25 Scientifically Proven Tips to Protect our Immune Systems During the Coronavirus Pandemic

Did you know that our thoughts can literally kill us? 

There are many studies demonstrating the power of our thoughts. Bruce Lipton shares the story of a young boy who had a terrible skin condition that covered his body in what he thought were warts. After exhausting all the traditional treatments without success, he was brought to a physician, Dr. Albert Mason, who had been using hypnosis to treat other patients with warts. Through hypnosis, Dr. Mason was successful in treating his young patient to recover to the extent that this previously untreated condition was almost completely healed through the power of hypnosis. 

This case, as explained in Bruce Lipton’s book, “The Biology of Belief,” is one of many that demonstrates the power of our minds to heal.  

This power is often called the placebo effect, and has proven so powerful that in some cases, in which a control group is given a sugar pill in order to assess the power of the drug being studied. Interestingly, in some cases, the placebo effect is so powerful that it is more effective than the drug under study!

Even more interesting is what Lipton calls the nocebo effect, in which our minds can create illness by believing in it.

In one case, Lipton details a situation in which a surgeon mistakenly diagnosed a patient with esophagal cancer, and told the patient that he only had a short time to live. Sure enough, the patient was dead within a few weeks. Shockingly, the autopsy showed that, although there was some cancer, there was not enough to kill the patient, and there was no esophagal cancer at all! It was the belief that he was going to die that killed him!

Now, if we take this information, and apply it to our situation with the Coronavirus today, the belief that we carry within us is either going to save us, or it is going to kill us!

So, the question becomes, how do we actually embrace the idea that we are absolutely safe, that we are going to remain healthy, no matter what! How do we counteract the glut of information that is presently swirling around us?  

How do we stay positive when today’s information seems to be so full of depressing news?

Please be clear: I am not recommending disregarding the caution to be safe, to self isolate, to wash our hands often and thoroughly. 

In fact, it may be taking these very precautions that not only keeps us healthy and safe, but prevents those we love from becoming sick.

What I am saying is that anxiety over whether we are going to get sick and die, or that those we love are going to get sick and die, allowing ourselves to sink into ever deepening depression may in fact be the determining factor in creating this self-fulfilling prophecy!

Instead, I am proposing that we focus on our wellness, that we take whatever action we can to be healthy, and that we purposely focus our thoughts on things that nurture us.

If our thoughts are focused on the threat of Coronavirus, we traumatize ourselves, releasing the stress hormones adrenalin, cortisol and norepinephrine  into our bodies, increasing the likelihood of getting sick.

On the other hand, if we are focused on bathing ourselves and others in love, we release the love hormone oxytocin into our bodies, increasing the chances of staying well.

So, the question becomes, how do we focus on love?

Here are some proven processes that I will explain more fully in a future blog:

1. listen to love songs
2. read love stories
3. watch love stories on TV
4. Practice meditation
5. Practice mindfulness
6. Practice tapping
7. Watch funny movies and videos
8. Use affirmations: “I am healthy, I am well, I am loved, I am loving.”
9. Physical exercise, such as yoga
10.  Get out in nature if possible while maintaining social distance; hug a tree!
11.  Nourish  yourself with healthy food. Eat mindfully.

Practices that magnify the power of love, as they also provide love hormones to those on the receiving end!

1.  Take a bath with candles, while reading a love story and/or listening to love music/ take a bath with someone you love.
2.  Write love letters to those you love 
3.  Phone at least one person every day and tell them that you love them.
4.  Create funny videos and post on social media
5.  Reach out to someone who is sick and/or lonely
6.  If you are isolating with a partner or children, hug at least 10 times a day. Hug your dog, hug your cat, hug yourself!.
7.  Create something to give away when this is over. Art, music, crafts.
8.  Eye gazing: look in the mirror. Tell yourself that you love you. Take some time with this, really mean it. Gaze deep into your partner/child’s eyes. Tell them you love them. 
9.  Give yourself a massage. Give your loved one a massage. 
10.  Pray/send loving thoughts. We collectively need to be sending loving thoughts to specific loved ones, but also to the world, to China, to Italy, to our frontline helpers, to all people who have been touched by this virus. Imagine the world bathed in white, healing light. 
11.  Gratitude list: start our day with a list of what we’re grateful for.  This is an opportunity to slow down and really notice even the smallest things. Tell others why you’re grateful for them.
12.  Little act of kindness; make someone else’s bed, make a special meal, get creative.
13.  If you are living with someone, when talking, put down the device and really focus on what they are saying.
14.  The ultimate oxytocin booster, is of course, sex. We’ll look forward to the baby boom in 9 months!

Please respond with your own ideas, and I will try to share them in upcoming blogs.

Stay well, my friends!

Love, Arlene