Approaching A Theory of Emotion:

An Interview With Candace Pert, Ph.D

By Lynn Grodzki, Fellow

The New Identify Process (NIP) and other forms of emotive psychotherapy
embrace the healing tradition of catharsis--intense emotional expression is
elicited within a contained therapeutic environment. This emotive therapy
follows in a direct line from the earliest forms of ancient healing arts
through recent scientific studies exploring the link between body and mind.
The challenge for clinicians in answering the criticism about the use of
catharsis is to conceptually bridge past and present in evaluating emotive
methods.
Happily, an unexpected voice has joined the debate about the importance of
emotional therapy. Candace Pert, Ph.D., researcher and pharmacologist, may
help point the way to a resolution of a problem that has faced clinicians
using emotive methods for the last 100 years. In adding her biochemical
research perspective to the discussion of the meaning and value of catharsis,
she is addressing a weak point and the biggest problem that exists in the
field of emotive, experiential psychotherapy. She is helping to formulate, for
the first time, a unified theory of emotion.
First, a bit of history. Although the use of catharsis was a key element of
treatment during the first 200 years of early psychotherapy (with Mesmer,
Charcot, Janet, and Bruer), Freud's rejection of this cathartic method within
psychoanalysis and his reliance on free association, "The talking cure" as a
sufficient form of abreaction, spread until dominating the field. By 1920,
methods of emotive psychotherapy moved to the fringes of conventional
psychological practice. Freud gave as one of his reasons for rejecting
emotive methods his frustration as a neurologist in trying to theorize about
the workings of emotion. Although some of his colleagues continued to rely
on methods of catharsis (notably Ferenczi, Brown and Reich) and although a
second wave of interest sparked the development of additional methods in
the early 1950's (by Janov, Lowen, Perls, Casriel and Jackins) the academic
literature continues to reject catharsis, following Freud. Methods of emotive
psychotherapy, when mentioned, are usually discounted as unproved and
ineffective at best, or counterproductive and harmful at worst. Currently, the
criticism of emotive therapy is based on the results of often flawed, past
research about catharsis.
In some studies, catharsis is misdefined to mean any kind of ventilation
(from watching a wrestling match to screaming, to hitting another person).
Because clients require a safe space (environmental containment) in order to
achieve a true experience of catharsis, the results that clinicians can produce
in their office settings are hard to reproduce in laboratory settings. But the

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biggest hurdle to researching and validating emotional methods has been the
vagueness about emotion itself. Until recently, little has been understood
from a scientific basis about what emotion is and is not.
Psychological textbooks published only thirty years ago state, "Emotion is
virtually impossible to define . . . except in terms of conflicting theories" and
"No genuine order can be discerned within the field." As long as emotion
remains an abstraction, lacking a unified theory base, it is impossible to
research and validate methods of emotive therapy. The kinds of questions
that need to be answered include: how emotion is manifest, how memory
and emotion interact, whether emotion is concrete (real) or conceptual (a
construct), if concrete, how emotion acts in the body, and how unexpressed
emotion is stored.
Enter into this discussion Dr Candace Pert. For the past twenty years, Pert
has been studying the movement of amino acid chains in the human body. In
the process, she is unraveling the mystery of mind-body communication and
changing forever the way we understand emotion.
For Pert, pharmacologist and professor at Georgetown University, the mind
is not just in the brain -- it is also in the body. The vehicle that the mind and
body use to communicate with each other is the chemistry of emotion. The
chemicals in question are molecules, short chains of amino acids called
peptides and receptors, that she believes to be the "biochemical correlate of
emotion." The peptides can be found in your brain, but also in your stomach,
your muscles, your glands and all your major organs, sending messages back
and forth. After decades of research, Pert is finally able to make clear how
emotion creates the bridge between mind and body.
Candace Pert lives in the world where emotions make scientific sense. As
former Chief of Brain Biochemistry at the NIH for 13 years, she studied the
inner workings of the body with an eye towards identifying and locating
peptides and receptors. She became convinced these chemicals were the
physical manifestation of emotion. In 1993, Pert appeared on Bill Moyer's
landmark TV program Healing and Mind, where she explained her theories
of emotion to a national audience. She attracted attention for being that rare
scientist who can explain their work to a lay audience with a sense of humor
and passion. These days Pert spends substantial amount of time in Rockville,
Maryland, as a consultant on the trials of a new drug, Peptide T, that is part
of a non-toxic AIDS therapy. She takes some time from her research and
teaching schedule to lecture internationally on the issues of neuropeptides
and mind-body communications.
I began to correspond with Pert several years ago, and in May of 1995, as a
result of her desire to be part of the 1995 ISNIP Conference, we sat down to
talk about a subject that interests both of us: the need for a unified theory of
emotion. She offered some new, startling insights of her own that explain
how experiential forms of psychotherapy and alternative medicine work.
What follows is a portion of our discussion.

