849 thoughts on “Healing Inflammatory Bowel Disease”

1. What I can feel is that the deeper we go into self-care, the more sense it actually makes for us to be open to conventional medicine to be part of our healing process, and that becoming more responsible allows us to be accepting support.

2. “I now realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person. This in turn has allowed me to become more communicative and open, and less withdrawn from life.” This warms my heart to read this….so many people have withdrawn from life, feeling unable to meet the daily stressors of life, so to read of a person bringing more of themselves is gorgeous.

3. “I had actually been fairly healthy with my diet up until that time, but I knew there were aspects that let me down and that I over-rode how I felt in my body with some of the foods I ate.” What I love about your blog is that it is inviting us to address things now. Imagine if we pinpointed and changed things we already potentially knew were wrong now so that we did not need to develop an illness or a problem?

4. “Western Medicine was crucial to my recovery, but also only a part of the healing. Suffering ill health was a wake up call to consider my lifestyle and look after myself properly, and Universal Medicine has been a huge support in understanding and developing the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.” A beautiful appreciation of Western Medicine and Universal Medicine complementing each other for true health.

5. A beautiful example where there is the acceptance of conventional medicine to support the body but at the same time a willingness and openness to explore energetically the condition and what it is offering – a combination of medicine, one supporting the other to truly heal the body.

6. I like the title of your blog Stephen, that there is a difference between curing a condition and healing it as you go on to beautifully describe.

7. It is very common to ignore what our body is telling us and continue with our old habits and patterns even though our body is showing us signs and trying to get our attention. If we ignore the messages for too long our body will make the messages louder and sometimes this requires us to fully stop in order to listen.

8. We have a choice as to whether to continue to stubbornly deny what our body is trying to tell us or to honour the body and be guided by what it reveals to us.

9. It’s a very common sense approach you have taken to self care and super simple by referring honestly to how you feel and how the body feels. I noticed this line “I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for.”, related to your ongoing deepening of self care. What I realised reading is we could make quite a leap from neglect to self care but stop there due to comparing how we once were (neglectful, etc) to how we are now. I can see in my own life that there is more love and care to live and to keep embracing it, no matter where I started or how great the level of self care and self love is that I live now.

10. Yes, we can have such an enormous impact on our own health and we are so much more influential than we dare to imagine.

11. “how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.” This is a rare level of awareness of the relationship we have with our body and the way our body communicates with us.

12. “Looking back, I feel I could have avoided the greater symptoms I suffered had I been willing to address how I felt in my body, both emotionally and physically.” Yes we never consider our whole wellbeing when we are sick; we tend to look at it in parts. This is why I love Universal Medicine, it asks us to look at ill health from all aspects so that we can fully heal. As you have shown Stephen, it is also ongoing, it is not something we can look at only until the symptoms disappear, the awareness becomes part of our every day living.

13. The more we openly talk about illness and disease the less shame we hold about being ill, as we are able to look at it from a different way especially how our life choices affect us, any illness or disease is a moment to take stock and look at the way we are living, and make the appropriate changes.

14. Yes we are worth caring for and refining what and how we eat and how we treat our body, deepen the relationship we have with our body and our own health. What you say is true we cannot switch this on and off, our body is worth caring for all of the time.

    1. Very well said Annelies, our body is 100% worth caring for with the highest quality and if we don’t it will let us know. Our body is super honest and it doesn’t hold back in telling us how we are living and it doesn’t hold back in showing us the consequences of our choices.

15. I find that connection with others and expressing how I feel, allowing continuing deeper levels of honesty is a huge contributor in the way I feel about myself and life in general. The level of care and tenderness or delicateness that I allow in my movements and my communication is also key. This blog emphasises this for me as I know that I can also become hard and unloving toward myself and others and this is a harmful way of being causing all sorts of internal imbalances and at a certain point manifesting in illness and disease

16. “How open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am” – that is my experience as well. And as you say, while Western medicine plays a crucial part in our healing, becoming more aware and understanding of what is truly going on and re-building a new foundation in the way we live our every day is equally crucial, and the support I get from Universal Medicine in this respect is immeasurable.

17. When we are willing to let go of patterns of any kind and bring more self-care and love it is interesting how the body offers us a healing that shows the patience and consistency that reside within.

    1. Yes, it is not so much that all our illnesses will clear up but there will be a deeper level of appreciation for the communication we chose to ignore for so long that our body needed to offer us a greater level of honesty to get our attention.

18. “Universal Medicine has been a huge support in understanding and developing the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.” – I’ve found this too very much so; Universal Medicine has helped me understand and be aware of much more in how I live my day to day life in every way and how this impacts my health and that of everyone around me.

19. The balance between medical care and self care is key as you have shared here Stephen. We would like to depend on the medical support to keep living in the way we were but unavoidably this will lead to more problems down the road. Our body is very clear in what it can and cannot handle if we are willing to listen to it.

20. Your self care and self love through the process of your healing is palpable and most inspiring. No doubt it is that that was a crucial ingredient in the healing process.

21. “Later that year it became more of an issue as it was affecting my ability to play football – now that was a real problem, so I went to the doctor.” This is funny but also shows how far away we have gone from our own bodies to only go to the doctor when our symptoms are interfering with things we like to do in life whilst most of the time there have been many more small symptoms that shown us that something was going on.

    1. I agree Lieke if we were to listen to our body before we get to the point of not being able to function we could prevent a lot of the illness and disease we are encountering these days.

