What He Didn't Know Almost Killed Him

Ever noticed how ailments ambush us when we're going through difficult times?

Feeling assaulted by stressful situations and people can trigger our subconscious minds to relay urgent pleas for help, as if we’re under attack. Our immune systems may overreact, seeing airborne and ingested substances as dangerous, producing antibodies to defend our health. We may suddenly suffer from new allergies to previously harmless substances, as our bodies are pleading for help the only way they can: new ailments that symbolize our distress.

For example, after an argument with my boyfriend over dinner, an itchy red skin rash erupted on my left arm every time I ate celery and/or pork. Analyzing the mind-body wisdom of this situation revealed:

• The cruel, rash things he’d said caused red hot emotions that got under my skin (skin rash)
• I was itching to tell him off but feared further confrontation (itchy skin)
• I wanted to be hugged and loved but was attacked (left side conditions are about love and relationships, arms symbolize reaching to people and things outside of us)

That night we’d eaten a pork and celery stir fry dinner. My subconscious mind linked those substances with fear, danger, attack from outside influences, hence the new allergies.

Sounds weird, right? Yet the subconscious mind often makes these connections when it believes we’re under assault. The stress response to flee or fight is triggered, our bodies produce adrenaline and many chemicals including histamine. Histamine regulates brain and sleep functions, but too much can trigger severe allergies, as Sam discovered.

SEVERE ALLERGIES MADE SAM AFRAID TO EAT

DISCLAIMER: Always seek a doctor’s help for any medical condition, especially severe allergies. This article does not replace a doctor's care.

A thirty-something personal trainer in London I’ll call Sam had developed relentless allergic reactions to a growing list of foods. He could no longer hang out for beers and pizza with his mates in the pub, as soon afterward he experienced extreme fatigue, brain fog, nausea and other flu-like symptoms.

Months later, all he could eat were a few vegetables and certain kinds of fruits. Sam’s formerly buff body had rapidly become emaciated and weak. He spent lots of time and money on treatments, but local medical professionals and holistic practitioners were unable to guide him back to well being. His heartbroken family and friends watched his decline and mentally prepared themselves for the worst.

The one aspect that Sam and his healthcare providers didn’t think to explore was releasing the emotional distress that occurred right before his body became increasingly allergic to most foods and beverages. Trauma relief signals to the body that the danger is gone, stress response can halt, recovery and healing are now safe to begin.

We’ve all suffered with trauma, been in fearful situations and unaware of the toll it’s taking on our bodies. But if you or a loved one suffer from a stubborn ailment or lingering condition, please consider the below.

BEING A MIND-BODY-EMOTIONS WELLNESS DETECTIVE

Here are three clues that your physical ailments may be lingering or worsening due to repressed emotional trauma:

1. Your doctors or medical professionals are baffled because the treatments they apply don't work well or permanently or at all. You may have heard them mutter, “I've never seen anything like this before.”
2. Your prescriptions don't work sufficiently well, or at all. Back at the doctor’s office (again) you hear your physician say, “I don't know why your body is not responding to these medications.”
3. The physical condition started after or around the time of an extremely traumatic, emotional, frightening or stressful period of your life. When you think about this difficult time, you still feel sick inside or afraid or anxious. Your reaction is a sure sign that stagnant, stuck emotions are contributing to your ailment and won’t let it heal.

LONDON CALLING: SAM’S EMOTIONAL RESCUE

Sam contacted me after finding my online practitioner listing. He confessed he’d ignored these allergies that subtly began after a devastating breakup with a woman he loved and wanted to marry. They’d eaten many meals together during their relationship. He’d pass by restaurants they’d frequented, then feel deep sadness and grief at the loss of his love. The sadder he felt, the worse his allergies became.

Sam was dumbfounded when I suggested that his subconscious mind had slowly triggered allergies to every kind of food and beverage that he’d consumed with his sweetheart. His mind incorrectly made the connection that those foods brought emotional pain, and allergies kept him safe from additional trauma and heartbreak with other women. He admitted he’d entertained these thoughts. Desperate to heal, Sam let me guide him back to well being.

LET THE HEALING BEGIN

We worked together via hours of intercontinental phone sessions. I directed him to release his trauma by tapping with his fingertips on various acupressure points on his torso, face, hands and legs. This modality, called Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), releases stuck trauma and non-beneficial emotions. EFT is similar to acupuncture but is needle-free and can be self-applied for relief.

Sam gave me his permission to share his healing journey in hopes of helping others with puzzling allergies, sensitivities or intolerances. We cleared out many fears, doubts and payoffs (reasons to remain ill), including this partial list:

• I'll never be healthy enough to live a normal life, no matter what I do.
• I'm not ill but I am neurotic like others have said, and these allergies are all in my head, that’s why no medical professionals can help me.
• Nothing has helped me permanently, I’m terrified that these substance reactions will never end and I’ll die soon.
• If I do heal, more trauma will occur. Allergies keep me safely away from the dating and nightclub scenes so I can't meet women and get my heart broken again and again.
• Allergies got extra attention for me as a child, and made me feel special and loved in my family after younger siblings were born.
• Food allergies forced me to engage in clean eating, and I'm afraid to heal as I may return to eating junk food then having less energy to exercise and help others.

After we'd cleared every substance, emotion and payoff via EFT, I asked Sam to slowly reintroduce the substances into his meals. I cautioned him to not overindulge, but to take one bite or one sip of the offending substance and then notice how he felt.

Days later Sam reported that he'd taken a bite of pizza and had no reaction to the wheat, yeast and dairy substances for the first time in years. Huzzah!

Encouraged, we tapped away more emotional layers from various stressful times in his life. Sam felt overjoyed to eat previously forbidden foods "like a normal person" and join his mates at the pub for Friday night pizza and beer.

ALLERGIES CAN HAVE EMOTIONAL ROOTS… OR NOT

In my decades of holistic experience I’ve found that certain stubborn allergies, sensitivities or substance intolerances are rooted in trauma. Your cereal intolerance may go back to childhood, when your parents fought in the living room while a frightened little you tried to eat oatmeal in the kitchen. Your cologne allergies may have begun after your boss (wearing the scent) demeaned you in front of your team.

Please note that common physical allergies can often be relieved by gently tapping with fingertips under the nose (acupressure points) and repeating 2-3 times: I now neutralize my allergies, sensitivities and intolerances to all substances, airborne and ingested. So be it.”

And now YOU have a new self-care tool in your wellness toolbox, and the knowledge that trauma can trigger your immune system to label harmless substances as allergens.

For links to my videos and books, visit my website EmoRescue.com

Thank you for reading my post and ALWAYS being kind to yourself!