Mr. Jones, It’s all in your head!

 

What Would You Say If I Told You That Heart Disease Is All in Your Head?

It sounds crazy, doesn’t it?

We are taught that heart disease is a plumbing problem. We are told it is about clogged arteries, too much bacon, and bad luck in the genetic lottery. And while nutrition and exercise are incredibly important, they are not the whole story.

If you have been following my writing for a while, you know that I believe there is far more to health than just your blood work.

We are seeing more and more research pop up in medical journals about how our emotions play a massive role in our physical health. This field is called psychoneuroimmunology. That is a big word, but it just means “how your mind affects your nerves and your immune system.”

Even more important than the literature, we just know it is true.

Think about the last time you were really scared or stressed. Did your stomach hurt? Did your heart race? Did your neck get tight? That was not “all in your head.” That was a thought becoming a physical reality in your body.

The Problem: Arrogance Is Killing Us

For a long time, our health philosophy has been based on separating the mind from the body. It is a very arrogant position to take.

It is arrogant because, truthfully, we know so little about the deep mysteries of how the human body heals. Yet, certain parts of the medical world act like they have it all figured out. They treat the heart like a pump, the kidney like a filter, and the brain like a computer, acting as if these parts don’t talk to each other.

But modern society has elevated this arrogance to monumental proportions.

"Modern day society has elevated arrogance to monumental proportions in more than just health care."

We ignore the signals our bodies send us. We ignore our stress levels. We ignore our emotional health. And then we wonder why we get sick.

The truth is, your emotions might have far more to do with your longevity than your genetics, your diagnosis, or even your cholesterol score.

The Power of Belief: Can You Think Yourself Well?

There are many documented cases in scientific journals where people literally believed themselves back to health. These aren’t fairy tales; they are medical case studies.

For example, there was a famous study in the US involving 100 people who were diagnosed as terminally ill. The doctors did not expect them to live long. Yet, 12 years later, they were still alive¹.

When researchers looked at this group, they found they were all very different:

• Some used conventional treatments like surgery or chemotherapy.

• Some used alternative treatments like special diets.

• Some used psychological techniques or religious practices.

What did they all have in common? It wasn’t the pill or the surgery. It was an unfaltering belief that what they were doing would work for them. They fully bought into their own healing.

Turning Down the Histamine Response

The power of the mind goes even deeper than just “positive thinking.” It can actually change how your cells react to allergens.

Doctors Ikemi and Nakagawa at Yokohama City University in Japan conducted a fascinating study. They took subjects who were allergic to poison ivy.

• They told the patients they were touching a harmless plant (but it was actually poison ivy).

• Result: The itching, swelling, and blisters disappeared for 84% of them. Their bodies did not react because their brains believed they were safe².

Even more interesting? They reversed the experiment.

• They took a harmless plant but told the patients it was poison ivy.

• Result: A large number of subjects broke out in blisters.

Their skin reacted to a thought, not a toxin. This shows us that the brain is the master controller. If the brain believes there is a threat, it creates inflammation. If the brain believes it is safe, it calms down.

The Cancer Connection

Dr. David Spiegel at Stanford University conducted a famous study on a group of women with breast cancer back in the 1970s³.

• Half the group received the latest medical help.

• The other half received medical help plus “belief training” and support groups.

After a year, the second group reported much less pain and more optimism. But the real shock came ten years later. The group with the belief training had lived, on average, twice as long as the first group.

Now, I want to be transparent. In 1991, Stanford had trouble duplicating these exact results. Some critics said the first study was just a fluke.

But rather than throw the baby out with the bathwater, I look at it differently. I believe the difference was less significant in later studies because, in the 20 years since that groundbreaking research, everyone has become more aware of the “belief factor.” It has changed the way we approach cancer. Support groups, counseling, and positive visualization are now standard parts of care.

We now know belief matters.

"Belief is huge because it commands the brain to take charge of our physical reality."

