The Power of Belief

What lies beneath

Human beings used to think gravity was the most powerful force in the universe, per classic Newtonian physics. But with the birth of quantum mechanics, we discovered the weak and strong nuclear forces, the latter of which is six thousand trillion trillion trillion (6 with 39 zeros) times stronger than gravity. Together with electromagnetism, these are the four fundamental forces (we are aware of) that govern existence. However, one other, in terms of our actual experience, is far more potent—belief.

I wrote an article on the first of this year called “Telling Stories,” where I discuss how our search for meaning makes us create narratives. These then direct our behavior. But stories lie upon a bedrock made of beliefs.

Beliefs can be explicit, as in the case of faith. Many people profess their alignment to a specific religious ideology and structure their lives accordingly. The same is true with politics. We ally ourselves with certain parties based on deeply held views about our country and how its people should live.

The actions we can take based on such convictions emphatically demonstrate their fortitude. People will go to the ends of the earth for something they wholeheartedly believe in. We even rationalize killing one another (or ourselves) for a cause we feel is just. Whether that violence is inflicted on a battlefield or by flying planes into buildings, all of it stands firmly on the belief that what we are doing is right.

However, the intent of this article is not to discuss various doctrines or morality. I use the examples above merely to demonstrate the effect this invisible force can have on us. Because that same power exists regarding what we believe about ourselves. The implicit underpinnings of our psyche to which we, unfortunately, might be oblivious once they’ve become ingrained. And if we don’t take care to identify, examine, and validate them, some prevent us from fulfilling our true potential. As I learned through my own struggles, these tacit assertions might also hinder our ability to overcome mental and physical chronic conditions.

Before I go any further, I define the word “belief” as—an acceptance that a statement is true. This means that the declaration in question might not be factual, regardless of what we think. So with it in mind, right now, ask yourself what you believe about yourself… And realize that potentially none of it has any veracity whatsoever.

You may have never even considered this question. But I’m willing to bet you’ve uttered the phrase, “that’s just the way I am.” Not referencing physical characteristics. My height is 5’ 8”, and that truly is “the way I am,” regardless of how I feel (less than thrilled). But what about my anxiety issues? Is that “the way I am,” too?

Or how about the oft-stated “I’m really bad with names.” My wife once said this to me before we were even dating. Stoically I responded, “no, you’re not.” And then went on to explain that she was simply making an excuse. She wasn’t trying to remember anyone’s name but could with some effort. (To her credit, she agreed with me. Otherwise, things might have turned out differently for us as a couple.)

Declarations like this are the result of what’s called a “limiting belief.” Such behavior can emerge early in life. My ten-year-old son struggled with writing in school and started saying, “I’m not good at spelling.” Once you begin stating something like this, it soon becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. So instead of allowing him to accept it as a foregone conclusion, my wife and I committed to a practice of helping him study better. Now he aces tests. Most importantly, he now believes he’s capable of getting good grades. That’s where the difference lies.

The truth is that no one is inherently “bad with names” or “not good at spelling.” Natural ability (and lack thereof) exists. But as one of my favorite expressions goes—hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard. Any shortcoming is overcomeable with the right mindset. There is also no “way you are” regarding how you act. There is only the “way you’ve become.” The good news is that you can become someone different if you want. It starts by changing your beliefs.

Note: I’m not going to discuss precisely from where our beliefs originate, whether it’s childhood authority figures (parental or otherwise), social media, society at large, or elsewhere. There are entire tomes devoted to that subject. For my purposes here, all that matters is that, at some point, we buy into certain statements about ourselves so fundamentally that they transform who we are. And these self-directed presumptions are not all beneficial. Many can even have negative physical consequences.

This is critical to understand if you are someone who suffers from conditions like anxiety, depression, PTSD, or OCD. Our beliefs about these illnesses can become consummately intertwined with our sense of self. When we overtly and repeatedly express positions like “I have a chronic condition” or “that’s just the way my mind works,” we are simply reinforcing an unnecessary and unhelpful identity.

