Healing 101 Lecture Notes

Session 3: September 15, 2016

Questions and Review: (10 minutes)
Review the body healing, acupuncture, chiropractic medicine and yoga. Answer questions and
facilitate discussion regarding thoughts and ideas concerning connecting mind and body healing.
Spiritual Healing: (15 minutes)
Within each person resides a spirit, however it is not always distinguished as such. The spirit is
our connection to the Divine and has nothing, but everything to do with religion. Our spirits can
be defined as our conscious, our heart, or our intuition. Many religions focus on defining,
harnessing and empowering the spirit within us as we connect to a source of Divine power. This
spirit is intimately connected to our mind and body and greatly defines our who we truly are,
what we love, how we feel, our core values and our resulting outward actions.
No matter what our belief system, cultivating our spiritual health will bring both psychological
(mind) and physical (body) health and healing. Psychologically we are benefitted through greater
relaxation, decreased anxiety, enhanced creativity and intelligence, greater self-control, deeper
empathy and a deeper self-actualization. Physical benefits include decreased blood pressure,
decreased stress response, decreased cholesterol, improved sleep, diminishing chronic pain and
overall better health.
Healing and cultivating our spirits is done through practice and devoted, daily efforts. It requires
changes from within ourselves that begin to change how we think, feel and act. The majority of
this lecture will be focused on a few of the practices discussed in the book Essential Spirituality:
The 7 Central Practices to Awaken Heart and Mind by Roger Walsh. As noted in the Syllabus,
this is not required reading, however it is strongly recommended.
Finding True Happiness (15 minutes)
Defining what brings true happiness is unique to each individual. Many times people think
happiness comes from physical or emotional attachments. Often times, they find that these things
do not provide long-term joy, simply temporary happiness, thinking I am happy when I have x
amount of money to spend or I can only be happy when I am with a certain person. True
happiness comes from finding the desires of truth, justice, kindness, altruism, beauty and the
sacred, Letting go of the temporary attachments allows our spirits to connect to the Divine and
see the world from a higher perspective.
Exercises:
Think about a long time. What is really important in your life? What really matters? What
would you be better off doing more of? What would you be better off doing less of?
Discover your future self. Imagine yourself in 20 years, 30 years and imagine who you
would most like to be. What do you need to let go of to become this person? What do you
need to change in your life?

Cultivate Emotional Wisdom: Healing Our Hearts and Learning to Love (15 minutes)
Our emotions are reflected onto the world around us. When we are angry, we seek for and find
angry situations. When we are happy, we find greater joy in the world around us. When we are
sad and depressed, the world is full of disappointment and heartaches. That which we invite into
our minds tends to move in and take up residency. Transforming our emotions and thoughts to
those of love and compassion takes time and effort. It does not do us any good to condemn
ourselves for having thoughts of fear, anger, hate, jealousy or sadness. These are all a part of life
and can be used productively at the right time and in the right place. The goal is finding the
emotional balance that allows our hearts and spirits to open up and feel greater love. Contrary to
popular belief, venting and getting vengeance does not decrease feelings of anger and fear, they
only fuel them. Healing our hearts from painful emotions creates a greater understanding within
ourselves and allows us to release fear and anger through forgiveness and compassion. Gratitude
is the greatest expression of love and can cultivate a deeper understanding of the spirit within us.
Exercises:
Say Grace. Verbally expressing our gratitude for the simplest things in life opens our
hearts and minds to the gifts we receive daily, such as the breath of life, food to eat, a
place to live, people who love us, people to help, etc. As feelings of anger or fear begin to
encroach on our hearts, expressing gratitude through prayer quickly dispels the power
they would have over us.
Remember people who love you. Find people within your memory who have shown you
a great deal of love through action and word. How did they show you love? What were
the circumstances which brought them into your life? What did you do in response to the
love they showed you?
Express Our Spirit in Action Through Service and Generosity: (15 minutes)
It is more blessed to give than receive. This teaching from Jesus Christ, Mohammad, Mother
Teresa, the Dhali Lama and many other great spiritual leaders has transcended time as one of the
great truths life has to offer. The beauty of practicing this truth is that as we give, we receive.
What we give is not as important as how we give it. When we offer something from our hearts,
however small it may be, the emotions shared between the giver and receiver are amplified in
each spirit. Think of a small child bringing you a dandelion. As they give this little yellow flower
to you, they are offering all that they have, their hearts and love. They want to show you how
they feel and this little flower is a beautiful representation. There is no holding back. Each of us
has a unique gift to offer the world through our spirits. Often times it takes time, practice and
persistence to find what it is. As we share what is uniquely ours, our spirits are filled with the
great love, peace and fulfillment.
Exercises:
Turn work into acts of service. Select one activity you perform daily. Ask yourself how
this one activity helps those around you? How does you performing this activity enable
someone else to have a better day, easier life or joy in their heart?
Give anonymously. The sheer thrill of anonymous giving can be addicting. Hiding little
treats for others to find, leaving a little money by the vending machine, paying for a
strangers lunch are all examples of giving anonymously. Think of one thing you can do
daily to find this thrill in life.

Wrap Up and Review: (20 minutes)

Review each aspect of healing and the CAM practices associated therein. Questions and answer
period.