Everyone has certain books in their bookshelves that they can't live without, and for me "You Can Heal Your Life
This book basically gets into the emotional/spiritual causes behind physical manifestations in our body. When you have an ache or pain, your body is trying to communicate to you, and asking you to listen. Disease means dis-ease, your body is not at ease with something emotionally going on with you, and now it is showing up in physical form to really get you to pay attention.
One part I find most helpful in the book is a list in the back that lists various physical ailments, the probable emotional cause, and then a new thought pattern to help heal the problem. Here's a couple as an example:
Problem: Hives
Probable cause: small, hidden fears. Mountains out of mole hills.
New thought pattern: I bring peace to every corner of my life.
Problem: Knee issues
Probable cause: Stubborn ego and pride. Inability to bend. Inflexibility. Fear. Won't give in.
New thought pattern: Forgiveness. Understanding. Compassion. I bend and flow with ease, and all is well.
I didn't really believe any of this mind/body stuff until I hit my late 20's. It started with stress. When I was in my late teens, early 20's, not much happened to me physically when I was stressed except maybe the occasional headache and neck cramp. Then I started to notice that I was getting hives, boils, and patches of eczema all over my body. Yeah, it was pretty gross.
Over time, I started to notice that the skin things would pop up whenever I had problems at work. Skin problems primarily deal with anxiety, protecting our individuality and feeling threatened. My quandaries at work during that time primarily dealt with either being treated like a "little girl", attacked by jealous co-workers (male and female), or treated like a kid with no value to add to the "experienced" group. I constantly felt like I had to prove myself, and that nothing was ever good enough. And so, it was no surprise to me that with all that stress that I would become dis-at-ease in some way.
I highly recommend this book to everyone, and especially to those who are experiencing physical ailments that are not responding to any traditional treatments. Louise Hay also tells her story. She was a former model and lived that high life. She had some abusive relationships including one with her mother. She got cancer and talks of how she healed herself of that cancer before needing surgery. It's a fascinating read which shows you how much power you do and can have in your well being. I've had this book for 15 years now, and I have to say that it has been a life saver.
