what’s new.  You already knew that.
What’s new is the subtle stuff.  There are many ways that our subconscious mind can sabotage our health.  For instance, the workaholic pushes himself (or herself) to the point of exhaustion.  This may be done in order to be acceptable or “good enough” in the eyes of others.  Too much stress leads to low immune system, leads to poor health.
In some people, the subconscious mind may make sure we get sick in order to get attention.  Lyn was a sickly child.  Her mother looked after her well when she was sick. The problem arose when Lyn was well.  Then her mother was too busy to spend time with Lyn.  At a very young age, she learned that being sick was associated with getting attention.
The mould was set in her childhood.  When Lyn turned 30, she was still prone to frequent illnesses.  When she got sick, her husband paid her attention. When Lyn was well, her husband was too busy with other things.  Lyn married her mother.  It was all in Lyn’s subconscious.
Lyn did the rounds of the doctors and none could help because the heart of the problem was not medical.  It wasn’t until Lyn received psychological help that she started to become aware of her patterns.  Then she started to get control over her health. 
Since Lyn has been gaining insight, her health has steadily been improving.  She is still getting  help from her dietician and her GP, and now their help is effective because Lyn is no longer sabotaging her health.
Some people get really upset if you suggest that their illness is all in the mind.  When Lyn first heard that her condion could be partly psychosomatic, she was really offended and felt that people were accusing her of faking it. 
She wasn’t.  The illnesses that Lyn had were real.  She got infections, she had asthma, she had very painful periods.  All these conditions were real. 
What she hadn’t reaLyned was that by changing her psychology, she could improve the way that her body went about healing itself.
Staying fit and healthy is not just about doing the right things, it is also about having the motivation to do the right things.