22. Thank you Stephen, your blog is like a case study on chronic illness and the impact of our daily/lifestyle choices. It’s great that you went beyond just diet, exercise and sleep to how you were with others and life and whether you felt open and expressive – it all truly does have an effect.

23. Serious illness can often be a wake up call for us to take note and make some lifestyle changes. It surprises me that doctors aren’t taught more about this rather than reaching for the prescription pad. Also when I have healed more quickly than average after serious illness, doctors appreciate how I have healed, but don’t ask how I did that, just “ keep doing what you’re doing….” Education for everyone about how our lifestyle can be Medicine is sorely needed.

24. To fully engage in our own healing processes is to consider all of the ways we live and interact with life.

25. Thank you Stephen the more we openly talk about health issues the easier it is for others to talk and share about their issues too, beautiful how you now value yourself and from that make more loving choices.

26. Like you, “through the presentations of Serge Benhayon I started to listen to the wisdom my body shared.” It was quite shocking to acknowledge that, in the main, I had ignored this wisdom for most of my life simply considering the symptoms to be a nuisance. But once I began to listen and act on this incredible wisdom my health improved and so did my vitality and any remaining resistance was soon gone.

27. Thank you for sharing Stephen – you reveal how we tend to take small improvements and go back to destructive behaviours that hurt our health. We truly need to see that what we’re missing out on is not sad or a punishment but a poison we are choosing to not have.

28. Stephen Its reading your blog that I can look back in deep appreciation of how I have healed as well IBS, its great to see how our bodies do share with us exactly what is going on, What we need to do in order to look after ourselves and encourage us to lead a more loving life.

29. The greatest thing I can feel in your sharing Stephen is how your body and its sensitivities brought you back to truth. Just one step to open up to what it was actually saying allowed you to explore how life could be so much more. Our body’s wisdom is profound – and always around.

30. ‘Universal Medicine has been a huge support in understanding and developing the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.’ Spot on Stephen, I would hate to think where my life and health would be right now if I didn’t meet Serge Benhayon and have an understanding and the support to begin to commit to a self-care routine in my life.

31. Any kind of illness is a great gift for it gets us to sit up and re evaluate how we are choosing to live. When we are willing to do this and to make changes even though they are not what we think we want or are heralding an 180 degree turn or are casting us out into the great unknown if we stay with honouring our body and peeling back what is not true we get to see the healthiest way to go.

32. The message I read was repeated throughout this blog, honouring and accepting that I am sensitive and delicate is good medicine and one that can support the needed changes in lifestyle to occur. Thank you Stephen.

33. ” It was upon attending Universal Medicine courses that I grew to appreciate all the signs my body had been giving me, and through the presentations of Serge Benhayon I started to listen to the wisdom my body shared.”
    This is so wonderful , the importances of listening ” to the wisdom of the body “

34. Western medicine, the wisdom presented by Universal Medicine and your commitment – all working together, your story is a great example. And I also love the openness and honesty you have shared your story with, including your emotional landscape and what was going on for you at each step. There’s so much there and many of us can relate to I am sure, and it feels very supportive. Thank you.

35. I love how you learned you could not do the healthy lifestyle for a bit only, but that it is about something that we can give to ourselves for the rest of our lives. So it becomes a way of being that is truly loving of ourselves and not something we have to do because our body ‘plays up’.

36. Awesome Stephen – I know many people with this condition who choose to ignore symptoms and carry on eating that what they know is not good for them, awesome for you to be a refection for those who may be struggling with this so they can see there is another way to live that does not aggravate and stress the condition further. Thank you for your openness.

37. You’ve given us a great insight into how conventional medicine, lifestyle choices and energy, all can be a part of our healing journey, and of course the key to it all, is staying connected to our greatest asset, the body.

38. I met a friend yesterday who had Crohn’s Disease for years, has been regularly hospitalised, on the verge of surgery and often looking very puffy from all the steroids. She has made a lot of very healthy energetic and life style choices over the last couple of years and is currently symptom free – she looked absolutely amazing and very beautiful, glowing in fact. It is quite something how we can heal our bodies when we listen to and respond to them. Healing does not always involve removal of symptoms often the illness itself is a great healing – it is about our relationship and learning with what is on offer.

    1. That is beautiful Nicola. I was just learning about Crohn’s Disease and IBS for my study and it is interesting to see this part because even though western medicine takes lifestyle choices into consideration, many people with these kind of illnesses feel it is something that comes over them instead of also a message from our body about how we are living, eating, thinking and breathing. Knowing the latter part can lead to true healing whilst the former often goes from bad to worse.

       1. Yes and it is also very empowering to know that what happens to us is a consequence of our choices and that we can make different choices!

39. Great blog Stephen, it really highlighted to me how we don’t have to rollover and accept any illness or disease we may have, and by taking more responsibility for our choices, and changing those that are causing us stress is a great start to helping our body not only cope but start to heal too.

40. Let’s face it, we, as a humanity are living recklessly, we think we can get away with careless behaviour towards ourselves and others when really we know we can’t. We are building an inner conflict within our bodies and our bodies are manifesting the signs and for the most part we tend to ignore them in the hope that theses symptoms of unease that have become disease go away on their own. If they don’t go away we expect someone else to fix the problem for us. Your approach here Stephen is to accept responsibility for (your part in) your condition. Once we do this we are free to set about making the changes needed to turn around our health so as to get our life back but what is magical is that what we are offered, in a sense, is a new life, one free of this inner struggle and one that takes us on an ever increasingly vital and harmonious path. This happens when we allow an equal input from traditional medicine and what we know is true for ourselves from our inner heart/knowing.

