How Your Thoughts and Emotions Shape Your Health and How To Start

Do you find that a lot of your clients come to you neglecting their body, like just don't care about it at all, or they do care about it and then they, like you said, they sabotage themselves? They know what they need to do to feel better, but then they just sabotage themselves.

Great question.

Yeah, can you—

I think it's, you know, so I, I find Yeah, I find a little bit of a mix with that. Yeah, I'm just trying to think of where I want to go with that. So, you know, the ones that self-sabotage, if you look at their lives, they really don't have a whole lot of self-discipline in a lot of different areas of their lives, you know, so maybe it would be the opportunity to Incorporate that and bring that in.

Hello and welcome to Beyond Diagnosis, a podcast to raise your awareness, decisions, and voice for alternative practices so you can take back control of your health. I'm Rita De Michele, your host, a mindset and empowerment coach, and the founder of the Onus platform. Join me each week so you can create the health of your dreams. Welcome to today's episode of Beyond Diagnosis. For our listeners who have a chronic health concern and are feeling stuck, stressed, or hopeless in finding an answer, then today's guest can help you understand how your thoughts and beliefs can be impacting your ability to heal or even contributing to the condition you're wanting to resolve. Dr. Rita Louise is a graduate of the Berkeley Psychic Institute, where she studied meditation and energy medicine. After graduation, she returned to full-time studies, earning a degree as a naturopath and a PhD in natural health counseling. She is also a Reiki master, a certified hypnotherapist, and a certified mindfulness practitioner, Dr. Rita Louise. It is so good to have you on the show today because I really—

It is wonderful to be here with you, Rita.

Yeah, it's such a pleasure. I really think that this is such a great topic because it's still— even though it's around and people hear it, it's still kind of emerging in people's minds on the fact that what we're thinking and what we're doing is actually Contributing to our physical health. It's not separate.

Exactly. And, you know, the buzzword is, well, you have a lot of stress, but no one really separates out what the stress is. And what might be stressing me might not be stressing you, and it might not be stressing any of the listeners in the audience. And so to sit there, you have to kind of unwind what your triggers are and unwind what, what's getting under my skin, you know, and, and resolving that and healing that and paying attention to that so that you don't have that stress anymore.

Right. So, so terms— when people use terms like— what I'm hearing is when they use terms like stress or trauma, It's what you're saying. It's just way too generic. It's almost like you become a little bit invisible. Your needs become a little bit invisible under those sort of broad umbrellas.

So can I give you an example?

Yes.

So one of my old— I'm going to say old now because I really worked on it— is you know, financial. I mean, I'm assuming you work for yourself, you know.

Yes.

So when you work for yourself, you know, it gets around the holidays and, and work gets slow. And my normal reaction would be, oh my God, I'm gonna die, you know, I'm not gonna be able to pay my bills. And, and it would be this whole barrage of negative thinking and, and stress about financial stuff. You know, but for somebody else, they might have an attachment disorder and they're having issues in their relationship, and that's creating the stress in their lives, you know. And so it's really what we bring to the table that is the nature of that stress.

Absolutely. So we all develop these sort of thoughts and beliefs and You know, from young and we carry them through. So how does that specifically impact our health? Like, a lot of people go, okay, so I'm, I'm being negative, I feel down, I feel a bit, you know, grumpy, I feel a bit low energy. But can you talk more into what that is actually doing to our health? How is it manifesting in our body?

You know, so when we are, and I'm going to say trapped in a pattern of negative thinking, our body naturally will release stress hormones like cortisol. You know, it's now we're running on adrenal hormones, which can play havoc on the function of the, of our bodies, you know, so there's that level. And I'm going to go into a little bit of Chinese medicine. So in Chinese medicine, not that I'm an expert. But I like this part. You know, they talk about each of the organs having carrying a different emotional energy. And so, if you happen to be a very angry person and you respond to everything in a fight response, or something happens and you automatically get triggered, and now you're cranky and frustrated and whatever, it would make sense that you would develop a liver issue because in Chinese medicine. The liver houses anger and frustration, you know, and, you know, one of my personal favorites is the gallbladder. So many people have their gallbladders removed, but in Chinese medicine, the gallbladder has to do with planning and our ability to plan our way through a situation. So I've seen 2 different kinds of people. There are people that can't plan their way out of a paper bag. And when you ask them, it's like their parents can't plan, their aunts and uncles can't plan, their brothers and sisters can't plan, and none of them have gallbladders.

