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“It is not primarily our physical selves that limit us but rather our mindset about our physical limits.”
– Ellen J. Langer
This is how American psychologist Ellen J. Langer describes the bond between mind and body in her work “Counterclockwise: Mindful Health and the Power of Possibilities”.
In my opinion, these words are not only about this strong relationship, but also about the role psychology and psychologists play in contemporary society nowadays: psychologists are those professionals who are able to link these two universes, which seem so different and far away, but which are not actually so distant.
I picture psychology as a thread which links our brain with our heart. It is like a tool we can neither touch nor observe, but through which we can translate what our mind says into our body language and vice versa.
Most of the time this translation process is challenging: mind and body speak two different languages, they have some trouble understanding each other and mistakes can easily arise. Therefore, we are prone to think that our physical selves limit us.
At this point, psychology and psychologists come into play by showing us how to adopt another attitude and by helping us change our perspective: perhaps we are the ones that set our own limits and, consequently, our mindset about our physical limits hinders us.
This is the representation I have, but I am also aware that many interpretations exist.
Indeed, psychology is a dynamic and complex field, which embraces different time periods and world areas and therefore provides us with the tools for a more holistic point of view.
However, I bet that some key words are common despite such differences and thus the role of psychology is to shed light on connections: no matter the culture to which we belong, the language we speak or the traditions we have, psychology allows bonding.
Therefore, psychologists can provide not only a connection between mind and body, but also among human beings.
In my opinion, this task is very difficult nowadays: this discipline suffers many biases, and this profession is often underestimated. In addition, people reject human connections and prefer spending their time by themselves or in front of a screen.
This is something frustrating that can have terrible consequences: while using technological tools, we see just disembodied faces and we lose our identity. Isolation and technology become cages and take control of our essence, our body, and our brain: we get trapped in the social structure we create, and we become totally absorbed by and addicted to it.
I would portray psychology as a sort of antidote against an untouchable poison that we drink unwarily and accept unconsciously.
On the other hand, this discipline allows us to open up our thinking and get in touch with other individuals. We can find a parallelism between psychology and empathy: empathy helps us mirror someone else’s feelings; in the same way, psychology allows us to step into someone else’s shoes.
In this way, besides the mind-body connection, also the bond among different minds and bodies becomes possible.
This concept is also emphasized by Dr Jill Bolte Taylor in her book “My stroke of insight: a brain scientist’s personal journey”. The author is a neuroscientist, who experienced a severe stroke in her brain left hemisphere firsthand that caused her to lose the ability to walk, talk, read, write, or recall any aspect of her life.
In her work, she tells her story and her long path towards healing and explains how being a brain scientist helped her find the balance between mind and body once again, but also rebuild connections with her loved ones.
Indeed, healing does not mean regaining cognitive and physical abilities only, but also establishing deep bonds with other human beings: it is a complex dialogue, and each element is necessary to survive. As Jill explains in her book, healing would not have been possible without the support and trust of her family and friends.
So, to sum up, we can state that psychology is something we can acquire not only by studying books, but also by practicing it: this means listening to others, being open to new possibilities, and creating deep connections.
As Jill writes: “Most of us think of ourselves as thinking creatures that feel, but we are actually feeling creatures that think.”
This is the exact representation I have regarding the role of psychologists in our society: they have to show people their potential and their essence, which is the ability to feel and bond. This is a complex process, which is possible thanks to the connection between our mind and body and the relationships we build with other individuals.
By Arianna Corbetta
arianna.corbetta01@icatt.it
Bibliography
Langer, E. J. (2009). Counterclockwise: Mindful health and the power of possibility. Ballantine Books.
Bolte Taylor, J. (2008). My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientistʼs Personal Journey. Viking.
A.P.E. 
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