Does Love Heal?

It has been written since ancient times ‘that only love heals’. But what does that mean and how does love heal? Some might feel they are just words or platitudes with no real substance or meaning. Certainly when it comes to medical school training there is no mention of love – so is it just some out-dated notion of yester-year or does it still carry relevance in today’s modern scientific medicine?

In modern medicine the word healing usually refers to the physiological processes of wound healing after an operation or an injury or trauma. It is the process to describe skin healing or broken bones healing together. But this is a very limited understanding of the term healing.

The word itself originates from the Olde English word ‘Hal’ which is also the root word for whole and holy. Perhaps true healing then is about returning to wholeness and holiness? In other words returning to our true divine nature or essence – which is whole and complete and holy in that it is divine. The word holy has been frequently misinterpreted to mean something pious but here just refers to the fact that we are by essence divine.

So what is that divine essence?

Every human being has a divine essence that is pure love, whether they believe it or not. It is an energetic fact that can be known and felt by everyone if they so choose.

The problem is that we have lived in ignorance of it and as if it is not there – hence we make daily choices that are not based on our true quality of love.

Instead we have taken on beliefs about ourselves that are not true, that we are not good enough, not lovable, unworthy and so forth. These false beliefs lead us to feel bad about ourselves and to carry out behaviours that are not healthy. We can feel an emptiness and ache inside that we endeavour to fill with work, achievements, success, relationships, hobbies, sport, missions, sex and on and on the list could go.

But nothing can fill that emptiness other than our own love – knowing that we are love, that we are already whole and complete without DOING anything. That is healing – love heals by letting us know that we are already love without having to prove or demonstrate our achievements to the world in the hope of being loved back.

Our very being is LOVE. By accepting that we are love we are empowered to make more loving choices and to look after our bodies – treating them with love, care and kindness and not taking in any toxins ( eg alcohol, illicit drugs, nicotine, caffeine, excess sugar, gluten, dairy etc)  that are detrimental to the body. We realize we are worth caring for – first and foremost by ourselves. In this way our lifestyle choices are modified and become more healthy which in turn has a beneficial effect on our physical bodies, health and wellbeing.

I certainly had no idea that we each had an essence of love and it was a revelation to me when I first heard it. It certainly wasn’t any part of my medical training and I would have been dismissive of the use of such language in what is a ‘science’ subject. Also when I first heard it, I wasn’t that sure what it really meant or the implications of it, as I had lived in a way that wasn’t very loving to myself and my body.  Being irritated, frustrated or angry about something were quite common experiences for me working in surgery in the NHS that I just accepted was the way I was and there was nothing I could do about it!

Thankfully I have come to realise that is not the case and that there is plenty I can do and have done about it such that these emotions are much less frequent today as I have dealt with and continue to address the underlying reasons for their appearance. Finding out that my essence was and is love, irrespective of my experiences, was a game changer for me. It helped me to understand myself and life in a new way that then influenced my choices. It gave me a different perspective and understanding of illness, disease and healing – one that was empowering and transformative.  

So yes – love heals – and this has been my experience. For it is only by living from our true essence of love that we will make choices that are truly harmonious for the body. Our essence of love is constant and is unaffected by any trauma, illness or disease – and so even if we have a condition or an ailment present, we know we are more than the condition or the ailment. Instead we can see it as the body’s way of clearing that which is not love, that we have taken on and a message perhaps that we need to develop a more loving way with ourselves. These understandings are not yet part of the standard approach to healthcare and medicine – but that does not mean they are not true nor valid. I have come to know the truth of them myself by living them and applying them in my life as well as appreciating and understanding their philosophical foundations. In addition, they are supported by certain scientific understandings that are showing that how we live our lives has a great impact on our health and such choices fundamentally emerge from our beliefs about who we are as human beings and how we feel about ourselves. I am certain as time progresses that science will continue to uncover findings that support what we can already know and feel with the body by living in a way that is truly loving. 

We have not as yet got to writing prescriptions for love – give to self 3 times daily – or indeed give to self all day, every day! Yet love is the elixir of life – love is the true physician that knows all and heals all.