That is so interesting.

And then there's the— and then on the other side of the coin, there are the people that are the hardcore planners and they have every detail lined out. And then something happens and their plans get foiled. So just think about the young mother who's a planner and she has all of these things planned and now the baby's sick. And so all of these plans that she has this forward motion on come to a screeching halt. And so it's my belief, even though there's obviously no science behind it, that people that develop gallstones tend to be those people. You know, they plan and that frustration and all of that emotional energy gets consolidated into a little gallstone. That they hang on to.

That is so interesting. In actual fact, a light globe went off when you were saying that because gallbladder is in our family along our line. And you know, my mother did have her gallbladder removed, and I can't say that my mother was the best planner. And a light globe just went off in me that I better start learning how to plan better because you know, I can't say that my. gallbladder is the best. So that, you know, I'm sure just for now a lot of light globes just went off with the listeners going, oh, so, you know, what emotion is actually like— those probably start searching Chinese medicine now to see the equivalent of what emotion is with which organ.

Mm-hmm.

Um, so how— so what would you say to people who Because I find there's still a lot of— they, they have a disease and they go, this just happened to me, this just happens, there's nothing you can do about it, it just happens, the body just stops working properly. What would you say to that attitude, you know, around that?

After I stopped laughing at them?

Oh.

After that part, you know, is that So to me, and I'm putting a very low number on this, you know, 80% of the diseases that manifest in the physical body, there is some kind of a psychological, emotional trigger that's sitting underneath the disease. You know, and so what doesn't hold— Raylan, Raylan, sorry about that.

Is that your dog?

It's my dog. Raylan, you know, he can be very quiet and then someone walks down the street and he goes crazy. Come here. But, and the other 20%, I attribute to a virus or a bacteria, or you break your leg, or, you know, and things that are more coming from external sources into the body. You know, that we can't really control. I mean, obviously we can do things to support our immunity to not have bacterial and viral things happen to us. You know, and then there are some people that suggest that, well, there was a reason, a karmic reason why you broke your leg, which I personally don't like go down that road. It's like, well, it's broke, you know, and, and no amount of energy medicine or herbs is going to fix the fact that Your arm is broke, so let's just start from here and move forward. What can we do to help support the healing process? Or that might be, you know, but 80%, and I think that's a very low number, is is a huge number of how much we're involved in our own sickness.

Absolutely. That's amazing. Is that that's a? I think that's a number and a. thought that people are still struggling to get their heads around, you know, that we're responsible, that we need to take that sort of ownership, that we're responsible for creating. I know when I say to people, well, you have to look at your emotion, you're creating that, um, I either get a laugh response or I get actually quite an angry response as well, like saying, how on earth would I do that? How on earth am I creating this? Because they're not tapping into that, into that whole process of what you're talking about. So maybe we could, if you could speak a little bit more into what is the role of, of our, because we all have energy, everyone talks about our energies. What is the role of that subtle energy in the disease process?

Okay. So as human beings and you know our energy is supposed to move and flow. It kind of ebbs and flows like the. Water on a beach. And so when we are, when our energy is flowing, when we're in the groove, it's like, I'm sitting here trying to make it be very generic here. Yeah. We're in good health. So when we're in a good place, you know, when we feel connected, when we feel uplifted and whole, we don't have negative thinking. At all, because we're in the in the groove. We're in the flow. But when that negative thinking comes in, it turns down the movement of that subtle energy. So as an example, you can think of a light bulb, you know, with a dimmer switch. And so when we're in the flow and we're in connected, it's like the switch is turned all the way to one side and the light is bright and we have great energy and we're.

We're good. Mm.

But then when the negative thinking comes in or whatever that happens to be, you have an argument, it's like we turn that dimmer switch down, you know, and depending on what's going on, it becomes lower and lower. And it's as if we're not having blood circulate through our body because that energy needs to circulate. Through us, you know. And so if we're walking around with that dimmer switch with barely a light on, it's no wonder why we are manifesting illness in body, you know, especially if it's a long-term chronic situation.