    1. There is a lot of deep truth to what you have said here Elaine. I can feel how there have been so many times when I have gotten a consistent message from my body that a certain way of eating, communicating, drinking, exercising, etc. was not doing my body any good at all, yet I continued along in an arrogant way thinking that I could get away with it as long as nothing worse happened. Many times it takes a serious illness or disease to shake things up enough to make significant changes, but even then we often go back to our usual ways once the doctors ‘fix us’ as you have stated above. The question is: what quality of life do we really want to accept as the norm in our lives? If it is one of true health, vitality, purpose, and loving expression, then the only way is to listen to the messages our body is guiding us with all the time.

41. How arrogant we are to brush things off as not important or temporary rather than sit and read it. I certainly still struggle to actually stop and really get what the message is before I continue plowing through my day onto the next task or box to tick.

42. ‘Whilst diet is a huge part of the lifestyle changes I needed to make, I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health – how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.’

    It’s interesting, many people I meet comment on how well I look and ask questions about what I eat. But never do they consider or ask about the other dimensions of health and well-being – our demeanour, as you say here Stephen. It’s like people are only willing to go so far with their understanding of what comprises true health and are comfortable with what they can physically work with, i.e. diet and perhaps exercise. But perhaps that is understandable too.

43. Self care is huge and accepting that we deserve it is even bigger, as without this understanding and allowing us to deepen our relationship with ourselves and our bodies our self care can easily become a rigid routine, and we can so easily then rebel rather than knowing that there is a standard of care for us, one that we deserve, and then everything we do just confirms this.

44. The consequences of burying our issues and barging onward with our bodies is not worth it, when it is so easy to admit we are greatly sensitive and take small steps from there, whatever the healing direction may be. But we, especially as males, are educated that we need to cling on to that protection, and not show an ounce of supposed “weakness”.

45. Isn’t it interesting how even when your body was showing such clear signs of dis-ease, it still took such a long time to finally listen and give it what it was asking for? This shows to me how the road of recovery back to our natural health-full ways is indeed a path that we all walk, it is not an overnight transportation in to stupendous health, it is a journey we each must take as we live and we learn – each according to where we are at and what is laid down before us to discover and encounter. This also says to me about how there can therefore be no judgement because everyone has a life to live that is full of learning specific to them, there can be no comparison, we are all unique in our expressions and so we are all unique in our paths.

46. Our bodies symptoms are a blessing that indicate to us something is not quite right with our body and are definitely worth following up with a medical review, and if ever required medical treatment.

47. I really appreciate how deepening self care requires an ongoing refinement and awareness of our choices and qualities we bring to life.

48. ‘I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health…’ This is a crucial aspect of staying well and healthy that we do not often consider. Our emotions play a huge role in the balance and wellness of our physical bodies and it makes sense to connect the two. Good preventative medicine would be to educate ourselves in this area.

49. I find it inspiring to read of people who see their ill health and suffering as a wake up call that opens them to ponder over the way they are living and then choose to take it as an opportunity to look after themselves in a way they have been previously denying. Universal Medicine is indeed a gorgeous support in encouraging the use of western medicine but also bringing in the understanding of the impact of our lifestyle choices on our well being and therefore the empowerment we can embrace through taking responsibility for our choices.

50. Western Medicine is often used as a band aid, quick fix it or cure, rather than a support for us to address the medical issue from the inside out. It is so fantastic seeing the living proof that the combination between Western and Esoteric Medicine, it makes so much sense and should really be basic understanding of over all health, I mean of course our choices both lifestyle and emotional have an impact on our health.

    1. Sarah that was my experience the combination of Western Medicine and Esoteric Medicine supported me to be able to heal my inflammatory bowel disease from years of chronic pain and ‘no hope’ by taking responsibility, building more care and love for myself and adjusting my diet as per the medical advice.

51. This brings a whole new perspective to health and wellbeing when we also include it to be how open and expressive we are ‘how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.’ I would agree and say this is vital to our health and wellbeing.

52. ” What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.”
    This is where our responsibility for our body is acknowledged and followed, as there is no end to the changes our body is asking for. Forever refining its needs and movements to align with the omnipresence of our soul.

53. It’s inspiring to read about your journey Stephen and what has and hasn’t worked for you. The care you have shown for yourself is not common in our society, and it leaves me asking why? Why, when here you are, a product of your choices, and what a success that has been. A true success whereby you have taken the responsibility of yourself and acted accordingly. If we all gave this a go, if even a quarter of us gave this a go, the medical world would stop dead in their tracks.

54. Our bowels are the physical part of our anatomy that have the job of eliminating that which is not needed for the nourishment of our body. The function here being to ‘let go’ of what does not support us. Following this, if our bowels are becoming inflamed then it is a sure sign that we are impeding the ‘letting go’ process and therefore an opportunity to peer a bit deeper and observe the patterns we may have in place that prevent us from fully living and expressing the truth of who we are. It also serves us well to ask ourselves what are we accepting that is not true to the love that we are, as well as what aren’t we accepting that would be supportive for our expression of this? For example – do we accept abuse instead of love? By combining the appropriate medication with lifestyle changes as well as examining the energetic root cause of our ailments, we are well on the way to living with far greater vitality and clarity.