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Lynn Grodzki: How do you understand the connection between memory

and emotion?
Candace Pert: Experiments show that the hippocampus area of the brain
[part of the limbic system] is the access or gateway into the whole emotional
experience. Almost every variety of peptide receptor is found in the
hippocampus. Through the peptide network, which is anything that has
peptide receptors on it, you can access different memories, mood states or
developmental stages. Strong emotions are the key variable that make us
bother to remember things.
There is a lot of evidence that memory occurs at the point of synapse, there
are changes that take place in the receptors. The sensitivity of the receptors
are part of memory and pattern storage. But the peptide network expends
beyond the hippocampus, to organs, tissue, skin, muscle and endocrine
glands. They all have peptides receptors on them and can access and store
emotional information. This means this emotional memory is stored in many
places in the body, not just the brain. The autonomic nervous system is
pivotal to this entire understanding. Its importance is much more subtle than
has been thought. Every peptide that I have every mapped and more can be
found in the autonomic nervous system. There is an emotional coding to the
way our autonomic patterns are elaborated.
LG: The autonomic nervous system includes the spinal cord and the
ganglion that are down either side. Is it possible that emotion could be stored
in places like this indefinitely?
CP: Absolutely. Emotional memories are our earliest memories. One of my
earliest memories is that I struck a match when my mother was making
dinner. I just started a tiny fire, and she came over and put it out with her
dishrag. I can still see the terror in her face. I think I must have been one
year old. Emotional memories are long term memories, stored where we
need them, for survival.
LG: Let's say you had forgotten this memory and you are in a situation
where something similar happens, perhaps your own daughter plays with
matches and you find your reaction has an intensity that suggests an earlier
incident was attached to it. How is early emotional memory retrieved in the
body?
CP: You can access emotional memory anywhere in the peptide/receptor
network, in any number of ways. For example, if you have a memory that
has to do with food and eating, you might access it by the nerves hooked up
to the pancreas. You can access through any nodal point in the neural loop.
Nodal points are places where there is a lot of convergent information with
many different peptide receptors. In these nodal points there is potential for
emotional regulation and conditioning.

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LG: So we are programmed to be able to repeat emotional experience and

