When we talk about health, we often think about our bodies first.
We think in physical terms about what we eat, how much we exercise, the physical symptoms we experience, the health of our organs and maybe what tests we need to do to check how our bodies are functioning.
There is a constant conversation taking place between our mind, our body and our spirit.
These are three aspects of ourselves that are deeply interconnected, and what happens in one area can influence the other areas.
Our thoughts, emotions, beliefs and perceptions can have a very real effect on our physical wellbeing.
When we are stressed, our thoughts can trigger a physical response. As stress hormones are released, our heart rates can increase, our muscles can become tense, and our breathing changes.
If this happens occasionally, our bodies are usually able to recover. But when stress becomes chronic, the constant activation of the stress response can begin to affect our sleep, digestion, immunity, energy levels and cardiovascular health.
Research shows that how we manage our thoughts has a huge impact on our physcial health.
What we feed our minds can create inflammation and can potentially switch harmful genes on.
Lao Tzu says: Watch your thoughts, they become your words; watch your words, they become your actions; watch your actions, they become your habits; watch your habits, they become your character; watch your character, it becomes your destiny.
Ultimately, we can perpetuate physical symptoms and behaviours’ just by the way we think.
It is not just about thinking positive thoughts.
I think we could all benefit from being intentional about the way we see and process daily events.
What role do external factors like the news and social media have on our mental and physical wellbeing?
News and social media can impact our mental and physical wellbeing.
Too many of us get sucked into taking in information just because it’s there. Some of us have a bit more of a morbid obsession and actively seek it out, but this can make us feel powerless, hopeless, out of control, depressed, and anxious.
Things to avoid if you know they have a negative effect on you are:
- The news, social media, doom scrolling
- Acquaintances or friends who complain, drain you or who bring you down
- Negativity
- Your own negative thinking patterns. Get some help if you can’t recognize them yourself, ask people close to you if there’s anything they are concerned about
Our eating habits can be influenced by a negative mindset.
When we don’t feel mentally or emotionally strong, we are much less likely to make healthy food choices because our bodies are going to call out very loudly for comfort foods to get that serotonin or dopamine boost it so desperately needs to feel happy.
The food that we eat affects our brain function, but the thoughts that we think and the things we expose ourselves to can have a profound effect on our physical health so it can be a bit of a vicious cycle.
One of the most beneficial things that can help to break the cycle is to bring awareness to what’s causing us to feel unwell. Then we need to learn to calm our nervous systems.
We can start by asking ourselves some deeper questions, like:
- What is happening in my mind?
- What is my body communicating?
- How am I managing stress?
- What relationships nourish me?
- What gives me meaning and purpose?
- And what can I do to bring greater balance into my life?
When we begin to see ourselves as an interconnected whole, health becomes more than treating individual symptoms.
We should also aim to have fun and laugh more, incorporate more exercise and movement in our daily lives, eat healthy foods, nurture social relationships, take time to enjoy some quiet time and spend time in nature.
Our bodies are constantly giving us information.
Our bodies are constantly giving us information. When we are physically unwell, exhausted, in pain or not sleeping properly, our mood and ability to cope can also be affected. Fatigue, digestive problems, headaches, muscle tension, changes in sleep or skin problems can sometimes be signals that something is out of balance.
This doesn’t mean that every physical symptom has an emotional or spiritual cause, but it does mean that we should look a little deeper when we do experience physical symptoms.
When we realise that we are not made up of isolated parts we can begin to bring awareness to the connections when there are emotional components to our physical symptoms.
Where does the spirit come in?
The spiritual dimension can mean different things to different people.
For some, it is connected to faith or religion. For others, it may be a sense of purpose, meaning, connection, values, nature, creativity or something greater than themselves.
Whatever our personal understanding of spirituality, having a sense of meaning, purpose and connection can contribute to our overall sense of wellbeing.
When we feel disconnected from ourselves, from other people or from what gives our lives meaning, we may experience this as an emptiness that isn’t necessarily solved by addressing the physical body alone.
Everything is connected.
If something is out of balance on any of these levels, we can experience this as stress. Emotional stress can lead to physical symptoms, but physical symptoms can also contribute to problems with our mental or spiritual wellbeing.
Listen to my interview with Anton Brink from Radio Cape Pulpit on 27 August 2026 to learn more. Listen to my next interview on Thursday at 7.45am.