The “Reptile Brain” and Survival

So, how does this actually work? How does a thought help you survive a disease?

From what I have read and seen while working with patients for over 30 years, I believe it comes down to what author Seth Godin calls the “Reptile Brain”⁴.

Your brain has different layers.

1. The Neocortex (The Wizard Brain): This is where you think, do math, and decide what to have for dinner.

2. The Brainstem and Amygdala (The Reptile Brain): This is the ancient part of your brain. It cares about one thing: Survival.

When you truly believe in a treatment—whether it is a diet, a prayer, or a chiropractic adjustment—you send a signal of safety to the Reptile Brain. You tell it, “We are going to be okay.”

When the Reptile Brain feels safe, it switches out of “Fight or Flight” mode and into “Rest and Repair” mode.

This engages the body’s deepest healing potential. I believe it convinces your body to re-create some of the exact same healing pathways that we used during embryogenesis (when you were first growing as a baby in the womb).

Your body knows how to build a heart. It knows how to build a spine. It knows how to repair a cell. It did it once from scratch! But it can only access those repair codes when it isn’t busy fighting a tiger (or stressing about a mortgage).

The Missing Link: It’s Not Just In Your Head, It’s In Your Spine

This is where things get really interesting, and where many people miss the boat.

You can have the most positive mindset in the world. You can meditate for an hour a day. You can believe you are going to heal.

But what if the phone line is cut?

Your brain communicates with your heart, your immune system, and your cells through the Central Nervous System. This system lives inside your spine.

If your spine is misaligned—if you have Forward Head Posture, scoliosis, or a loss of the natural curves—it creates physical tension on the spinal cord.

This physical tension acts like static on a phone line.

1. Your brain tries to send a “Healing” signal.

2. The signal hits the interference in your neck or back.

3. The message gets distorted.

4. The body stays in “Defense” mode instead of “Healing” mode.

The “State of the Union” for Your Health

Think of your body like a country. Your brain is the President. Your cells are the citizens.

If the President (Brain) wants to tell the citizens (Cells) that the war is over and it is time to rebuild the cities (Heal), he needs a working communication system.

If the roads (Nerves) are blocked by landslides (Subluxations/Misalignments), the message never arrives. The citizens keep fighting a war that is already over. They keep producing inflammation. They keep the blood pressure high. They don’t repair the damage.

This is why Advanced Certified Chiropractic BioPhysics (CBP) is so vital.

We don’t just “crack backs” for pain relief. We use physics, geometry, and biology to restore the structural integrity of your spine. When we fix the structure, we open the communication lines.

We allow the “Belief” to actually reach the “Body.”

Why Structure Determination Function

You cannot separate the mind from the body, and you cannot separate the body from its structure.

Research has shown that patients with poor posture (specifically Forward Head Posture) have lower Heart Rate Variability (HRV)⁵.

HRV is a measure of how well your body handles stress.

• High HRV: You are adaptable, healthy, and likely to live longer.

• Low HRV: You are stuck in stress mode, prone to heart disease, and aging faster.

When your head is stuck forward, it pulls on the spinal cord and irritates the Vagus Nerve. This nerve is the “chill out” switch for your heart. If that nerve is irritated, your heart is constantly running a marathon, even when you are sitting on the couch.

So, is heart disease all in your head? No. But the stress that causes it often starts there, and the structural shifts in your spine lock that stress into your body permanently.

The 100+ Living Philosophy

This brings us back to our mission at 100+ Living Health Centers.

We are inspired by the “Blue Zones”—those places in the world where people live vibrant lives past 100.

Do these centenarians have perfect genes? No.

Do they have expensive surgeries? No.

They have a 100+ Attitude. They have a mindset of purpose. They have strong social connections. And, crucially, they move their bodies naturally.

But in our modern world, we sit at desks. We look at phones. We drive cars. We have lost the natural movement that keeps our spines healthy.

That is why we need to be smarter. We need to engineer our longevity.

