Mind-Body Unity and the Influence of Beliefs on Health

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This chapter explores studies on the connection between the mind and body, including experiments where beliefs about exercise and health influenced physical outcomes. The discussion covers the impact of mindset on health, the concept of the nocebo effect, and experiments manipulating beliefs to influence muscle growth and wound healing. Additionally, the chapter delves into the role of stress in health, challenging traditional medical beliefs and emphasizing the importance of mindfulness in reducing stress levels and improving overall well-being.

For those of us who are not dualists, the mind arises from our physical bodies -- mostly the brain, but the rest of the body has a role to play. And yet it remains tempting to treat the mind as a thing in itself, disconnected from how the body is doing. Ellen Langer is a psychologist who is one of the foremost researchers on the idea of mindfulness -- the cognitive skill of paying to one's thoughts, as well as to one's external environment. Her most recent book is The Mindful Body: Thinking Our Way to Chronic Health. We talk about how our state of mind can effect the functions of our body, sometimes in surprising ways.

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Blog post with transcript: https://www.preposterousuniverse.com/podcast/2024/06/17/279-ellen-langer-on-mindfulness-and-the-body/

Ellen Langer received her Ph.D. in Social and Clinical Psychology from Yale University. She is currently a professor of psychology at Harvard University. She is also an artist with multiple gallery exhibitions. Among her awards are a Guggenheim Fellowship and the Liberty Science Center Genius Award.

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