Right, right. And how do people recognize that? A lot of people aren't in tune with their bodies though, are they? They're not, you know, like they don't listen to the symptoms. Like they might be listening to symptoms, but they'll go, oh, I'll just take a headache tablet and get rid of that. Or I'll just go to the doctor and get a really quick fix. Or I'll just take, you know, um, an antihistamine or just whatever it is that they're struggling with. What are some, some tips that you could give to our listeners to be able to start getting back in tune with that, with that subtle energy that you're talking about? So they know that, oh, wait a minute, this thought is starting to, you know, bring me down. And then further down the track, they start feeling pain somewhere, or they start feeling discomfort somewhere, or bloating, or whatever it is. How can, how can they start tapping into that?

You know, but I mean, it is so simple, and it is just So unsatisfying that we are not taught this from an early age, because the reality is, is that if you're having symptoms— so I'm going to actually back this up and I'm going to get a little like subtle energy technical here.

That's cool.

You know, but the subtle energy moves through what are called the different bodies, the different subtle bodies. There's the causal body, the mental body, the emotional body, And the etheric body, and then the physical body. And so, if you have a lot of negative thinking, you start to like create crust or limitations for how that energy is moving through. You know, but if you have a negative thought, it eventually will create a negative emotional response in you, which is going to create. This blueprint of this is how the body is going to operate, and then once you start manifesting symptoms, it means you have already gone through all of these processes, and now your body is feeling it. And so to me, when you're being symptomatic, it is your body's way of telling you I need to stop and evaluate what's going on inside of me. To see what I need to do, you know, and this might be a little complicated, but I'm going to throw it out there. But let's say you're having, you know, a gallbladder attack or whatever, you know, you can just put your hands on that organ and ask it, what does it want from you? Or what does it want to communicate to you? And just be open to any weird thing that might come into your mind. Because that's usually our bodies talking to us. And they can be very specific, like, you need to drink some water. And usually— this is the funny part— usually people already know what they're supposed to do or have a better, a good idea, like, oh, well, you know, I shouldn't eat that candy bar, but then they eat it anyway, you know? So they don't really listen to themselves. And I think if people just stopped and listened to themselves or listened to their bodies, You know, they would be moving on the right path. I'm going to put a little caveat there. You know, in today's society, you know, you're right. We're told, well, just go take a pill, you know, or just go have this organ chopped out, you know. And very little is placed on self-exploration. But it also, you know, I was talking about the, the 20% that you can't control. You know, the broken arm, the bacterial viral infections, whatever. But I added a different category, and that's neglect. Because we are taught to neglect our bodies, you know, and I'm not an eat all organic, you know, vegan diet. I'm not, you know, I don't push that. But there is having a certain amount of respect for not eating fast food every day. I mean, I had a client and I asked, you know, because I was kind of talking nutrition. I said, well, you know, what do you usually have for breakfast? And she told me Lucky Charms and it didn't get any better from there. And I'm like, well, and then you wonder why you're having so many health issues.

For us in Australia, what are Lucky Charms?

So Lucky Charms is a breakfast cereal that is—

Oh, okay.

But it's, it's like a little crunchy. Like, do you have Cheerios there? Yes.

Yes.

Okay. So it's kind of like a Cheerio or, but it's a fruity sweet.

Oh, Froot Loops.

With, with Froot Loops with mini marshmallows. Yeah. So it's like quadruple disgusting in my mind, you know? And if somebody tells me like, that's what they regularly eat for breakfast, I'm like, okay. But people think that it's normal and, you know, that they should eat this junk and not exercise and not maybe take a vitamin. And, you know, and I encourage people, pick one, go work out, you know, get rid of some of the junk food from your life, you know, do things for your mind, body, meditate, do yoga, you know, you know, something to be respectful. That is your body, because our society really does not promote that.

Hmm, that's a huge statement, but such a true one. And it's wonderful, if you don't mind, if we could just explore that a little bit more, because I find that, um, well, maybe a lot of our listeners are experiencing sabotage. And what you said about neglect, I think that— do you find that a lot of your Clients come to you neglecting their body, like just don't care about it at all, or they do care about it and then they, like you said, they sabotage themselves. They know what they need to do to feel better, but then they just sabotage themselves.