How We Help You “Engineer” Healing

At our Kelowna office, we take a different approach than most. We are not just looking for “pain spots.” We are looking for the root cause of the interference in your system.

We are the only Advanced Certified CBP office in the Interior of British Columbia. In fact, we are one of only two Advanced Certified offices in all of Western Canada.

Why does this matter?

It means we have a level of diagnostic excellence that is rare in today’s healthcare field. We don’t guess. We measure.

• We use digital X-ray analysis to measure your spine down to the degree and millimeter.

• We use nerve scans to see how much stress is stuck in your system.

• We look at your posture, your biomechanics, and your history.

If you have been told “it’s all in your head,” or “you just have to live with it,” you might just be looking in the wrong place. You might have a structural problem that is keeping your “Reptile Brain” in survival mode.

3 Steps to Unlock Your Healing Potential

So, how do you combine the power of belief with the power of structure? Here is where you start.

1. Check Your Beliefs

Do you believe you can heal? Or have you accepted your diagnosis as a life sentence? Remember the study of the poison ivy. Your cells are listening to your thoughts. Start visualizing your body as strong, capable, and healing.

2. Manage Your Stress

You cannot heal if you are running from a tiger. You need to find ways to calm your Reptile Brain. This could be meditation, deep breathing, or just walking in nature.

3. Correct Your Structure

This is the step most people miss. You need to ensure your nervous system is clear. You need to verify that your spine is not creating a background noise of “stress” that drowns out your healing signals.

A Call to Action for Your Life

I would love to hear your experiences with believing yourself well.

Have you had a family member or someone close to you who prayed or was prayed for and was healed?

Have you ever noticed that your pain gets worse when you are stressed?

I would love to hear your story to add to the experiences I’ve seen in my private practice over the last 30 years. Add your story in the comments below.

But more importantly, I want you to take action for your own future.

If you are dealing with a long-standing problem—whether it is back pain, fatigue, or just a feeling that your health is slipping away—do not settle.

Excellence in diagnostics is the first step to a solution.

If you are in the Okanagan, I invite you to come see us. Let’s look at the blueprint of your body and see what is really going on.

You are designed to be healthy. You are engineered for longevity. Sometimes, you just need a little help to get back on track.

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About Dr. Graham Jenkins

Dr. Graham Jenkins is a chiropractor with over 30 years of experience and is the founder of 100+ Living Health Centers in Kelowna, BC. He holds the prestigious Advanced Certification in Chiropractic BioPhysics (CBP), making him one of the few experts in Western Canada qualified to perform structural spinal rehabilitation.

Dr. Jenkins is passionate about the science of longevity. He helps families live long, strong, vibrant lives by combining the philosophy of the “Blue Zones” with the hard science of spinal correction. He collaborates with researchers at Carleton University and UBC on spinal rehab and immune function to ensure his patients receive the most evidence-based care available.

Disclaimer: This content is for educational purposes only and does not replace professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health plan.

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References

1. Pelletier, K.R. (1977). Mind as Healer, Mind as Slayer. Dell Publishing. (Discussing the longevity of terminally ill patients with strong belief systems).

2. Ikemi, Y., & Nakagawa, S. (1962). “A psychosomatic study of contagious dermatitis.” Kyushu Journal of Medical Science. (The poison ivy study demonstrating the physiological effects of suggestion).

3. Spiegel, D., et al. (1989). “Effect of psychosocial treatment on survival of patients with metastatic breast cancer.” The Lancet. (The landmark study on support groups and cancer survival).

4. Godin, S. (2010). Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?. Portfolio. ( discussing the concept of the “Lizard Brain” or amygdala and its resistance to change).

5. Moustafa, I.M., et al. (2020). “The effect of normalizing the sagittal profile of the lumbar spine on the heart rate variability in patients with Lumbar Kyphosis.” Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics. (Evidence connecting spinal structure to autonomic nervous system function).