55. Great blog Stephen in reminding us that refining our food and our care for our bodies is an ongoing process, and not one we can switch off and on…..it is so easy to think that you can get well, that there is an end point and then you can relax a little….but it is truly and on going process of being willing to address whatever the body and emotions bring up, and with continual refining I feel it is a never ending process. A gift that is inherent in our bodies to assist us to be the utmost we can .

56. Awesome, Stephen. So many men (and women!) would shy away from initiating such a public discussion of their bowel issues but in doing so you help break the mould that keeps us ashamed and silent and avoidant of medical and other support.

57. “how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.” In the same way that putting the wrong fuel in a motor vehicle and driving it recklessly can prevent it from working, when we put the wrong fuel in our own physical vehicle and treat it with less than true loving care it also does not function as it should.

58. ‘ the self-medicine of lifestyle choices ‘ I like this. It really is up to us at the end of the day and our self-caring and self loving choices bring us to recognise the love that we are and our lifestyle reflects this so that we can actually be on an evolving path clearing past unhealthy choices and creating a new way for ourselves that allows for harmony to be restored.

59. It is only when we begin to truly value who we are and cherish our tenderness, delicateness and sensitivity, that we then can begin to honor the messages and guidance that we receive from our bodies and make loving choices accordingly. Otherwise we continue to be caught up in degenerative cycle of knowing what is good or true for us, but unable to follow through with honoring it or live it consistently.

60. Why do we tend to see success in life as being able to continue on being numb? Why do we get well after disease only to continue to live the same reckless way? Why is it we use medicine to simply sustain our habit of abusing our body? How do we then measure our health if all we want is not to be ill? What would our life be like if we embraced the fact that every moment carries with it a significant weight that adds up to what we finally get? What if we saw at last that it’s joy and consistency of vitality we deserve? Thank you Stephen for these questions you leave me pondering.

    1. Thank you Joseph, I guess if we wake up and don’t feel vital and energised the questions need to already be asked. We can have so much more but we have to want to choose it. Abundant well-being is there and within grasp of us all, but what gets in the way?

       1. The abundance that you talk about is on tap if we care to take a drink. There is no excitement but a consistent support that offers the right sort of medicine for the body to heal.

61. What a transformation, to go through such a healing and then sharing here on this site is super supportive for many of us. Especially talking about the bowels, a topic that many do not always want to share about. So great to get this kind of details out and being discussed.

    1. Yes Reagan, it is not aways an easy topic to write about, but there is much to share and much that we can all learn from each other. The reflection we give in how we care for ourselves is what the whole world needs more of, at the moment it is too easy to make unhealthy choices as there is more encouragement to indulge than there is commitment to care.

62. This is a very cool sharing and huge transformation of how how it is possible to heal your body through care and medication. But it seems huge the choices you made when you committed to taking care of yourself – rather than just expecting medication to do all the work.

63. For most of my early life I thought that illnesses and things that went wrong with my body were just an inconvenient nuisance, I’m so thankful from attending Universal Medicine courses that I learnt that this was actually my body communicating things to me about the way I was living – just this one fact has completely changed my life and my relationship with my body.

    1. Yes it’s crazy that we a) don’t recognise this communication and b) we like to ignore this communication until we are unwell or have a serious illness or disease.

    2. It really is so odd, it shows what ignorance we choose, and the games we play with our awareness.

64. ‘…how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.’ – Thanks for sharing this Stephen, this really confirms to me that supporting our bodies is much more than a diet change. It is a listening change. I too agree that the more I express, the less I hold onto. If I hold onto something, my body shows me because it goes tense and I go into my head.

    1. The expression is the key word here, as this is what either takes us to where we need to go next to support ourselves and others, or is the key marker to can put us on the path of illness and disease if we make expression a no go.

65. This is a beautiful example of embracing the communication of the body.

66. I like how you put this – “the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.” Our lifestyle choices can either harm us or heal us and anyone working in the health arena would do well to work with this awareness both in their own lives and with their clients.

67. Stephen you have shared much here about how we look after ourselves and what that involves. Food for thought!

68. “Expression is everything” as Serge Benhayon shares. What I have come to learn and am continually learning is not expressing how I feel is extremely detrimental to my health, my well-being and my body.

69. Stephen beautiful to read your honesty here, and a great example of how we can all learn from one another’s experiences and how supportive it can be for everyone when we open up about our health especially men, as they have a tendency to hide their health issues.

70. It just goes to show it is not just the foods we eat or the drinks we drink that affect our health, but it is also the way we live, choices we make in each moment that will have an impact on our health. This is where we need to look at the bigger picture, that everything is energy and every choice we make will affect us.

71. Thank you for sharing so openly and candidly, Stephen, it is inspiring for to do so as a man is not a common practice.

72. “The reason these feelings were so strong was due to how hard I was on myself, and my unwillingness to fully accept and value myself as a tender and gentle young man.”
    Could this unwillingness be an epidemic in our men today, the greatest dis-ease of all when we know innately that every man holds this tenderness with in their bodies?

73. It really is extraordinary how we can ignore the “bleeding obvious’ and carry on until we REALLY are stopped in our tracks

74. On reading your blog this morning Stephen I was reminded just how important it is to express fully what is being communicated from our bodies; a very powerful lesson indeed, thank you.