Great question.

Yeah, can you?

I think it's, you know, so I find, yeah, I find a little bit of a mix with that. Um, yeah, I, um, I'm just trying to think of where I want to go with that. So, you know, the ones that self-sabotage, if you look at their lives, they really don't have a whole lot of self-discipline in a lot of different areas of their lives. Mm-hmm. You know, so maybe it would be the opportunity to incorporate that and bring that in, you know, and saying, wait a minute. And see, here's an emotional piece. I'm worth it. You know, I'm worth going to the gym every day. I'm worth not having donuts in the morning or eating, you know, Lucky Charms.

Yeah.

You know, because it's about me and my body. You know, but then there are other people that they just don't have the knowledge and You know, they just don't think about it. They just—

Live on autopilot, maybe?

They just live on autopilot. You know, well, this is just easier. You know, they can't really figure out how to navigate eating healthy or they're lazy. You know, they, they don't want to cook, you know? And so I do, you know, I do some strategizing with those clients of, you know, well, what can you do to At least eat something healthy every day, you know, like, well, can you have a big salad and a piece of fruit? You know, if you're eating all your other junk and you, like, do that for lunch, that's pretty easy.

Mm.

You know? So I have 2 stepkids, and when I met them, they lived on ramen noodles, chips, hot dogs. I mean, just Which wasn't going to fly with me, you know? And so it took like a year to wean them off of like everyday consumption of this really bad stuff. And they would say to me, because I like to cook, it's like, well, this doesn't taste good. And I finally looked at them and I said, well, my food tastes good. I go, you just have bad taste. And literally it took about a year. Because I didn't, they were young. I didn't want to just take everything away, um, for their taste buds to change so that they could recognize the flavor of good food because they were just used to salt and chemicals and processed food. And it, you know, so there is kind of a, you know, I'm going to say a little withdrawal process that needs to happen.

Hmm. Absolutely. What I find really interesting is what I'm hearing from what you're saying is, you know, we start— people present with a physical disease, they come and see you, they have some physical discomfort or some physical disease, and then, um, you explore that. Oh, all right, you have, like you were saying, um, no planning in life, or you have sabotage, or you have neglect. But then it's really interesting that it even goes deeper, like to find the real root cause isn't just on a physical. Yeah, I know you have to go because like you were just saying then, behind the sabotage is most probably a self-worth issue. You know that their self-worth isn't where it should be, you know, for them to support themselves. And then something else. Do you find that, uh, you can go down that path with your clients? Is there resistance? Or, uh, once you start working with them, you find that they start feeling so much better, they want more, they want to open up more, and you find that the healing is greater?

You know, so one of the primary things I bring to the table in my practice is working as a medical intuitive. You know, so they'll sit there and talk about, oh, well, I have this ache and pain and whatever. And I'll look at it on a functional level. It's like, well, yeah, you know, you have gallstones and your gallbladder seeming inflamed and, you know, your bile production isn't really working good. And, and I'll talk about it functionally, but then, because this is how I operate, and then I shift gears and I'm like, okay, but you know, You, you know, I go into that you can't plan and, you know, because with the planning, there are people that never learned how to plan. And so it's not that it's broken, it's that they never gained that skill set versus people that learned how to plan and choose not to plan, you know. And so even separating that out, like they've been beaten up their whole lives every time they made a plan and they were told no. You know, you stop planning, but their natural proactivity, whatever that word is, is to plan. You know, and so you find that emotional energy, you know, and then usually if you can find the emotional energy, you can find the core belief that's sitting below that, you know, like I'm invisible or I'm not worthy or I, you know, and, and there's usually an I am statement. That will come up sitting behind that, you know. So the emotional part is, well, they make that choice, but really where things start getting screwed up is in that mental body, which is my beliefs about myself and my beliefs about this is how the world operates and this is how I'm supposed to operate in this world.

That is really interesting. Really interesting. So I think the key there is to start becoming aware and acknowledge what we're feeling.

Exactly.

You know, and then, you know, then come and see someone like you. But at least you're starting to develop some awareness.

