Thoughts Can Heal — and They Can Harm
Thought is something intangible. You cannot touch it, weigh it, or see it. So how can something so invisible affect physical reality?
The easiest way to understand this is by observing how thoughts influence your own body.
The easiest way to understand this is by observing how thoughts influence your own body.
Think back to a moment before an important exam, interview, or life event. Your palms become sweaty. Your heart starts racing. Your knees feel weak. Nothing has happened yet. You have not even stepped into the room. Yet your body is already reacting to the storm of thoughts running through your mind.
Now imagine slicing a fresh lemon. You smell its sharp, bright aroma. You see a drop of juice forming on the cut surface. Then imagine placing that slice on your tongue and pressing it gently against the roof of your mouth. Suddenly your mouth fills with saliva. You can almost feel the sourness burning your tongue… even though there is no real lemon present.
Thought is a subtle electrical impulse, but it carries enormous power. Through our emotions and mental focus, we influence the organs and systems of our body. With this same mechanism, a person can either support healing or slowly damage their own health.
At the University of Wisconsin–Madison, professor of psychology and psychiatry Richard J. Davidson conducted research exploring whether mindfulness meditation could physically change the human body. The study showed that participants who practiced mindfulness for eight hours demonstrated increased activity in genes responsible for reducing inflammation and supporting cellular recovery compared to a control group. This suggested that mental activity alone can influence biological processes.
Doctors around the world have long observed that optimistic patients often recover faster and experience fewer complications. Maintaining a hopeful outlook, sometimes described as “seeing life through rose-colored glasses,” can actually benefit physical health.
Medical literature also contains numerous cases of remarkable self-recovery. One well-known example is Valentin Dikul, a Soviet acrobat who suffered a severe spinal injury. Doctors predicted he would spend his life in a wheelchair. Instead, through relentless training, determination, and mental resilience, he not only regained mobility but later set strength records and opened rehabilitation centers to help others recover from similar injuries.
Unfortunately, thought does not work only in the direction of healing. It can also operate in the opposite way. Many people have heard stories of someone who “died from grief.” Persistent negative thinking, chronic stress, and emotional despair can gradually weaken the body, even when overall physical health seems stable.
Learning to observe and guide your thoughts is therefore not just a philosophical or psychological skill. It can become a crucial part of protecting both mental and physical well-being.
Now imagine slicing a fresh lemon. You smell its sharp, bright aroma. You see a drop of juice forming on the cut surface. Then imagine placing that slice on your tongue and pressing it gently against the roof of your mouth. Suddenly your mouth fills with saliva. You can almost feel the sourness burning your tongue… even though there is no real lemon present.
Thought is a subtle electrical impulse, but it carries enormous power. Through our emotions and mental focus, we influence the organs and systems of our body. With this same mechanism, a person can either support healing or slowly damage their own health.
At the University of Wisconsin–Madison, professor of psychology and psychiatry Richard J. Davidson conducted research exploring whether mindfulness meditation could physically change the human body. The study showed that participants who practiced mindfulness for eight hours demonstrated increased activity in genes responsible for reducing inflammation and supporting cellular recovery compared to a control group. This suggested that mental activity alone can influence biological processes.
Doctors around the world have long observed that optimistic patients often recover faster and experience fewer complications. Maintaining a hopeful outlook, sometimes described as “seeing life through rose-colored glasses,” can actually benefit physical health.
Medical literature also contains numerous cases of remarkable self-recovery. One well-known example is Valentin Dikul, a Soviet acrobat who suffered a severe spinal injury. Doctors predicted he would spend his life in a wheelchair. Instead, through relentless training, determination, and mental resilience, he not only regained mobility but later set strength records and opened rehabilitation centers to help others recover from similar injuries.
Unfortunately, thought does not work only in the direction of healing. It can also operate in the opposite way. Many people have heard stories of someone who “died from grief.” Persistent negative thinking, chronic stress, and emotional despair can gradually weaken the body, even when overall physical health seems stable.
Learning to observe and guide your thoughts is therefore not just a philosophical or psychological skill. It can become a crucial part of protecting both mental and physical well-being.