we can access it through the body in many ways. What happens to emotions
that are not able to be fully expressed?
CP: I have a whole theory about this. I believe that emotion is not fully
expressed until it reaches consciousness. When I speak of consciousness, I
include the entire body. I believe that unexpressed emotion is in process of
traveling up the neural access. By traveling, I mean coming from the
periphery, up the spinal cord, up into the brain. When emotion moves up, it
can be expressed. It takes a certain amount of energy from our bodies to
keep the emotion unexpressed. There are inhibitory chemicals and impulses
that function to keep the emotion and information down. I think unexpressed
emotions are literally lodged lower in the body.
In my mind, there are levels of integration. You are integrating lower brain
areas when you move the emotion up and get it into consciousness. That's
where you begin comprehension. I often tell a story in my lectures. I show a
picture of a woman with hot coffee, who has dropped the cup and burned
herself. She reacts to the scalding coffee by being startled and feeling pain.
The emotional reflex moves up and up and up the body. When it finally gets
to the level of the thalamus she says, "Oh, it's hotter than it usually is." But
then I make a joke. I say, "It's only when it gets all the way up to the cortex
that she can actually blame her husband." That's where we put the whole
spin on it. Unexpressed emotions are buried in the body -- way, deep down
in the circuitry of the organs, or the GI tract, or a loop in a ganglium. We
even know what the memory storage looks like. It's protein molecules
coupled up to receptors. Some thought it only gets stored in the brain. But it
looks like that in the body, too. Your memories can get stored that way in a
pancreas, for example.
LG: There is a belief that unexpressed emotion is harmful to the mind and
body. IF you haven't fully grieved a loss, for example, your weakened
immune system might make you a candidate for an illness, like cancer. How
do you understand it, as a scientist?
CP: It think there is overwhelming evidence that unexpressed emotion
causes illness. I'm a molecular Reichian!
LG: Reich had a model of working with emotion that is sometimes called
the "conflict model" of catharsis. He thought there were two psychic forces
at work in every individual. One is the force that wants to express emotion.
The other is the force that seeks to prevent its expression, which he termed
resistance. He thought the pressure of the two forces caused stasis, so his
therapy techniques were designed to exhaust and weaken the resistance, to
allow emotional expression to occur.
CP: I see it this way. The raw emotion is working to be expressed in the
body. It's always moving up the neural access. Up the chakras, if you will,
but really up the spinal chord. The need to resist it is coming from the
cortex. All the brain; rationalizations are pushing the energy down. The

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cortex resistance is an attempt to prevent overload. It's stingy about what

information is allowed up into the cortex. It's always a struggle in the body.
The real, true emotions that need to be expressed are in the body, trying to
move up and be expressed and thereby integrated. That's why I believe
psychoanalysis in a vacuum doesn't work. You are spending all your time in
your cortex, rather than in your body. You are adding to the resistance.
LG: You suggest a vertical model of catharsis, letting the emotion move up
the body, perhaps finding ways to relax the cortex to allow the unexpressed
emotion to be first experienced and then cognitively integrated.
CP: Let the emotion all bubble up. Let the chips fall where they may. My
personal experience using catharsis was with the New Identify Process. I
think the NIP bonding might serve to relax the cortex and let the emotion
come through. I believe that the process of catharsis is not complete without
saying things, because we must involve speech and the cortex, to know that
the emotion has come all the way up and is being processed at the highest
level. To feel and understand means you have worked it all the way through.
It's bubbled all the way to the surface. You're integrating at higher and
higher levels in the body, bringing emotion into consciousness.

What is this thing called emotional experience? The peptide

hypothesis.
Where there is a mood, is there a molecule?
Published on December 17, 2010 by Ross Buck, Ph.D. in Spontaneous Emotion

The question of the nature of subjective emotional experience, or affect, remains a central
issue in both psychology and philosophy, intimately related to the question of the nature of
consciousness. My previous post reviewed evidence challenging theories stemming from
William James' notion that emotional experiences involve the feeling of bodily changes
Specifically, these theories cannot account for the sparing of emotional experience in spinal
cord injuries, or for the speed and complexity of emotional experience. What, then, IS the
source of emotional experience: the directly-known and self-evident qualia of feelings and
desires? Is there a physiological process that is associated with such experience? A possible
answer is surprising and controversial: a physiological process hypothesized to be closely
identified with many emotional experiences involves specifiable neurochemical systems
associated with some of the most ancient molecules in the body: the peptides. The peptide
hypothesis can be stated succinctly: where there is a mood, there is a molecule.