I recently listened to Howie Mandel on Bill Maher’s podcast “Club Random.” Mandel has struggled with numerous mental issues during his life. They stem from a genuinely harrowing incident involving sand fleas as a child that he recounts in that episode. But after hearing him speak, it’s no wonder he’s spent sixty years wrestling with these problems. He consistently makes statements like “I’m a scared person.” Escaping the grips of any mental affliction is nearly impossible when you so vehemently assert its power over you.

To make matters worse, limiting beliefs can exacerbate your condition. Your mind has the ability to alter your cells. Every movement you make is caused by a thought translated into physical action via your nervous system. What do you think a constant stream of anxious or depressed mental energy does to your body?

Most people are familiar with the opposite form of this concept in the placebo effect. When a control group is unknowingly given a sugar pill instead of a new drug, some percentage will get the purported benefits of that pharmaceutical simply based on their assumption that they received it. But fewer people are aware of the nocebo effect.¹ Patients can experience negative consequences from a treatment if they believe it won't work or focus too intently on potential risk factors. Let that sink in for a minute. You can legitimately sabotage your physical health with your mind.

I know this struggle all too well. For the last six years, I identified as a sick person (both mentally and physically). “Being ill” became a fundamental component of who I was. But during a two-month outpatient program at the New York Center for Innovative Medicine, where I was treated for Lyme Disease, heavy metals, parasites, mold, and other toxins, I read the recovery story of a former attendee named Heather. Here’s the key point that jumped off the page for me—it wasn’t until she believed she was fully healthy that her last symptoms vanished. Here is a condensed version of a quote from that transcript:

I can tell you the day that I finally decided in my brain I’m healthy. There’s something called cognitive dissonance where you think something in your head but you don’t necessarily believe it in your heart. And I was in the ER working, pretty exhausted from a long shift and just was kind of worried about getting sick, worried about my joints not feeling 100% that day. But I had been telling myself over and over again, you’re healthy, you’re healthy, you’re healthy. But I don’t think I really believed it. But for some reason that day I had that thought of you’re healthy. And all of a sudden it was like, oh holy smokes, I’m healthy. This is great! And that also took me to another level of health where I believed that not only my body was functioning better, but I believed in my heart that I was actually healthy and “normal.”

As long as you say, “I suffer from X,” you will. The only way to truly break free from X’s clutches is to stop stating that. Stop thinking that. Stop believing that.

I reference the movie The Matrix a lot in my writing because it contains many truths about how our minds work. And I would argue the fundamental theme of that film is belief. Morpheus initially pulls Neo into the “real world” because he believes he is “The One.” The rest of the story is essentially scene after scene of Neo slowly learning to have that same conviction about himself. While sparring, Morpheus tells him he’s faster than he believes and states, “don’t think you are; know you are.” When he visits the Oracle, she implies that the wrong belief is holding him back. “Looks like you’re waiting for something,” she states. And he still doesn’t get it! Eventually, of course, he comes around. What it takes is the realization that the only actual difference between him being “The One” and not being it, is belief.

Of course, that’s just a movie. But the lesson it provides is vital. I’m not saying you’ll be able to stop bullets with your mind or fly. What you can do, however, is be the one best version of yourself. If you can cut ties from the weighty beliefs that hold you down, maybe you can figuratively take to the air.

Spend thirty minutes with a journal and reify whatever it is you implicitly “know” about yourself. Write it all down. Do these ideas serve you? Are they helpful? Or do they simply lock you in a prison you cannot see, taste, or touch? If that’s the case, it’s time to change your beliefs. I subtitled this article “What lies beneath.” Hopefully, you get the double meaning there. Free your mind.

Your beliefs become your thoughts, your thoughts become your words, your words become your actions, your actions become your habits, your habits become your values, your values become your destiny.

- Mahatma Gandhi

And since the World Cup is on this month, I thought I’d leave you with this…

DISCLAIMER: RARE SENSE content is not medical advice. Nor does it represent the official position or opinions of any other organization or person. If you require diagnosis or treatment for a mental or physical issue or illness, please seek it from a licensed professional.

1. https://www.webmd.com/balance/features/is-the-nocebo-effect-hurting-your-health