Right. You know, and it's either becoming aware of what you're thinking, you know, or what you're feeling. If it's a chronic physical condition, I think the feelings might be— okay, actually, I'm going to be more specific. So if you become symptomatic at different times, you know, because there's like long-term chronic illness and, you know, you have this pain. But if there are situations where you're okay, and now you become symptomatic, You know, those are the easiest ones because then you can just stop and reflect on, okay, I was fine and now I'm not. And so what was going on? And I tell people, you got to kind of give it a 3-day window of, I had this encounter with my partner or my boss or whatever, and it left me really upset. And now my acid reflux is really bad.

Right.

Okay.

I was wondering if you could— Dr. Rita, could you explain to the listeners what could their life look like and where can it be if they actually did what you were saying?

I think they could be healthier, like on a physical level, and they would also be happier. Because our bodies will, if we allow ourselves to go into uncomfortable situations or tolerate uncomfortable situations, you know, you only have to think of the woman who is in the toxic relationship and chooses to stay.

Yes.

You know, um, as you start raising that awareness, you can make different choices and get rid of that stress. That is in your life. Oh wait, I have a story for you. You're going to love this story. Oh my God. So this is one of my— and this is one of my miracle stories. I mean, I literally call it a miracle story. So I had a woman and it was somebody that I knew came in for an appointment and she had uterine fibroids and the fibroids were bleeding and she had gone to the gynecologist and they said, well, we want to do a hysterectomy. And so she came to me to find out what she could do or get a second opinion on the whole thing or whatever. She just wanted information from me. And so her fibroids were bleeding. You know, if I was going to rate them, I would have rated them on a, on a 1 to 10 scale. They were bleeding at about a 3. So I felt based on what I was seeing, she had a window And based on their growth of about six months to just really focus on herself, her health, working with supplements, you know, to turn it around. But then, of course, I have to go tap into that emotional stuff, and I'm like poking in and going. I was when I said, "Are you in a relationship?" And she said, "Yeah." And I go, "You need to dump him." I mean, it just— And she just looked at me and I said, you are giving away all of your energy to this man with the hope that he will love you back. And I repeated that to her, with the hope that you will— he will love you back. And the session ended. You know, I, you know, my practice, it's like I have a lot of I don't want to say one and done, but they come, they get their information, and they go. So I see her at an event like 6 months later, and she runs over and gives me this big hug. And she goes, well, they're gone. And I said, the fibroids? She goes, yeah. I go, and so is he. So apparently after our session, she dumped him and the fibroids went away.

That's incredible.

That's a miracle story.

That's it. So she only saw you once. You gave her that advice. She obviously heeded the advice. And that's just what we were talking about before, wasn't it? When we have those toxic emotions, you can be in a toxic relationship and you don't realize that year after year, that sort of arguing and, you know, just that toxic energy, what— how that is actually impacting your health. That is a fantastic, fantastic story.

I love that story.

I love that because that also plays into the fact that what you're saying is true. It's exactly how our emotions can either create or exacerbate what we're experiencing on the physical level.

Yeah. I mean, I was just stunned because it was only 6 months later. That I saw her, you know, and I and I told her you have a six-month window to to do something so that they don't do the hysterectomy. And that's incredible, which is why I call it a miracle story. You know, not everyone has the same kind of success, but she did.

Maybe that would that go down to a person's determination? And their belief in, in what they're doing, in what you're saying.

I think that she was ready to hear it. And I think, well, she really didn't want to have the hysterectomy, you know, because she was aware enough to know that, you know, just taking out a body part, especially your uterus, creates other kinds of health issues and, you know, prolapse issues. No, so she was very well aware of that. And so I applaud her for— I didn't expect her to dump the boyfriend, but, you know, hey, you know, it worked.

Her womb was more important, apparently. Well, that's how you were saying before, that you, you have to put yourself as number one to everything else. And she obviously decided to do that, which is great. I love it. I love it because that's living proof of what you're saying actually works. Kind of brings me to my next question, and I asked this to, to a few energy healers, etc., because what are some of the untrue myths around your approach that you've had to deal with? You know, like people saying to you Well, that can't possibly work, or you know it takes too long. What are some myths around your work?