75. This is such a key point that you make –”I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for.” Only through accepting this can a real change occur otherwise we are just caring for ourselves to get rid of symptoms. Disease and illness occurs for a reason and that reason is to show us that the way we are living is not supportive or loving of ourselves and that we need to change simply because we are worth it.

76. Thank you Stephen for sharing your experiences, knowledge and wisdom. There is no doubt that the state of our health, and enjoyment of life, is directly linked to the quality in which we care for our bodies and ourselves. Making loving choices, or not, is our responsibility.

    1. Shirley it’s so true it’s in our hands, making loving choices or not is our responsibility. Our health is directly linked to the quality of care we have for our bodies and life style choices.

77. It is a commitment to developing a loving relationship with self but as Stephen points out well worth it especially as his symptoms clear without the need for medication but as I am finding too it is an ongoing process to deepen the love for myself and as I ponder on the reflection offered here it really does question the connection between our relationship we have to our body and illness and disease.

78. We get so many signs every day, Yet how many of us listen to what they have to say? It doesn’t matter, as you show Stephen whether we are young or old these messages come just the same. Why do we ignore them till they get really loud? Perhaps because we only see the surface half of what they are telling us. The presentations of Universal Medicine offer us the possibility everything has a deeper, grander meaning that we are all naturally able to read. So to continue on focussing only on the out side of life, is like hearing only every other word of what someone says. Time for us to open up to the full story life has to tell.

79. It is pretty beautiful the way our body shows us ‘that is not ok’, just as it did for you with blood this way Stephen. Imagine what would happen if we did not ignore so often what our body has to say and gave it our undivided attention? Many of us have tried Gurus, teachers, trainers, poets and healers, but what would it be like if we finally gave this searching up and listened and adhered to the body’s masterclasses? We might just surprise ourselves with just what unfolds.

80. ‘I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for.’ This is crucial. There are always going to be challenges in life and it is how we meet and greet these challenges that count. The more we care for ourselves the wiser our choices in these situations become. So it is a beautiful interdependent relationship we have here. Appreciation for where we are at is a huge support to our self worth. Ending each day with a celebration of anything and everything in the day, however small, that we can appreciate about ourselves or sharing with another what we appreciate on a regular basis can help us see the qualities that we have that we are not acknowledging and thus keeping from ourselves, so holding back on all that we can be in life.

81. I agree Stephen that how we value and treat ourselves has a big impact on our health and well-being. We can tick the boxes in terms of eating a healthy diet and dropping things like alcohol and coffee which contribute immensely, but there is so much more going on. One thing that I have been working on is my negative inner dialogue. Choosing to not be so hard on myself has had a big impact on my stress levels.

    1. Hi Debra, that is such a massive thing, the inner dialogue, and well worth being disciplined in saying no to the negative thoughts, I have found in the times I have just said no to them that I was able to enjoy life so much more and step out of my comfort zone.

82. Stephen like you I came to have IBS and was in incredible pains, nothing and no-one was able to help and it was put up with this for life, however how far from true was that. When I met Serge and started to make changes to my approach to life, how I felt with myself and how I dealt with things it started to heal something that I thought I had to put up with. Life turned from a chore to enjoyable. A deep appreciation for having the truth there when I needed it, even though it was hard to face in that I had to choose to change how I lived if i wanted to heal. the result is well worth it.

83. “It was upon attending Universal Medicine courses that I grew to appreciate all the signs my body had been giving me, and through the presentations of Serge Benhayon I started to listen to the wisdom my body shared.” I agree Stephen. although i didn’t have any major presenting symptoms, I had ignored the messages my body gave me and upon listening to them and responding accordingly my health improved.

84. Great to see some less focus on food as being it and down to some things I see as being real, “Whilst diet is a huge part of the lifestyle changes I needed to make, I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health – how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am. I now realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person.” Food is and has been a cover that we still use but we aren’t force fed, we buy it or pick it up and eat it. What is the quality of person, body or thought that chooses things like this over and over and where do these thoughts or cravings come from? Here we have an honest account of how we are with ourselves, how we treat ourselves plays a big role.

85. As men we are particularly prone to ignoring our bodies, of not going to the doctor when needed. Thanks for the reminder Stephen, its very well timed…

86. This blog is such a good study on the impacts of self care and lifestyle choices. If we just take the medication but don’t make a study of our own lives and how our choices led to this point of ill health we may just take medication, stay the same, and possible experience chronic ill health or even declining health. Our body is such a beautiful mechanism, but it needs our constant support and attentiveness to function well, and for us to realise that the relationship between how we are and feel about ourselves has an impact also. Our body is a part of everything we are and choose and learning to respect that is so crucial to our health and wellbeing.

87. Illness or disease is indeed a wake up call getting us to look at how we have been living and how we may be contributing to our current state of ill health, ‘ ill health was a wake up call to consider my lifestyle and look after myself properly’.

88. Thank you Stephen for sharing this profound change in your health and the steps you have taken to make new choices in your lifestyle, way of living, expressing in full and valuing yourself as an equal with all.
    An inspiring blog to read.

89. It’s incredible how arrogant we are when it comes to our own health, thinking we can do whatever we like to our bodies in the most uncaring ways, we can consume whatever we want how and when we want. Actually deep down we know we can’t but we have this wishful thinking that ‘It (illness and disease) won’t happen to me” Most of us get at least one wake up call in our lives, a chance to listen. Then big things, or so they seem, in our lives need to change if we want to live and live a life worth living. Why not give ourselves a wake up call now and begin to assess what is supporting our wellbeing and what is not? Why not start to make little changes here and now and begin to value ourselves in a way we may never have done before?

