The commonly accepted belief in western medicine and culture is that we’re the powerless victims of our genetics. The idea is that genes are the primary determinants of our health.
The work being done in epigenetics contradicts that entire premise. The basis of epigenetics is that while your inherited set of genes doesn’t change, the potentials inherent in those genes can be turned on or off as a response to your life experience.
What this means is that the totality of your life experience, what you think, feel, and believe about yourself, and what you eat, as well as other external factors, contributes mightily to the expression of your genes.
Just because a parent’s health was influenced by a particular gene expression doesn’t mean that your health has to be influenced the same way. An individual gene has some thirty thousand possible variations. So, you are not a victim, but rather a potential master of your genes and health to a degree never before imagined.
Actually, this suggestion of control over our biology was glimpsed much earlier. In the 1960’s a group of yogis from India were the subjects of a study at the Menninger Clinic where it was discovered that they could control presumably involuntary bodily functions, such as heart rate, blood pressure, and body temperature. So it’s been known since the sixties that our autonomic nervous system and all of the bodily functions under it’s control could in fact be altered by our conscious attention.
If you learn to consciously alter your autonomic nervous system, essentially with the regular practice of simple meditative and energy medicine practices, you impact the expression of your genes and positively influence your state of health, healing and well-being. For the most part, the medical community, media, and the general public have ignored this potentially life altering information. Old beliefs, habits and expectations can be slow to change. New discoveries emerging from the field of epigenetics, that further validate our self-healing capacities, will hopefully lead to a shift towards more acknowledgment and trust in our self-healing mechanisms. What would happen if we began to share these healing practices and information with our children?
Here’s another example of how we’ve ignored or minimized the self healing potential of the mind and body. For over fifty years we’ve been involved with double blind, placebo controlled studies to prove the effectiveness of new drugs. This sounds very scientific and unbiased, but what we’re proving is that a drug is more effective than the human mind, without showing any interest in the power of the human mind. The work being done in epigenetics is providing us with the mechanisms to understand how the ‘sugar pill’ or mind, can be such a powerful healing agent.
Today, the sugar pill is out performing the real drugs for depression more and more consistently, presumably as a result of the influence of all the advertising promoting the benefits of anti-depressants. That’s an example of the mind, or expectation, influencing the epigenome, and producing changes in our biology. You can learn to activate those healing resources, with interest and regular practice.
The evidence is mounting, hopefully undeniably so, that we have much more control over our health and healing than ever imagined.
The Human Genome Project, whose aim was to map the entire human genome and therefore make it possible to identify and eventually correct disease causing genes, ultimately demonstrated more to us about our inner healing potential than about the power of genes over us. As the project began it was assumed that up to 120,000 genes needed to be identified that would account for all the known proteins contributing to the complexity of human functioning. The fact that less than 24,000 genes were cataloged begs the question, if genes can’t explain the complexity of human functioning, what can? The answer lies in the epigenome, the variations of gene expression that arise from our life experience and interaction with our environment. What we think, feel, believe and expect, along with our diet, exercise and lifestyle, is orchestrating the expression of our genes and guiding our biology and health.
Epigenetics helps us to appreciate the studies showing how the health of identical twins can vary dramatically over the course of years. It also helps to explain numerous studies showing the influence on our health of such factors as: prayer, beliefs, attitudes, childhood trauma, nurturing, altruism and emotional stress. The field of epigenetics is validating for us one more time, that we have much more control over our health and well being than traditionally believed. The challenge for us is learning how to take advantage of this potential.
Dr. Templin offers online courses and consultations, and sees patients personally in his office in Lakeland, Florida. You can learn more about his course Bio-Energetic Focusing: A Revolutionary Medical Model for Self-Healing! here.
Steven Templin, D.O.M., Dipl. Ac., is a Doctor of Oriental Medicine, specializing in MindBody Medicine. He is a certified META-Medicine Health Coach and nationally certified acupuncturist. He shares the underlying science and more importantly, the practical tools for resolving the unconscious energetic and emotional roots of illness. In his online course Bio-Energetic Focusing: A Revolutionary Medical Model for Self-Healing! he provides training in Self-Regulation skills, that include Bio-Energetic Focusing, HeartMath and Energy Psychology techniques, Energy Medicine modalities, and Gastrointestinal repair for enhanced immunity, mood, and mental clarity. Dr. Templin is in private practice in Lakeland, Florida, at the Natural Medicine Center of Lakeland.
Steve is a retired Doctor of Oriental Medicine, Acupuncture Physician, and HeartMath Trauma-Sensitive Certified Practitioner with over 35 years of clinical experience in the fields of Energy Medicine, Energy Psychology, and Biofeedback. 