Collin County Living Well Magazine Winter 2015 | Page 16

Mind, Body,
and Neuro-Linguistic
Programming (NLP)

T

here has always been a difference between eastern vs. western medicine. Eastern thinks mind and
body are connected while western believes there is
a separation. Even with lots of medical and scientific research about the topic, no one can really understand its entirety. One thing is for sure, mind and body
communicate between each other in extraordinary ways!
Hippocrates once said, “Men ought to know that from the
brain, and from the brain only, arise our pleasures, joy,
laughter and jests, as well as our sorrows, pain, griefs, and
tears. The brain is part of the neurological system and deals
with all our emotions.

NeuroPower
Many think the brain is the most powerful organ in the human body. Neurologists and psychiatrists have to deal with
patients that had entered into deep levels of unconsciousness. Even though the brain is an organ, it internalizes all
our mental functions. Pandya (2011) help us understand
the correlation of brain, mind, and soul explaining that
mental functions are part of our minds and the structure
that produces them is the brain. Neurons are deployed and
connected in infinite variations that result in complex neural networks with chemical and electrical reactions that are
contained in the mind. If we understand this concept, we
can understand when Pandya (2011) states, “Even though
the mind cannot be localized in a specific area in the brain,
abnormalities attributed to the mind are consequences of
chemical processes within different parts of the brain.” The
University of Maryland Medical Center have done research
among psychiatrists and other physicians that had studied
the impact of emotions on different body systems concluding that you can train the mind to focus on what you want
to achieve, even controlling your health. Are there methodologies that can help us understand and apply the correlation between thoughts, emotions, behavior, and language?
There are many answers but one that encompasses all variables is NLP (Neuro- Linguistic Programming).

By Julie Alvira, MD, MBA

“Progress is impossible without change, and
those who cannot change their minds cannot
change anything.” George Bernard Shaw

NLP––Neuro- Linguistic Programming
My first encounter with NLP was during a trip through Asia
where I casually met Neurocoach Felix Sanchez. Felix, an
NLP practitioner (IANLP) from Dominican Republic and Vice
President of The Dominican Association for Neurolinguistic
Programming, explained that this methodology deals with
mental connections and perceptions and teaches how to
modify them so that we can enter into certain states of individual excellence and have the ability to obtain the results
we desire. It is a combination between brain, language,
and body. After researching and practicing some techniques based on NLP founders, John Grinder and Richard
Bandler, I can conclude it works. To explain NLP in simple
form here’s how it’s internalized: Neuro––our mental system absorbs through the senses (images, sensations, taste,
smell) the data received. It is called mental map or first
access. Linguistic––a second mental map is created by assigning language to the data absorbed in neuro. Programming––the behavioral response after neuro linguistic filtering. The power of communication involves the verbal (word
power) and non verbal (body interpretation ) language.
In human communication the five senses are like windows
that we open to absorb information and how we exteriorize
depends on how we filter and execute. NLP can provide
powerful tools and skills in all areas––personal and professional–– such as: counseling, psychotherapy, education,
health, creativity, law, management, sales, leadership, relationships, and parenting. It had become a phenomenon
with public seminars worldwide. Grinder and Bandler
asked themselves this question, “What is the difference that
makes the difference between somebody who is merely
competent and someone who excels at the same skill?”
The answer, NLP.

Julie Alvira, M.D., MBA Healthcare Management creator of AJBodysculpt. www.ajbodysculpt. com. A
health, wellness, and fitness platform that provides you with the necessary tools to get into a healthier
lifestyle. Hea