90. “within this I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for. ” We all are aren’t we, but it is so easy to deny this and continue to make choices that do not confirm our worth.

91. “Looking back, I feel I could have avoided the greater symptoms I suffered had I been willing to address how I felt in my body, both emotionally and physically.” This is a statement that has big indications as it shows that we can avoid a lot of suffering if we are willing to address what needs to be addressed.

92. It is hard to believe in this day and age with the amount of information there is available with regards how to support ourselves to be healthy that we still manage to poison ourselves with food and drink that are unfit for our bodies and affect our everyday function – and still unfortunately having a serious illness scare very rarely stops us in our tracks enough to get us to change our ways.

93. What a great wake up call for all those who think that they can just take medication and it will all be OK. Yes it may be OK to a point, but to really feel content in oneself and feel the underlying cause is actually healed we must look to our way of living – our overall emotional state as this is what causes all illness and disease.

94. Great blog Stephen, so lovely to read about your deepening awareness and transformation, indeed we are absolutely worth caring for;
    “which I can feel is strongly related to my willingness to keep deepening how well I care for my body – within this I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for”.

95. There is so much that is medicine in this world from the prescribed medication from our doctors to our lifestyle and self-care choices. What is beautifully described here is the decision to take responsibility for own health and well-being.

96. As you have pointed out it is very common that men ignore signs from their body that something is wrong. I researched a lot about men’s health recently and this came up consistently as a barrier to men having good health. It makes sense that early detection and treatment are important for the prognosis of any illness or disease. So why do men avoid going to see the doctor? It seems that the social influences they have when they are very young (such as needing to appear strong and soldiering on) have a huge and lasting impact on men. Admitting something is wrong is admitting you are weak, not a real man, which although crazy and not true to an observer, is the way it is perceived. How important then is it for adult men to be great role models, who care for themselves deeply and break down this harmful belief?

97. Humanity is beginning to be much more aware that lifestyle plays an important part in illness and disease, but we still fall short of looking at every aspect of how we live. What you show here Stephen in your blog is that we can’t ignore any part because everything we do adds up to the whole. “how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.” This is something we don’t take into consideration, staying open and expressing lovingly plays a huge part in our health and wellbeing.

98. Great blog Stephen and I laughed as you said, “I did what most adult males would do and I ignored it, hoping it would go away” This is so true and it’s not to put men down or single them out but more expose that we tend to avoid some things and put them in the later basket. This as you are showing and saying is the opposite to what supports us. How could this be then? Again as you are saying, the way we live and what we have believed ourselves to be is the opposite of what is true. You are leading the way Stephen and with more and more men being true to the man they actually are we will change the face of men. We all should take greater care of ourselves, knowing this flows out to everything and everywhere else. If something is happening for us, even physically, we should go to the support that’s needed as you did Stephen. As men we aren’t robots or some invincible character that can just soldier on, we are sensitive to things just like everyone else. The next time something isn’t ‘right’ for you, don’t ignore it and hope it goes away, seek support and if it was me go along to a Universal Medicine event and just listen. There is more to men than work, rest and play.

99. “through the presentations of Serge Benhayon I started to listen to the wisdom my body shared” Serge Benhayon presents common sense and understanding of the cause and effect of what we eat and drink and how we care for our body and to take responsibility for all our choices.

100. When we find out we are sick, almost the first reaction is being shameful, we become hard on ourselves. I have experienced this often. But when I stop reacting and really feel into the situation—of course, there are things I have to take more responsibility in and my body is showing me where I can take more care for myself, but every time I feel an appreciation of an opportunity to return to deeper love, so I have been given a gift, and part of that gift is being aware that yes I may still be a bit hard on myself, but I do not need to be and especially when I feel my loveliness within despite the illness, come on, nothing can refute that.

101. When it comes to our health a deeper level of care is being asked. We can eat ‘right’, exercise and rest, but if we are not looking at our every movement thus including our thoughts, and the energy in which we move we have left out a major contributor to true health.

102. We are blessed when we come into this world with a best friend to guide us through the storms we create when we stray from the love that we are. This buddy is our body and within its particles lays the wisdom of the Universe, forever on tap to remind us that we come from something far greater than we at times are willing to admit. Our illness is not a curse. It is a loving reminder that the way we are choosing to live is causing dis-ease to our body and the being in it. At any stage we can choose to stop, listen and make the necessary adjustments so Heaven can once again pour though us in perfect harmony with the vehicle we are expressing through without our self getting in the way.

103. Stephen,
     In what you share, I find myself pondering on the level of responsibility that is required to support our body. I also ponder on what is deemed as normal. It seems that the way of living that is classed as normal actually harms our bodies. Why is it that it takes a health scare to begin to look at this fundamental foundation of our lives and to take responsibility for our health?

104. Universal Medicine relentlessly presents to us the wisdom that empowers us to understand what a true lifestyle choice is, and then to appreciate the manifestations of that choice.

105. I have come to realise being open to expressing your feelings and a willingness to evolve provides you with a space to know what is supportive for your overall health and wellbeing and what is not. “I have found that if I pay close attention to how I feel and honour that, then the symptoms clear without the need for medication.” The beautiful thing about the body it is constantly communicating what more there is to accept about you, others and God.

