Dear Julia:

My sister was recently diagnosed with breast cancer, and it has sent her into a deep funk. She has always been very health conscious; she exercises, eats right, etc., and now she feels betrayed by her body. The other day, she even broke down crying and said that she wished she could tear her breasts off and throw them away! She's getting great medical care and her prognosis is good, but I'm worried about her spirit. Do you have any advice on how to heal on an inner level from such an experience? Thank you for your wonderful wisdom!
- Mara

Dear Mara:

Sadly, it is often the people who are most worried about their health that end up with the very conditions they are trying so hard to prevent, because when we focus on something, we send energy to it and eventually manifest it in our experience.

Whenever this subject comes up, I'm reminded of a certain movie star who got breast cancer despite the fact that she went to extreme health measures to prevent it. It was obvious from what I learned about her that she thought about breast cancer many times each day, and I'm betting that this did her more harm than good.

Further, lots of fitness enthusiasts like your sister are striving to maintain healthy habits not of our love for their bodies, but out of dissatisfaction with them. Given the impossible beauty ideal set before us by the media, these women see their bodies as deeply inadequate, and are determined to transform them into something more acceptable. If we become health nuts because we hate our bodies the way they are, our healthy habits may help us a little, but that underlying hatred will get us in the end.

To enjoy great health and a deep sense of well-being, we must maintain a high vibration, and to maintain a high vibration, we have to feel good. People who are habitually stressed, angry or worried will eventually manifest physical problems. This is the very foundation of mind/body medicine.

Various issues, feelings and energies tend to affect the body in specific ways. For example, stomach problems may crop up when we are failing to digest and assimilate the lessons life is sending our way. Sexually transmitted diseases are often rooted in culturally driven guilt and shame. Parkinson's and other neurological diseases are often seen in "control freaks." Depression arises when we disconnect from the divine by denying our inner truth/true feelings because we think we "should" feel differently than we really do.

As for cancer, its roots are usually self-hate or an inability to process negative feelings about one's self. When we don't know what to do with our feelings of inadequacy, those negative energies will eventually begin to grow in harmful ways instead of being healed and released.

Many healers believe that breast cancer is related to heart chakra issues. This makes sense, since our ability to give and receive love depends on our capacity to love ourselves and the belief that we deserve to be loved by others. Metaphysically speaking, women get breast cancer because since the dawn of patriarchy, women have gotten the message that they are less than ideal: less important, less powerful and less capable than men. Further, if any part of us seems to exist for others' pleasure instead of our own, it's our breasts. Men objectify them, advertisers airbrush them to sell their products, and even our beloved babies will scream for them until we put our own needs aside to fill their hungry bellies.

Further, very few women have breasts that resemble those in mass media images, so most women actively "dislike" their breasts. They may consider them to be too small, too large, misshaped, etc. According to recent statistics, the incidence of breast cancer has risen 33 percent over the past ten years. Personally, I'm inclined to question that number, for we must be getting better at detecting cancer in general. However, I do think that the more we think or worry about something, the more likely we are to manifest it. With all the attention given to breast cancer these days, women are sending more energy to it than ever. If breast cancer really is on the rise, it wouldn't surprise me one bit if it's because women are more dissatisfied with their breasts than ever before, and at the same time, increasingly worried about getting breast cancer.

Since what we focus upon expands in our experience, to manifest healing, I don't believe in addressing "problems." Instead, I believe in deeply and passionately affirming well-being. When I do energy healing on someone, I never look for problems by "scanning" their aura. I simply get into a very high vibrational state of spiritual connection myself, and then look for the divine beauty and perfection in that person. I also visualize them feeling just as they desire to feel. When I wonder at the divine miracle before me like this, the energy that flows through me is incredible.

With all of this in mind, I offer you this Love Heals Meditation. Just close your eyes, relax, and either listen to this on tape or say it to yourself mentally or out loud. As you do this, sink deeply into the feelings these words evoke.

As you practice this meditation, you will send love through all of your body, which will raise your vibration. By focusing on wellness, you will manifest more and more wellness. If there is some part of your body that you feel bad about, let go of focusing on your perceived inadequacies and try to find its good aspects. For example, you may not like the color of your eyes, but you can give thanks for your perfect vision. Also, please note that the healing power of love is not limited to physical healing. You can heal any situation or relationship by looking for its perfection and sending it love.

Love Heals Meditation

I love my body and all it enables me to do and experience. I am so grateful for the health that I do enjoy and the abilities I've been blessed with. It is with delight that I recall the many pleasures my body has allowed me to experience throughout my life, the rich array of delicious food, wonderful smells, beautiful sights, harmonious sounds, and sensual pleasures that have been mine.

It is with pride and gratitude that I recall all the loving, cleaning, building, organizing, creating, nurturing, protecting, earning, demonstrating and learning my body has empowered me to accomplish.

It is with awe and wonder that I recall all the healing my body has managed in its own perfect way, such as the illnesses and injuries I recovered from, and the all the growing and developing my body did so naturally.

It is with reverence for the divine that I recognize the beauty of my body - of ALL bodies. Where some perceive physical flaws and inadequacies, I see only divine perfection. My scars, wrinkles and stretch marks remind me how incredibly strong and resilient my body is - how incredibly strong and resilient I am.

For all these reasons and more, I send love to my body, give thanks for my body, and delight in the body I have been given. I care for it with love, and in return, it continues to bless me every moment of my life.

I truly believe that appreciating and lovingly caring for our bodies is the greatest thing we can do to heal and maintain a sense of well-being. When we adopt healthy habits out of appreciation for our bodies, it is the love behind those habits that encourages health and healing.

May you love your body into a state of radiant health and vitality!

- Julia