With the constant bombardment from the media about swine flu, a British life coach has felt it necessary to speak out.
Trevor Emdon, 52, a British psychiatric nurse and psychotherapist turned life coach, believes the power of our minds will keep us healthy.
"We are not machines," he declares. "If you drive your car into a wall, you'll damage it. But contact with a virus does not mean you are going to catch the illness."
He goes on to point out that even if, as some predictions have it, one billion people do get the swine flu virus, that means five billion people will stay healthy.
The placebo effect, Trevor reminds us, has proved in every trial that the power of belief can and does cure even the most terrible of diseases.
"The media is causing people to feel negative, helpless and afraid," Trevor says defiantly. "Fear comes from a feeling of not being in control."
This is not an act of willpower. Trevor insists that you don't keep swine flu at bay by scrunching up your eyes and tensing all your muscles and saying "I'm healthy, I am HEALTHY!" It might help, but it's more likely to have the opposite effect, because it's like trying not to think of an elephant. Your head will fill with thoughts of elephants.
Instead, it's an act of emotion, he explains. He instructs us to feel healthy on purpose. He wants us to notice how clean each breath feels. He even proposes we watch more comedy, since laughter releases endorphins - natural "feel good" hormones!
He recommends meditation too - anything to remind us that it is ourselves - not "circumstances"
"I want to get across that you have the power to choose what you focus on, what you think about and how you feel. You are not powerless by any means!"
It's a simple and empowering idea. Since it costs nothing, it seems worth a little extra effort to consciously focus on health, humour and the power of our thoughts to change our lives.
More of Trevor's positive living ideas and unique life coaching style can be found at his website: http://www.wizardofwisdom.com
