by Tim Brunson, PhD
There is a portal to our future. It is just above our right eye. It controls our mastery, our mind, and our health. Neuroscientists call it the right orbitofrontal cortex. However, to the rest of us it is home to anticipation, meaning, suggestion, and imagination. Once we tame it, it allows us to control our destiny. It provides us with virtually unlimited possibilities for a wonderful life. But if we allow it roam it can make our existence a living hell. The choice is ours.
The existence of the parts of the brain that allow us to think makes it possible for us to become the creator of our story. With our thoughts we can at will access certain talents – and with practice we can made turn these into superhero abilities. With our thoughts we can control how our mind functions so that happiness becomes an option not a dream. And with our thoughts we can literally command our body to change.
These ideas are not new. In fact, from the days of the ancient Hebrews, the origins of the Australian shamans, and the foundations of Indian and Tibetan mystical thoughts, recorded history shows many miraculous feats accomplished by seemingly ordinary people. In modern times our popular mythology gives us endless stories about victims, the disenfranchised, and the downtrodden who survive their misfortunes to become Spiderman, the Daredevil, and the Cinderella Man. These are not just stories. Think of the prodigious savants and countless rags to riches stories. Think of failures such as Thomas Edison and Abe Lincoln. It seems that when a spark occurs in the portal in our brain, everything changes. So, just how does suggestion and imagination make our future a wonderful canvas upon which to paint our destiny?
For over 30 years I've been fascinated with human potential. As a practitioner of hypnotherapy and Neuro-Linguistic Programming I've seen hundreds if not thousands of ordinary people transform right in front of my eyes. I've seen habits released, happiness achieved, and tumors dissolved. And as I've expanded my interests into mind/body integration, the medical doctors, psychologists, counselors, and even Tibetan Lamas who have been my teachers have opened my eyes to the power of the human mind.
I've pioneered the Neurology of Suggestion concepts as part of a system of human transformation. My readers and students have learned the basic concepts that include how we can access or correct neurological functions using suggestion and imagination, how to achieve mastery through focused attention, and how use the body's need to adapt to shape our health. In my courses I state emphatically that the multiple systems – or patterns, as I normally call them – that make up the human mind and body have as their primary drive a resistance to change. This drive must be circumvented if transformation is to occur.
In recognizing the multiple neuro-physiological patterns that make up the human entity, I've come to realize that each and every one of their components has a high degree of awareness and will adapt to their environment. Indeed, what I have found is that every component down to the cellular level has an intelligence. Yes, there is a top-level – or aggregate level, as I often call it – intelligence. But, I must state emphatically that this does not justify the name "subconscious mind." Despite years of indoctrination by degree-awarding programs and certification-giving associations, I suddenly realized that the existence of a subconscious mind is a myth, which since the year 1800 has been perpetuated by the self-styled authorities within the medical and psychological arenas. What I found is that, by respecting the innate intelligence of each component – together with their instinctual need to adapt or entrain to environmental changes – we find the most important and a fundamental of the transformative process.
So, let me start by discussing the first of the five basic Neurology of Suggestion and Advanced Neuro-Noetic HypnosisTM concepts. This is the existence of neuro-physiological patterns.
Everything around us and even in us can be explained by understanding their roles in patterns. This includes physics, social interaction, and even our physiology. Patterns are made up of components. The relationship between these components is called a structure. Physiological patterns include cells, organs, and systems. A component can even be a pattern.
The primary drive of any pattern or collection of patterns – or, as I prefer to say, pattern of patterns – is to resist change. Changes cause anxiety, anguish, and other uncomfortable feelings. One way to understand this is to think about how you feel when the prices of gas or groceries suddenly increase, when a good friend relocates to another city or country, or when your car fails to start in the morning. Yes, pattern resistance is important. However, this is not the end of the story.
Like the cars of a long railroad train, pattern components are meant to harmonize. When the engine accelerates, the cars will quickly match its speed. Conversely, when one car puts on the brakes, all cars will rapidly react. This constant re-harmonizing can be either called an entrainment or an adaptation. So, the second phenomenon that you must understand is the natural tendency for all components of a system to adapt back to a harmony when it becomes obvious that pattern resistance is futile. The options are to either become obsolete, or die, or to adapt. Understanding this adaptive requirement is key to understanding disease and illness.
Pattern components are in many ways multi-dimensional. A component in one pattern plays roles in a multitude of other patterns. To understand this, think of yourself as a pattern component. As such, you play roles as a therapist or a medical practitioner, a parent, a co-worker, a worshiper, a member of different types of organizations, etc. These roles define you. And, how you participate in these roles even describes your impact on each of the patterns with which you are integrated. I call the intricacies of your involvement an encoding. If you change how you interact, you become a catalyst for altering patterns. And as a change-agent, you force an entraining adaptation throughout each of the patterns.
For instance, say that you have a particular Saturday morning routine. This involves shopping at a particular venue such as the local farmers market. You are accustomed to being there at a specific time and interacting with the regular set of shoppers and merchants. Indeed, you become a component in the patterns of many different people. However, this Saturday something changes. Your son says that he is going to be passing through town and would like to stop by for breakfast. Although you will miss your normal Saturday morning jaunt to the market, you are thrilled by the opportunity to have a chance to visit with your son. So, without much thought your uncomfortable feeling of missing your normal routine is overcome as you adapt. And, although the merchants and friends at the market will miss you, they adapt and life goes on.
On the other hand, what happens when a single mother has a sick child? Although she can't afford miss another day of work, her priorities are clear. She must adapt to the situation. Nevertheless, people at the office must compensate for her absence and there will be tasks left undone. Again, there are multiple patterns, pattern resistance, and adaptation.
Understanding the importance of pattern theory and the other core concepts (i.e. balance, inhibition, plasticity, and entrainment) is vital as you begin to grasp how ANNHTM moves from its scientific foundation toward the development of applications involving performance enhancement, resolving mental pathologies, and healing the body.
The International Hypnosis Research Institute is a member supported project involving integrative health care specialists from around the world. We provide information and educational resources to clinicians. Dr. Brunson is the author of over 150 self-help and clinical CD's and MP3's.
Posted: 04/22/2013