Hmm. I mean, I do think it takes time. You know, I I don't think that okay. People want the one and done. You know, they want the pill. You know, and they're like, well, you know, I I had two sessions. Why aren't I healed? You know, and with energy work in particular, you know, there's kind of this belief that, well, I had 2 sessions and, you know, it's kind of like I'm supposed to smack them on the forehead and they're, they're miraculously healed, which is why I call that one client a miracle story. But so many times there's so much of the emotion and stress and everything that is just bound to the health issue. Then it has to unwind, and some people will spontaneously unwind. So you hear those stories of you know spontaneous remission, and then there are other people that want to hang on to it and not necessarily let it go. And so that's where the time part comes. It's not that I'm not doing a good job; it's because your body is processing in the way that it's going to process. I'm just the facilitator, you know, and I can just create the environment for you to release the energy and shift your thinking and, and that whole internal environment, but I can't make your body change.

Yeah, only we can. And I love the— yeah, I really love that part where you said, uh, you don't want to let it go. That's really interesting. What's behind that for people when they don't— when they know, um, this isn't good for me, or that this emotion is creating this, but they don't want to let it go? What do you find is behind that? Is it just fear, or is there something— is there, um, a common denominator amongst that across your clients, or is it just always totally individual? What's behind not letting go?

I mean, I would say, no, good question. I would say, you know, if you're really taking it down to the bottom line, fear is always the culprit. Yeah, it's always the culprit. But you have to think about it. Many of the programs that were installed, instilled into us, you know, or the trauma that was instilled into us came in at a very early age where we were unable to separate out This is healthy energy, and this is a healthy way of living. From not, I mean, as adults, if we're in an uncomfortable situation, we can sit there and go, "Well, that guy was a jerk," and walk away. But when we're five years old, we just assume that that person has our best interest in mind, and so we just take the energy on and go, "Oh, well, there must be something wrong with me." And so though that's the part that becomes harder because it's subconscious. You know, it might be pre-verbal, you know, so they can't even really connect with it. Like, they can feel the effect, but they can't— there's not like any memories that will come up. Because often when I work with people, memories will come up. Um, you know, I'm pretty good at going, you know, you're like 6 or 7 years old, and, you know, then the outcome was you ended up feeling like this? And usually they're like, oh yeah, you know, my parents got divorced.

Right.

You know, and, and that's where the, the not got that started this whole process inside their body. And actually, this is the interesting one that I think you'll find fascinating. When talking about the mental emotional part, you can actually track back to where the imbalance started. To help the person identify, you know, what was going on, because you heal that and everything else goes. So sometimes they might have a trauma and it creates like a little kink in the line, but then they have a very similar trauma a little bit later on in life, and it takes it and it embeds it. It makes it more permanent.

Mm-hmm.

in their energy space, you know, and now they're operating this way, you know. So I don't know, it's really interesting. And, you know, it's a whole piece of work.

It really is. And if people are up for the challenge to investigate and look into their emotions, like you're saying, the, the outcome of the healing can be quite profound.

Mm-hmm.

Which kind of leads me to asking you, what's your why? What's your why? This is how I start to like to end it. What's your why for doing this work?

So I became interested in psychic stuff when I was 12 or 13 and wanted to do psychic stuff and And then finally, many, many, many years later, after reading a ton of books, found the Berkeley Psychic Institute and studied with them. And so I just wanted to be Rita the psychic chick, and I'm going to talk to you about your relationships because I like talking about relationships, and I could be a little gossipy and like talk about your husband, and I was okay with that. But I would also do energy work with people, and what I found was that I was always finding people's health issues. Oh, was that a cesarean or a hysterectomy? You know, was that this or this? You know, it's like, oh, your your spine is kind of twisted like this, which apparently, you know, I think everybody has channels. So people that are mediums that talk to dead people, that's the channel that. Flows the best for them, and so I just owned the fact that I was really good at finding health stuff, which propelled me to go get my degree as a naturopath because they would go, "Well, what can I do?" And I would like meditate. I mean, I had nothing. I had absolutely nothing. I had this one client, and I was doing energy work on her, and I'm like. Clearing, and when I do it, my hands are moving and I'm yawning, and and I get down to the middle of her back. This is before school, and I think this is what propelled me to go back to school. And I'm in the middle of her back, and there's just this like black energy sitting there. And I was like, well, there's this black energy sitting there, and I'm going, I think it's your kidneys. Yeah, it's your kidneys. You know, and then I went into the whole emotional piece about the kidneys. You know, or the emotional energy tied to it. But now that I know stuff, like I know it's your kidneys for one, but then I can sit there and assess the kidneys. You know, is there an infection going on? Is there sediment in there? You know, is the kidney functioning properly? You know, blah, blah, blah. You know, so I can assess the health part as well and provide better information. To them, you know. And so, you know, I just do what spirit tells me to do. And they were like, go back to school. And I said, okay.