106. “Whilst diet is a huge part of the lifestyle changes I needed to make, I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health – how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am” this is the missing part when we just consider medication and health the way forward, how we are with ourselves is immeasurably important to our overall wellbeing.

107. “I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health – how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.” How true this is Stephen. I know for myself that when I am being loving and caring of myself, I feel a level of vitality and joie de vivre that supports my every choice thereafter.

108. I deeply appreciate that you say healing is not something you expect or presume will happen but more something you commit to each and every day. You have turned something around and that is very impressive.

109. ‘Being totally honest regardless of how confronting this may be for me or another person, will bring the most amazing simplicity.’ The truth in this statement is evolutionary. When I am honest with myself first, there is a liberation felt in my body that is undeniable and can only bring more honesty and truth to all. Michael this is a life changer and I appreciate so much your expression here.

110. Lifestyle is now recognised as a key contributor of illness, and as such we have the power to live life as our own medicine.

111. Ill health and lifestyle choices go hand in hand, there is no getting around that now. We are literally making ourselves sick every day by the way that we are living. When are we going to stop and take a really good look at what is going wrong and have the courage to face up to it and change it? Will it take the health service to go broke before we realize that we all have a responsibility here?

112. It can be easy to get complacent with an illness/problem when we get on top of it and take less care than before, but like you Stephen “What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.”

113. Having had a similar problem quite a few years ago, I can appreciate when you say at times you felt self conscious about such a delicate situation. As I have eliminated certain foods from my diet there has been no return of this situation, something I am choosing to continue. I can see also that the decisions I make in certain areas of my life play a big part too. It is my responsibility to myself first that makes a difference.

114. ‘understanding and developing the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.’ So simple. All we have to do is look at how we are living and allow ourselves to feel the consequences. The hard part comes of course in accepting the reality of our situation and that we have created it in the first place. I can understand your feelings of shame, however when we let those go we can begin to create a new way of being for ourselves that lets the sunshine in, that is a way of care and appreciation for ourselves which goes a long way to supporting us to come back to wholeness or health. Sustaining this is, again, about our lifestyle choices. By taking this kind of responsibility we make it easier on the health systems, on our friends and relatives, our colleagues at work, in fact on everybody…..what is often referred to nowadays as a no-brainer.

115. “I had always been someone with a low tolerance to certain foods like dairy and gluten, yet they had stayed as part of my diet as they were such normal everyday foods that everyone seemed to eat.” We have this notion that things are “normal” because the majority seem to be doing it and in the process override what our body is so clearly telling us. Why do we do this simply because it seems “everybody” is doing it – whatever that may be?

116. Thanks Stephen, that’s an amazing turn-around for that condition, which I know is quite severe and seldom resolves itself. Your observations of the changes you made, and the extent to which your choices in every sense impacted your condition are invaluable for those in a similar position. Being your own science experiment was clearly an important part of discovering what the contributing factors were for you.

117. Much of what is presented at Universal Medicine events we already know, but seeing it lived in the body of the presenters is very inspiring. When we keep peak health and well-being as an aspiration, it is comfortable to say to ourselves, “some day…”. Universal Medicine shakes us out of that comfort. You don’t see any students hanging around year after year and not changing. The great thing is that is change on many levels, not only looking younger and more vital.

118. I have been addressing the food i put into my body for the last 20 years or so and the effects it can have on me. There have been times when I have fallen into thinking ‘ah thats ok now I’ve got it all sorted’ However as I am changing and developing all the time it makes sense that what my body needs is also changing. It is great fun to keep experimenting and listening to my body’s needs 🙂

119. “Suffering ill health was a wake up call to consider my lifestyle and look after myself properly” I would say the exact same Stephen, while it is a sad fact that it has got to this point where I experience ill health, I can appreciate what it has opened me up to in terms of looking at my choices and how I honour and surrender to my body that already knows how to work in harmony with itself, with others and with life. Without it I would be much worse off, and without Universal Medicine I would have experienced this illness with much more blame, ignorance and demanding of a cure. Which over the last two years has happened, but with support I have started to accept that it is my choices that led to this and my choices that can support the body to heal itself, as it naturally can.

120. Our body gives us the clear sign posts of where to go – clearer than any GPS system you could ever buy. So it is just up to us how much we will follow these lines. Or do we think we are in ‘the vicinity’ or general area of the truth and that is enough? Well, my body has a habit of continually reminding me that there is no subsitute for following exactly – to the T! Thank you Stephen for sharing your experience with your body here.

121. “Looking back, I feel I could have avoided the greater symptoms I suffered had I been willing to address how I felt in my body, both emotionally and physically.” I am very sure that the majority of humanity could put their hands up for this realisation, I know that I can. But how amazing it would be if we were raised to know our bodies inside and out, how they work, what they need from us, and how they communicate when something is wrong. The hospital waiting lists would be shorter, the medical system wouldn’t be struggling under the current huge load and our quality of life would definitely be much improved.

122. I love what you share here Stephen about the male ‘ignore it and it will go away’ thinking. But when it stops us doing something like ‘playing football’ – then it is really serious! It has taken a long time and hearing the wisdom shared by Serge Benhayon for me to pay the amount of heed to my body that it deserves – but in so doing I have discovered an amazing vessel, that is harmonious and delicately balanced – and something that communicates profound wisdom of its own. Hence, when this balance is disturbed by something, it is well worth listening to.

