We often get stuck in our heads, endlessly analysing, planning, and rehashing thoughts. While our cognitive abilities are powerful tools, when we live solely from that space of constant mental chatter, we lose an essential element – our connection to ourselves, our bodies, and the present moment. This disconnect can manifest as anxiety, depression, chronic stress, burnout, and a sense that something is profoundly missing despite all outward signs of success.
From the perspective of mind-body medicine, this separation of mind from body is at the root of many of our modern ailments. In a recent online interview, David Corby, founder of CCM, stated, “A lot of people are really disconnected. They live a lot in their heads. These days, with constant stimulation from phones and devices, there are very few moments of peace.”
This overactivation of the rational brain at the expense of the intuitive self can dysregulate the entire mind-body system: “When that happens, you overstimulate the nervous system, you overdo the logic part of the brain, and you lose track of your deeper self.”
This “deeper self” allows us to reconnect with something beyond just our conscious thoughts and surface feelings. “Connection is really about acknowledging that there’s more to us than our thoughts,” says David. “There’s even more to us than our feelings. There’s a deeper self as well. And we can only really connect to that when we have moments of quiet.”
These pauses from mental noise create openings to tune into our bodily felt-senses, our intuitions, our authentic values outside of the ego mind. Practices like spending time in nature can provide this reprieve – “If you go surfing…you’ll find that your mind starts switching off, and you’re just in tune with nature around you.”
In contrast, when we’re chronically disconnected, David describes it as “feeling alone, a separate individual, totally in your head and all you can hear all the time is thoughts, thoughts, thoughts.”
This separation of self from bodily awareness and present-moment experience is profoundly unhealthy from the mind-body perspective. David points out, “Every feeling tells us something about ourselves.” When we disconnect and override our emotions, we miss crucial feedback about what our minds and bodies truly need.
Take grief as an example. David reframes this often suppressed emotion, saying, “The feeling of loss is actually telling us we’ve lost ourselves” at a core level. Overriding that feeling disconnects us further from our human need to process and integrate difficult experiences in a healthy way.
Genuine mind-body balance comes from connection – “As soon as you feel like you’re part of something bigger than yourself, as soon as you feel in tune with nature and what’s around you, you know you’re in a more connected state.”
In our era of constant cognitive busyness, mind-body medicine practices provide paths back to this crucial sense of embodied presence, meaning and wholeness. Whether through breathwork, meditation, energy healing, or simply taking a moment to feel your feet on the ground, these tools help us get out of our heads and back into our beings as integrated humans.
By moving beyond identification with just our thoughts, we can begin to listen to and honour the deeper wisdom of our whole mind-body system. This is where true well-being, balance and growth become possible.
If you’re interested in pursuing a career in mind-body medicine and helping others achieve higher levels of well-being, we suggest that you attend our free upcoming discovery session.