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Peptides are molecules formed of chains of amino acids strung together like beads on a string,
ranging from a few in number to hundreds. Longer chains (e.g., 200 units) are conventionally
known as proteins, so peptides are basically relatively short proteins. Like proteins, peptides
are direct products of genes: genes physically construct the amino acid chains. The
sequencing of amino acids in the chain determines the shape of the molecule and therefore its
physiological effects. The peptides function by fitting into receptor sites on cell membranes
like keys into locks. Peptides composed of shorter chains function like neurotransmitters, in
that they have relatively rapid but transient effects. Peptides composed of longer chain
function like hormones, in that their effects are slower but longer lasting. Because of this dual
identity peptides are sometimes referred to as neurohormones.
Peptides are ancient substances, indeed primordial. Many peptides functional in human
beings can be found in the simplest microbes, indicating that the genes responsible for their
construction derive from our last common ancestor: many millions and indeed billions of
years in the past. For example, the peptide Gonadotropin Hormone Releasing Hormone
(GnRH), which is associated with sexual functioning and possibly erotic feelings in human
beings, is a sexual pheromone in yeast (Loumaye and colleagues, 1982). Other peptides
including insulin, beta endorphin, and ACTH are found in single celled microbes.
Neuroscientist Candace Pert noted In her book Molecules of Emotion that Charles Darwin
predicted that the physiological basis for emotions would be conserved throughout evolution,
and that appears to be the case with many peptides.
Pert also outlined several lines of evidence consistent with the peptide hypothesis. Perhaps
most compellingly, many psychoactive drugs known to influence specific moods have
endogenous analogs: that is, analogs in the form of substances found naturally in the body.
Many of these are peptides. For example, the affective aspects of primary drives such as
hunger, thirst, sex, and pain have been associated with specific peptides: angiotensin, gherelin
and insulin, GnRH, and substance P, respectively. Also, manipulation of the actions of many
peptide neurohormones by agonists (which support their functioning) or antagonists (which

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oppose it) can have predictable effects on moods. For example, specific drugs thought to alter
peptides are known to influence feelings of elation, depression, anxiety, panic, trust,
nurturance, and pleasure. Moreover, receptor sites sensitive to these putative mood altering
neurohormones are located in limbic system brain structures classically identified with
emotion.
Although we cannot have access to subjective experiences of others, there are ways to study
the subjective effects of drugs indirectly: even animals can provide a sort of "self-report" of
their feelings. Rewarding or punishing effects of drugs can be demonstrated in rats in studies
of conditioned place preferences: if a certain spatial position in a n enclosure is associated
with a positive drug, the animal will show a preference for that place; if the drug effects are
negative, it will avoid that place. Similarly, drug discrimination techniques can provide
detailed evidence relating to the strength and quality of the subjective impact of specific
drugs. Results of such studies provide powerful converging evidence that emotion is
subjectively experienced in nonhuman animals.
The discrete emotions emerging from studies of the peptide neurochemical systems are
different from, but compatible with, the primary affects associated with universal facial
expressions such as happiness, sadness, fear, and anger. For example, the primary affect of
fear is a response to danger in the environment that requires communication at a distance, and
the face is well suited to display at a distance. Fear may involve a number of neurochemical
systems: e.g., panic associated with cholecystokinin (CCK), stress associated with
corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH), and/or anxiety associated with the "anxiety peptide,"
diazepam binding inhibitor (DBI). However, the facial expression of fear may be equally
relevant in situations of panic, stress, and anxiety. Therefore, "fear" emerges as an ecological
reality associated with universal facial display that may not be associated with any one brain
system but rather be potentially composed of a number of fear-related "modules" at the
physiological level.
Other discrete emotions are displayed and communicated more intimately. Feelings of
bonding, nurturance, and erotic arousal are communicated via physical immediacy, eye
contact, touch, pheromones, and the sense of radiant heat. Facial expression is relatively
unimportant and ineffective as display at such intimate distances.
Portions taken from R. Buck, Human Motivation and Emotion, 2nd Edition, Wiley 1988; and
R. Buck (1999). The biological affects: A typology. Psychological Review. 106, 301-336.
Loumaye, E., Thorner, J., & Catt, K. J. (1982). Yeast mating pheromone activates
mammalian gonadotropins: evolutionary conservation of a reproductive hormone? Science,
218, 1323-1325.

