I hope that some of my personal experiences in really getting deeply in touch with my mind and body will help you. I've found that the mind is capable of so much more than I ever realized. I've heard of and read about all kinds of meditation, classes, books, etc., that take you to some other level of consciousness or what ever by following the program of this or that teacher. I'm sure most of them work quite well, after all many of them have been around for a long time, even thousands of years.

I first got interested in the power of the mind in 1956 when I went to a doctor for an ailment of some kind and while waiting for him in his office I noticed he had a large collection of books, many on hypnosis. Later, when talking with him I mentioned I was interested in hypnosis and asked to borrow one of his books. Then a few days later he mentioned his difficulty hypnotizing his nurse in order to treat her for some problem. I, being a young upstart who had read part of one book, offered to hypnotize her. He laughed and called her in. To my surprise more than his, I put her under in a matter of a couple of minutes. With his direction we were able to successully treat her problem. I later realized that the individual's mind does the job, the hypnotist only guides them. I was able to succeed where he failed only due to the fact he had an irritating voice that made him a lousy hypnotist. I ended up studying hypnosis with him, and another doctor, an M.D. who had studied at Duke University under Dr. Rhine. We found that I had the basis for being a pretty fair hypnotist. He had me hypnotize a patient, who had a problem with anesthesia, for a minor surgery. While under I was able to help this person control pain and bleeding, and the healing afterward. That's when I realized the real power of the mind and the body. We did considerable research into the relationship of the mind and the body with some exciting results.

Life took many twists and turns in the years following and I lost touch with my interest in this area while career, marriage and children took precedence. Then, God, having the sense of humor he does, decided to refresh my memory. Of course He had to knock several times before He got my attention. I had a massive heart attack, two different bypass surgeries and congestive heart failure leading to a heart transplant. Then two bouts of rejection. The first time they treated me with a powerful drug that within 30 seconds made me feel like I was having another heart attack followed immediately by the symptoms of the worst case of flu you could imagine. Chills, fever, diarrhea, vomiting and cramps. They gave me that medication everyday for 14 days. When I went back in for my next biopsy a week later they found rejection again so back in I went for 14 more days of treatment only this time they doubled the dosage.

I had found that music helped me focus my mind on staying alive during the time I was in intensive care waiting for my heart. I'm referring to soft calming music like "Claire de Lune", "theme from Somewhere in Time" and similar pieces. The particular music I used most was mainly soft piano solo works by Newell Oler. I also noticed that nurses and doctors would come to my room to listen to the music when they took a break. They usually commented how it releaved the stress. Well, I was under some first class stress about now myself but I realized I needed more than music. I talked with the immunologist, who described what was happening on a cellular level with the medication and my body. I was able to concentrate and visualize the cells and the battle taking place in my body. By focusing my mind on this I was able to get my body to utilize the medication to a higher degree than before. Finally, like flipping a light switch, I knew the battle was over and the rejection was gone. I told my doctors it was gone, and they performed a biopsy the next morning. That evening while eating supper in my pressurized isolation room I saw my doctor and coordinator enter the outer area to scrub before coming in. When they did come in they both were grinning like a couple of cheshire cats. Giving me the OK sign they announced that the rejection was gone, just as I had said.

My mind and my body were, and are one. Whenever anyone asks me how I feel I answer,"Wonderful!" My mind thinks the thought and my body responds. As a result I feel Wonderful. This is one of the basics you need to learn. The body tends to do whatever the mind tells it to do. Positive thoughts bring positive results and negative thoughts of course bring negative results. The old saying: "Be very careful what you wish for, you just may get it", holds true in this context. Notice that people who complain a lot or say they only feel "fair" are self-fulfilling prophecies. I can't emphasize enough the importance of "a positive attitude"

When I was in the hospital in intensive care waiting for my heart, I used the heart monitors to practice mind control by picking a heart rate and watching as the digital numbers changed to my choice. I found I could do the same thing with the blood pressure monitor. This usually brought the nurses running.

Since the transplant, I find I have to use different techniques, as they had to sever the nerves to the heart to remove it. Now my heart reacts to chemical changes in the body and with sympathetic response to the aortic sac of my old heart. It took some time, but I've learned to control the heart rate pretty good. Blood pressure is still related to physical conditions in the body so the mind-body relationship is still the same.

An exercise that I use is a form of meditation I guess. It starts with this thought,"My mind, my body, my heart, my soul, all working together for my well-being." I then proceed to concentrate on each of these as they relate to each other and my overall well being. I use this exercise anytime I feel the need but generally in the evening in bed. I can feel my body relax and my mind clear as I focus deeply. A wonderful sense of peace of mind and well-being floods over me.

Try it, you'll like it!