This piece of writing comes from a personal space ♡
Healing is an obstinate process, where one endures pain, cradles with bouts of anger, frustration, overcomes denial, grasps the concept of acceptance, and most importantly, one learns what it really means to be courageous. This progression can be a colossal drudgery both mentally and physically.
This blog today has a book recommendation too, yay!!
Physical healing, the inborn magic!
While I sit down to write a narrative on what “healing” really means, I am more inclined to talk about the basic difference between physical well-being and spiritual, mental well-being.
The major compounds of the human body are water, fat, protein, minerals, and carbohydrates. While there are six major chemical elements which are oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorous, these accounts for 99% of the mass of a human body. An interesting fact to consider, while we know what the biological function of these elements is, our body contains small amounts of elements that serve no known biological function (science sure has a lot of catching up to do).
Now, let us try and understand the physical wound healing process from a physiological outlook.
For instance, it is a continuous process but, if we decide to divide the process without rhyme or reason it can be divided into four phases which includes blood changing to solid or semi- solid-state, stopping phase of the blood flow, swelling, rebuilding of tissues, and finally scar formation.
The scars caused by deep penetrating wounds usually leave some sort of a mark behind which stays with you for a longer time, sometimes even forever.
It helps you reminisce the day, the time, the cause of the wound and how it used to concern you when it was once open and raw.
Non- physical(spiritual) healing - treating the mind and soul
Non-physical sickness usually manifests with either a nagging thought or unexplainable chest discomfort, the feeling of rage, lack of energy or maybe a mindset where one settles for less. It can be characterized by all the above and more albeit a seemingly well-built exterior. Healing process of the mind and the soul coincides with the healing process of our physical body, however, in this case, there are internal scars, it can be a slow yet gradual development towards internal healing and mindfulness.
For some of us, mental health could be a very modern concept, however, it might come as a surprise that there were many scholars from centuries ago (as early as the 9th century) who recognised various mental health issues and tried to treat people in spiritual ways which have now led to reformed contemporary methods.
Drawing your attention to few interesting coping strategies coined by scholars from the past centuries which have paved way for modern-day treatment regimen to help people with mental illness.
Learning to comprehend the functions and processes of the soul and suggesting cognitive approaches to combat mental illnesses, e.g., adjusting our behaviour and goals and not to grieve over what one has missed out on.
(9th-century scholar Abu Yūsuf Yaʻqūb ibn ʼIsḥāq aṣ-Ṣabbāḥ al-Kindī, a philosopher, polymath, mathematician, physician, and a musician.)
The belief that the human spirit can restore the power of balance in the body and mind and the task of the medicine was simply to aid in this process – this scholar introduced approximately 30 medicinal herbs for treating and managing depression- some of which have demonstrated anti-depressant like qualities in modern-day clinical trials.
(10th century, Ibn Sina, also known as Abu Ali Sina, and often known in the West as Avicenna, was a Persian polymath who is regarded as one of the most significant physicians, astronomers, thinkers and writers of the Islamic Golden Age, and the father of early modern medicine)
Other therapies like prayer, meditation, sleeping, aromatherapy, spiritual healing using symbols and metaphors to overcome complicated events in one’s life( these are used even today) were discovered, recognised and introduced centuries ago.
While we heal, it is imperative that we concede ourselves to the idea that there can be more than one way to make this healing process a little less of a roller coaster ride and more like a camel ride, maybe? Because of course, it is going to be a bumpy ride home. But trust me it is worth all the endeavours.
For those interested in human psychology I suggest you read the book, "Flow the psychology of optimal experience" by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, which is about an expanding field of psychology, and it talks about all things happiness!
Guest writer Anusha Moses
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