Neuropeptides: the molecules of emotions

Written by: Dr Arien van der Merwe MBChB FRIPH FRCAM

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I suggest that the body and soul react to each other in sympathy. A
change in the state of the soul would necessarily have an effect on the
body and vice versa.
- Aristotle, 400 BC
Our thoughts create our reality. This is a strange concept for most of us. How could
what you think, possibly make you sick or well?
Candace Pert is n neuroscientist who did a lot of research on the neuropeptides. She
was the first to call them the molecules of emotions.
Peptides are miniscule pieces of protein. Protein comes from the Greek word proteios,
meaning primary. Proteins are the first material of life as we know it. Peptides consist of
strings of amino acids of varying lengths, joined together in a necklace by very strong
bonds made of carbon and nitrogen. Between 10 and 100 amino acids that form a strong
bond, are called peptides. Between 100 to 200 are called polypeptides and more than
200 are called proteins. Amino acids are the letters that when combined in certain
sequences, form the words that are peptides, or the sentences that are polypeptides or
proteins. These make up a language that forms and directs the function of every single
cell, organ and system inside the body, from the deepest vibrations of the DNA molecule
inside the nucleus of every cell, to the macrocosmic systems function of the whole
individual being. More than 90 neuropeptides have been identified so far, associated
with mood changes, nerve, hormone and immune regulation. Wellknown groups of
neuropeptides include the neurotransmitters that carry messages across synapses in the
nervous system, growth factors, gut peptides, immune system modulators (e.g.
interleukins, cytokines, chemokines, growth inhibitors that tell cells when to stop
growing*). A better term for the peptides might be informational substances. Other
common peptides include the endorphins (our own happy hormones), insulin
(responsible for blood sugar control), vasopressin (responsible for blood pressure), sex
hormone releasing hormones, serotonin (the feel-good neurotransmitter)
There are 20 essential amino acids found in the human body, meaning that we have to
take it in from the food we eat, as theyre not manufactured inside the body, hence
essential. The first peptide, secretin was discovered in the gut. This surprised scientists
as they thought all physiological functions were controlled purely by electrical impulses
from the brain and nerves. Then the endogenous endorphins, enkephalin peptides that
bind to the bodys own opiate (morphine-like) receptors inside the brain, were found.
This lead to a mad search for receptors and their binding peptides inside the brain, hence
the pronoun neuropeptides. It was only realised much later that every single peptide
was made in many parts of the body, including of course, the brain. Now we know that
the peptides are actually manufactured throughout the whole body, e.g. immune cells,
bone marrow and gut cells have receptors for and produce neuropeptides. The T & Bcells of the immune system communicate with the brain and vice versa via the
neuropeptides. Emotions can suppress lymphocyte function, others may enhance it.
All the neuropeptides have a similar molecular structure...

All the neuropeptides have a similar molecular structure, with subtle differences in the
tertiary structure, meaning that only the frequency and amplitude at which each
molecule oscillates (wavelike vibrations of electrons in each molecule), differ.

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Neuropeptides change configuration (like a chameleon) due to emotional influence,

according to specific thoughts and emotions. Depending on the thoughts and emotions,
specific neuropeptides are made in the brain and nervous system, white blood cells,
reproductive system, digestive system and heart, to name but a few. They form a twoway network between psyche and soma, mind and body. The complicated and complex
communication network between cells, neurotransmitters, neuropeptides, hormones,
immune system, blood and nerves, demands a remarkable orchestration of effective
communication and integration of form and function, for the body-mind to work as one
healthy, balanced and integrated whole.
Pert describes the mysterious energy connecting body to mind & emotions as the free flow of
information carried by the biochemical of emotion: neuropeptides and their receptors. The
strong link between emotional responses and the biochemical change they produce specifically
in the immune system forms the basis of the field known as psycho-neuro-immunlogy or PNI.
Cortisol secreted during long term stress, plays a role in immune suppression. Structural
changes in the neuropeptides play a role in immune incompetence. Pert says: it is possible
now to conceive of mind and consciousness as an emanation of emotional information
processing, and as such, mind and consciousness would appear to be independent from brain
and body.
Practical examples