Funny.

You know, and that's part of it too. You know, if you get directed, like, drink a glass of water, or go back to school, or dump that idiot, or whatever, you have to listen and say, okay. After you argue for a while, I always argue. But, but then eventually I'll say, okay.

I could just imagine you going, no, no, I don't want to, no. And then you do.

Always, always.

We're always in a, in a process of learning. So what are, what are 3 ways, uh, our listeners can start listening to their body? What are 3 ways that they can simply Like what you were saying just then, drink water, do this. What can they do to start, uh, calming their, their body, their environment, to allow themselves to start listening? What are 3 ways that they could possibly do that?

You know, so I think one way, and we've talked a lot about the emotions, but an easier way is starting to pay attention to your thoughts. About, you know, what should I have for dinner? Or, you know, what, what should I be doing now? You know, and being open to receiving that answer, because I think people receive the answer and then we supersede it. You know, we argue with it and then we just say, eh, I'm just gonna do whatever. You know, see, I've learned because I've kind of gotten my butt kicked from spirits too many times. That I argue, and then I just do it. But people are really good at not listening to themselves. So my number one is start listening to yourself, right? And doing what whatever it is you're telling yourself to do, or spirit, or you know your higher self, whatever word you want to put there. You know, doing that, recognizing that. You have value, you know, and your health has value. And because there's— we're not taught to value ourselves. That's a big one. You know, which includes boundaries. And then 3, this actually I think will make a good circle. So if you get that thought to eat a salad for lunch and you feel better after, or after a couple of weeks of doing that, then say thank you and find gratitude for the thoughts that you're having, because then you'll get more.

That's—

You know, and it kind of completes that cycle for you. And you can't have negative thoughts if you have a gratitude attitude.

I love it. I love it. And it's so true. That's— I love it. I love that circle. And I hope that all our listeners actually do that because they'll get so much benefit from it.

Well, you know, when I suggest to people, pick one thing, you know, just one thing and incorporate into your life. There are so many people that go, Well, I'm going to do this. And they, they come up with this exercise routine and they get rid of all the junk food from their house and they're going to do all of this stuff all at once. And they last for about a week and then they stop because it's too overwhelming. And I, I'm, I'm the slow go girl. Pick one thing. You know, incorporate that into your life. And then maybe after a week or two, if you're feeling compelled, Incorporate something else because then it becomes part of your life and your lifestyle. And just for the listeners, I do eat like Kentucky Fried Chicken every so often. And you know, not every day, but you know, I really am not a saint. I don't eat organic food, you know, but my health and vitality is great. That's, you know, I go to the doctor and they're like, well, what medication are you on? I'm like, none. And then they just look at me like I'm crazy.

Yeah. Well, I think, you know, our listeners can take away quite a few good nuggets from this. Like you say, go low and slow, one thing at a time, and, you know, watch the negative thoughts. Most probably the key to start shifting whatever they're feeling or not creating what they don't want.

Exactly. Exactly.

Perfect. Perfect. Dr. Rita, thank you so much for enlightening our listeners about your work and providing them with another possibility to heal. It has been great. I've loved having you on the show. You're an absolute joy.

Well, thanks for having me. This was wonderful. That's because we're both named Rita.

That's exactly right. There's got to be something behind that.

That's right.

It's been beautiful having you on the show. Thank you so much, and thanks for sharing your wisdom.

Thank you.

And if anybody wants to connect with Rita and book in or learn more about what her work is, all of her details will be in the show notes. So please contact Rita, Dr. Rita, and See where your health can go. Thank you. I would love to know what was the biggest insight or aha moment you got from this interview so you can now speak up, take action, and make informed decisions for your health. And if you like this episode, get instant access to your free ebook, Alternative Wisdom: Taking Back Control of Your Health, at life-onus.com.