How Focused Thought Affects your Biology
The healing art work we do affects the energy of the body on a cellular level. Regardless of the scientific research to back it up, if I can feel the difference, I’d like to know how this works.
Meditation has become a practical everyday tool for stress relief, commonly associated with focus, creativity and self-awareness. Mental preparation and neuro plasticity is a mainstream concept regardless of someone’s interest in spiritual development: corporations, athletes, celebrities and health professionals have been advocating the positive effects of meditation on the body’s physiology.
Our brain is an organ with its natural rhythms, reacting to experiences, adjusting itself from a beta brainwave (conversation), to alpha (feels like reiki), theta (dreams), delta (deep restorative sleep) and even gamma brainwave (when time slows down and you become ultra aware). Each situation requires your brain to adapt its electric current, and it’s doing an excellent job at it. Kids who play video games are in Theta brainwaves, it’s a habit we can develop.
When we meditate, our focused thoughts affects the brainwaves. Anyone can do it: we’re already practicing our « theta state» every night when we dream.
I moved to New York City to become an actress. The “raw material” for my life is human emotion:
“I’ve been a student of feelings, which are essentially chemicals, running through the body.” – Flo
Emotions are felt throughout the day, naturally dissipating or transforming. Your experience being cranky, confident or blissful has to do with hormonal neurotransmitters or neuropeptides.
From an acting standpoint, portraying a character that’s psychologically demanding can be a challenge in one’s personal life. Because we’re not used to carrying such darkness or mental unbalances.
The circumstances from the character in the play put your nervous system in alert and as a professional actor, you get to learn how to experience doing a role throughout the run of the production, which may be numerous weeks.
Neuroscientist Candace Pert describes how feelings are linked to bodily processes in her 1997 book “Molecules of Emotions.” The basic logic which is so powerful yet overlooked is that changing your mind makes everything different — you can just change your mind about it. Change what you think.
Yes, we can change our beliefs, let me show you how:
ThetaHealing® Certification Training
Was Shakespeare right when he wrote “I think therefore I am?” He didn’t say “Go work on your beliefs”… but that would have been useful too.
Last week I met with a director to explore a potential film project together. Through our conversation, I noticed that I was proud of being “artistically fulfilled,” however the thought of claiming to be “already successful” incurred somewhat of an uncomfortable feeling within me. And to his point, it might be the motivation I need so I can keep making progress. The discomfort I felt is connected to my subconscious wiring.
The beliefs “When i consider myself successful, I will stop growing,” or maybe even “I need to be mysterious in order to be a good artist,” are a reflection of the neural pathways in my brain. Those are my current limitations and I can choose to change my mind about it. So, how do I prepare the cells in my body to be aligned for artistic success without getting in my own way? By witnessing a ThetaHealing energy download.
Focused thought is where it’s at: training your brain to witness, while in a deep theta state, aka the meditation part. A little practice and concentration does wonders to transform feelings, specifically affecting the cellular receptors for emotions.
In the metaphysical world, we speak about the Law of Witness, stating that once something is observed its behavior changes. The same principle is called “observer effect” in quantum physics: observation shapes reality. When you pay attention, it changes everything: it’s all about vibration.
The irony is that a scientist kinda has to be nosy so as not to affect the experiment he or she is watching. But you my friend can be like a healer, and witnessing will become your super power!
“All is not what it seems. You wanna play?” – Vianna
I took my first class with with Vianna Stibal, the creator of ThetaHealing® in 2005. For the last decade, I have been able to make a living helping people individually with the principles of the technique, teaching the certification program, as well as participating as a translator in the teacher training.
This work has been life changing for me, fostering a creative and professional path far beyond what I thought was possible. Where do I start? It’s a daily practice. You become empowered to work on others and yourself.
To change the physiology of my body, I have to focus my thoughts and transform the brain activity to affect the cell receptors for emotion.
I’m not talking about positive thinking in la-la land, but engaging focused thoughts with what we call in ThetaHaling an “energy download” or “doing feeling work.” First you prepare your nervous system with a meditation that calms your mind, bringing it to a theta brainwave. Then you focus your thought and witness a shift, harnessing the principles of quantum physics. You will feel different.
Our goal is to affect hormonal receptors (1) in the membrane of the cell to translate into a broader range of emotions. If your cells are unfamiliar with a feeling or a sensation, then it’s natural reaction is to reject it. It is our brain’s job to communicate to the cells in order to regulate the creation and sensitivity of hormonal receptors as needed.
Flo Ankah at a zoom acting audition, the new normal.
Here are some downloads for you:
– Would you like to know that you you are capable of transforming your reality?
– Would you like to know that you are on your path already and that you can improve every day?
If so, say yes! ✨
How does this communication work, what’s the science behind it?
The body has two primary communication systems that play crucial roles in influencing emotions: the nervous system uses neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, and adrenaline to transmit signals between neurons within milliseconds, creating immediate emotional responses. And the endocrine system, which relies on hormones—chemical messengers that travel through the bloodstream such as cortisol or oxytocin—to regulate organ function and physiological processes over a longer time frame, modulating longer-term emotional states and mood stability.
Neuropeptides are short chains of amino acids that can alter the excitability of neurons, affecting how signals are processed within the brain (2)(3). Their ability to modulate synaptic strength and neuronal excitability plays a role in shaping behaviors and psychological states, suggesting that intentional mental activities might alter synaptic connections, thereby reshaping neural circuits in response to focused thought.
Other research in affective immunology (4) describes how the emotional and immune systems engage in continuous communication; and emotions like stress, joy, or sadness can alter immune function, potentially affecting susceptibility to diseases and overall health. This field of study implies that we could improve physical health, harnessing the brain’s adaptability and emotional regulation mechanisms to strengthen both our immune system and emotional resilience.
Our brain has the ability to adapt and change its structure and function in response to stimuli. Thanks to this neuroplasticity, you are able to form new neural connections throughout life in response to experiences, thoughts, emotions, and even intentional practices like meditation or learning new skills.
Once we are able to regulate our feelings and beliefs about an experience, we naturally change how the perspective of that situation makes us feel, our mental capacity increases.
Are you ready? The experiences you are manifesting are unique to you, and meant to expand your mind. Life was never going to be boring. What challenges are you creating for yourself? Let’s work on it.
(1) “Physiology, Cellular Receptors” from StatPearls (2024) provides an in-depth overview of how cells communicate through various receptors and signaling mechanisms.
(2) “Neuropeptides as Primary Mediators of Brain Circuit Connectivity” by Guillaumin and Burdakov (2021) explores the pivotal role of neuropeptides in modulating brain circuit connectivity.
(3) “New Light on Cortical Neuropeptides and Synaptic Network Plasticity” by Smith et al. (2020) delves into the significant role of neuropeptides in regulating brain function and behavior, particularly focusing on their influence on cortical synaptic network plasticity.
(4) “Affective Immunology: Where Emotions and the Immune Response Converge” by Fulvio D’Acquisto (2017) explores the intricate relationship between emotional and immune systems, proposing the establishment of a new research field termed “affective immunology.”