Lets simplify the concept by using practical examples. The specific feel-good peptide
(e.g. serotonin), bind to its specific receptors on the cell membrane. This sends a feelgood message to the inside of the cell, right into the nucleus. The message influences
every function the cell is responsible for. Now consider the fact that you constantly think
of things others have done to harm you; resentful, angry thoughts and feelings that grow
and increase to disproportionate levels every time you think it. The thoughts become
emotions, then the neuropeptides that course through your body-mind, influencing cell
function and efficacy. Do you think that any cell receiving these messages for 30 years,
would still feel like functioning well enough for you to be optimally happy, alive and
fully self-actualizing to become all youre meant to be?
Confucius said: If you devote your life to seeking revenge, first dig two graves. Your
cells feel the way you do! Your thoughts do create your reality! What you spend your
time thinking about, becomes the facts of your life. Thats why positive affirmations
actually work repeating simple, positive, powerful statements to yourself, changes the
frequency of the vibrations around your own neuropeptides, allowing cells to function
better, your mind to find solutions to reach your goals, and your whole body-mind
system to function optimally. Changing your habitual thought patterns to one of
positivity and love, such as I am calm in my body, in my mind and in my emotions, I
succeed, I feel calmness flowing through me, I love, accept and approve of myself
just as I am, I live my truth, let go let God, or the Sanskrit mantra, om gum gana
patayei namaha to remove energy blockages, will allow the electrons around the
nucleus of your neuropeptides to send positive, feel-good vibrations of waves and
particles throughout your body-mind being. These vibrations bind to your cell receptors
and allow the message to go right into your physical and spiritual DNA, the genetic
source of your being.

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Cell memories

Emotions like bitterness, unresolved anger, resentment, fear and worry constantly trigger
your stress response. These then become buried in ever deepening layers inside the cell
memories. The layers become the physical footprints of your dream body, psyche or
soul, manifesting in physical illness or chronic health problems. Once the cell memories
are wakened, they can reach the conscious mind, so that you can make contact with your
whole, integrated human beingness, leading to the identification of the deep issues that
might play a role in the disease process. Through this, disease becomes a teacher
potentially leading to important life lessons, personal and spiritual growth and healing
from the inside out. The choice and free will to follow this path, is yours!
Psycho-neuro-immunology (PNI)

he field of psycho-neuro-immunology (PNI) explores the links between mind and body
with regard to the immune system. Since nerve supply extends to all the components of
the immune system (e.g. lymph nodes, thymus gland, and spleen), the nervous system
with its head office inside the brain, will necessarily influence the immune system
directly. Stress and depression can suppress the activity of lymphocytes, the white blood
cells that are the bodys first line of defense against cancer and invading organisms.
Diseases of the immune system include HIV/aids, cancer, allergies, arthritis, infections,
the auto-immune disorders such as ulcerative colitis, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid
arthritis, and many other conditions that are a consequence of either a under- or an overactive immune system. Cells in the immune system are responsive to all 90
neuropeptides, that are triggered by our thoughts and emotions.
Neuropeptides cause chemical changes in the body that can improve or weaken the
immune system. Once immune cells receive the stress response alarm, they undergo
changes and begin to produce powerful chemicals. These substances allow the cells to
regulate their own growth and behavior, enlist the help of other immune cells, and direct
these to the areas of invasion or other trouble spots. Studies show that the HIV virus
interferes with a peptide associated with feelings of self-esteem. In one study, patients
with full blown Aids, who had therapy to boost their sense of self and strengthen
emotional bonds, survived statistically longer than expected.
Establishing which emotions affect which neuropeptides will be the best treatment for
all modern day illnesses! This forms the basis of chakra healing work.
Be aware of your emotions

The whole range of human emotions are valid and worthy of your complete attention.
Become aware of your emotions, try to find out what they want to communicate to you,
then choose to let the ones who dont serve your health and wellness any longer, go.

