Reframing Dis-ease as a Tool For Healing & Growth

It can be all too easy, especially when we aren’t feeling well, to harbor negative beliefs, thoughts, and emotions about our bodies. We may feel frustrated, betrayed, hopeless, angry, or even hateful about what we are physically experiencing. We wonder what we did to deserve this, what we did wrong, or why our body can’t just cooperate and do what it’s supposed to.

I used to think many of these things myself, and I’ve heard them from many others as well! But as I’ve studied, traveled the path of healing, and watched others do the same, there are a few things that have become increasingly clear to me.

• The body rarely makes mistakes.

• Unpleasant symptoms do NOT mean your body is betraying you! It’s simply trying to get your attention and point you in the right direction.

• More often than not, the body is trying to protect you from further spiritual, emotional, or physical harm. Our physical symptoms have an uncanny way of presenting us with a perfect metaphor for what is happening in our inner spiritual/energetic world.

• What we perceive as a “disease” is often the body trying to work through a healing response. It is up to us to choose whether we work WITH that response or AGAINST it.

For example, hypothyroidism and Hashimoto’s are often the results of a survival or safety mechanism within the body. If there was a famine, slowing the metabolism down and putting the reproductive system on hold would actually be good things, that would allow a woman to survive until things got better. In our modern world, we don’t really experience famine per se, but we do experience malnourishment due to the Standard American Diet or due to calorie restriction in the name of weight loss! The body wants you to survive, and it wants you to be able to make strong, healthy babies, so it slows the thyroid, metabolism, and reproductive system down until the underlying problems are corrected.

Another beautiful safety feature is that the body often decreases thyroid function and makes the cells resistant to thyroid hormone when it’s been exposed to too much iodine. This prevents going into severe hyperthyroidism, which is actually far more dangerous than hypothyroidism!

Experiencing a “dis-ease” like Hashimoto’s or hypothyroidism can also be a signal from our body that there is a stressor, trauma, or emotional/spiritual issue that needs to be resolved. In fact, thyroid issues, heart attacks, breast cancer, and many other illnesses have been observed to surface shortly after, or in relation to, specific stressful and traumatic events. It could be a toxic relationship or divorce; the loss of a spouse, child, home, or job; the major hormonal shifts that happen postpartum or going into menopause, or a major toxin exposure.

As I look back at my own journey through hypothyroidism, I can see that there were physical factors like postpartum hormonal shifts, dietary choices, and nutritional deficiencies. But there were also some spiritual/emotional issues like my need for perfection, a lack of trust, and an inability to speak up for myself. My body wasn’t making mistakes. It was pointing me to the life lessons I needed to learn!

As you make your way through your healing journey, pay attention to ALL of the facets that may be affecting you. Do the work to correct physical factors, but also do the inner work to heal the energetic, spiritual, and emotional aspects that may be affecting you. Look for the traumas and stressors that need to be healed or released. Reframe the way you view “dis-ease.” Learn to listen to the perfectly tuned language of your body, decipher what it’s telling you, and begin to work WITH it rather than against it. Your symptoms are here to help you heal, learn your life lessons, and grow to your fullest potential!