Anger, fear, sadness, hate, resentment

Joy, contentment, courage, love
Basic sensations: pain, pleasure
Drive states: hunger, thirst, survival, instinct
Intangible, subjective experiences that are uniquely human: spiritual inspiration, awe,
bliss. There are many dormant nerve links between the primitive limbic system where
the emotional centre of the brain is, to the pre-frontal cortex where spiritual
intelligence and unconditional love reside. Waking up these cross links will help us to

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become the spiritual, loving beings we truly are.

Endorphines

The brain produces its own neurotransmitters, the endogenous opiates (e.g. betaendorphin). These chemicals are produced in the brain in response to a variety of
stimuli. Endorphins were discovered in 1975. Stress & pain are the two most common
triggers for release of the endorphins. Activation of the opiate receptors in the brain by
the body's own endorphins do not cause addiction or dependence, whereas exogenous
opiates, such as morphine and codeine, do lead to addiction and dependence.
The effect of endorphins on the body-mind

Decrease in pain sensation

feelings of euphoria
appetite modulation
release of sex hormones
enhanced immune response
fewer negative effects of stress

Enhance your own endorphins:

Frequent exercise where you push yourself a little. Refer the runner's high, or being in
the zone, athletes experience after prolonged exercise.
Breathing techniques. Changing the rate of your breathing, allows the respiratory
centre to become flooded with endorphins. This is why the yoga breathing techniques
are so effective. Examples include full yogic breathing (belly-chest-collarbone);
diaphragmatic breathing where you breathe in slowly and deeply, holding the breath,
then releasing it, making the out breath longer than the in breath; or breathing in
deeply, holding it and breathing out fast and forcefully through the mouth. Sit down if
you do this to prevent dizziness, and do only 5-10 breaths.
Certain foods like chocolate(!) (preferably dark chocolate with 70% cocoa solids), and
chili peppers can enhance the secretion of endorphins.
Through acupuncture, massage therapy and regular meditation practice
Last but not least: sex is a potent trigger for endorphin release! So remember next time
you have the well used headache - there might be a quick fix!

Become aware of your habitual thought patterns thoughts do create reality!

Where are your thoughts? Anticipation, fear and worry are mostly in the future where
you have no control. Unresolved anger, bitterness, resentment are in the past. You can
only learn, grow and let go of the past. You can never change it. So why waste your
precious life force energy there? These thoughts prevent you from being in the present,
the NOW, which is all you have. Thoughts lead to emotions or feelings that often
manifest as physical symptoms and habitual behaviour. Try journal writing as a very
effective thought management tool.
* NOTE: E.g. growth inhibition is one of the key factors thats missing in cancer cells
that grow in an uninhibited fashion. Immune system modulation and regulation are
faulty in HIV/Aids.
Dr Arien van der Merwe MBChB (Pretoria) FRIPH (London) FRCAM (Dublin) is a

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medical doctor with extensive experience in natural and complementary medicine,

wellness and health promotion. She has been elected Fellow of the Royal Institute of
Public Health (FRIPH) in the UK for the work she does in South Africa to promote
public health and wellness through education, training and communication. She also
qualified as Fellow of the Royal College of Alternative Medicine (FRCAM). Arien was
the appointed Stress Expert to Discovery Health and Business Owner of the Stress
Centre on DiscoveryWorld, http://www.discovery.co.za/. As director and CEO of Health
Stress Management (Pty) Ltd, Arien acts as wellness advisor and consultant, stress
expert and programme developer to the health care industry, companies, interest groups,
websites and the media. Arien is an accomplished author of 19 books, the latest being
Stress Solutions (Tafelberg Publishers 2004). She presents regular stress management
and natural wellness workshops in South Africa and abroad.

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