123. It is not talked about a lot but I would say valuing and appreciating ourselves is a really key element in our healing. Your honesty is appreciated, how many of us override a symptom and then only take note when it affects some enjoyable part of our lives.. like with you and football. Also I have done that so many times when I was growing up, eat and drink things that I knew were not good for me but because everyone else had them, I had them, it’s that kind of wanting to fit in with the crowd mentality, and also I feel laziness for not choosing what I knew supported me. Diet is a forever ongoing process, the beautifull thing I have learnt is the change now comes from my body telling me, not my head ‘thinking’ what is good or not good for me. As often things that I thought were ‘good’ actually in terms of the body’s homeostasis were not so good! This is something I am slowly responding to more and more.

124. I have come to learn over the years that our bodies show us very quickly what foods support it or not to stay vital and healthy. However it is easy to override this as we prefer the taste and or stimulation of what certain foods bring. I know I have fallen for this but know this ‘pleasure’ is short lived and irresponsible considering how I am left feeling afterwards. Thank you Stephen for highlighting also that other factors like stress have an affect on our digestive system so we have to address our lives and choices as a whole.

125. I enjoyed rereading this blog Stephen and appreciated how your health spoke so clearly to you about your lifestyle choices. May of us do not get such alarming signals from our body, however it does not mean the responsibility is not as important. I love the way you now use any symptoms as a barometer for the quality of your care for yourself and your expression.

126. ‘I accepted the need for the medication as this condition wasn’t going to clear on its own, but I also felt certain that I could regain my health in the long term through the choices I made’. Stephen if everyone equally had the same commitment to their body, health and wellbeing as you maybe our conventional medical system may not be as besieged and overwhelmed as it is in this present day.

127. I noticed that there was much you knew Stephen about self care along the way yet putting that into practice was not fully claimed until studying with Serge Benhayon. This is a story very familiar to me and indeed to many who have met Serge, who has such a wonderful loving way of offering truth, so that it really hits home and we claim true responsibility for ourselves. Putting our knowing into action is the step that we just couldn’t quite manage, or perhaps were light years away from even though we deep down knew the truth.

128. It is beautiful how you describe developing a loving and respectful relationship with your body. We certainly have much to learn from our bodies and the messages they give us.

129. Thank you Stephen for this inspirational sharing of your healing process. Doing both healing with Doctors and also being assisted through your connection to your body brought about by your decision to listen to your body and also learning through Universal Medicine and presentations by Serge Benhayon on this topic of self healing.

130. “ Fitness” is like a holy grail for many people, with magazines and industries and sporting role models touting a way of being that in no way supports the humans bodies absolute necessity for harmony and internal reconnection

131. Stephen, I’m sure most of us can relate to taking a while to follow the messages that our bodies constantly send us. Our attachments to our comforts and ideals and beliefs get in the way and convince us that we will find a different way to manage whatever is going on. But your blog clearly shows that while we can muck around ‘out there’ and our bodies will go along with this to a certain degree, ultimately they will say ‘enough’ and pull us up. Western Medicine can’t do it all on it’s own and as you and many others have found, when combined with Esoteric Medicine the healing that occurs is quite profound.

132. “What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off”.
     I love the way in which you have taken responsibility for the ongoing process, the medical intervention as needed and your lifestyle choices that caused the illness. This is very inspirational, thank you Stephen.

133. Your words here Stephen lead me to stop and consider for a moment all the illnesses we ignore and symptoms we disregard. Especially as men. It is amazing how much our body is showing every one of us, with a million different strains and conditions that we are actually much more delicate and precious that we think. The truth is there is a divine connection inside each of us just waiting for the day when we listen carefully to what our body has to say.

     1. Great comment Joseph. We are all super delicate and precious and our bodies are constantly reminding us of this if we are willing to listen.

     2. “The truth is there is a divine connection inside each of us just waiting for the day when we listen carefully to what our body has to say.” this is gorgeous, just reading it my body falls into a deeper surrender and knowingness, there is much wisdom inside.

134. Stephen I too have found that medicine is only half the story, that I also need to look at lifestyle and attitudinal factors as part of healing. I resonate with ‘I now realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person. This in turn has allowed me to become more communicative and open, and less withdrawn from life.’ Self-worth and appreciation are so important to health in my experience.

     1. There is something in your words “communicative and open” that felt so alive and vibrant Anne, I could feel this is something you have experienced and lived and I also felt that is the same for me. Whenever I step away from being communicative and open I am taking a step away from my good health.

     2. Those words being communicative and open are like a valve that opens us up to the world. When I read this Anne I really felt the enormity of our potential when we are willing to be open and expressive with the world. I find whenever I am open with people it really opens up the world and makes everything that much brighter and more alive.

135. we are so programmed and conditioned to live off our reactions, and the effects of this are seen throughout the world, and reflected in the figures and statistics coming from our health organisations… What a change it would be if we reconnected with ourselves truly, felt our bodies, tell-tale hearts and lived and observed

136. ‘I still get the odd symptom, which I can feel is strongly related to my willingness to keep deepening how well I care for my body’ this is a great reminder that we never stop deepening our self care, our bodies are continually evolving with us and remind us so beautifully. I have a hyperactive thyroid that is now borderline normal, but whenever I allow myself to get stressed or try to rush to get things done, I feel shaky again, which is a beautiful reminder to be more still.

137. Stephen you brought in a great point when you said you needed to accept that you were worth caring for. In essence, isn’t this very dilemma the issue underlying all ill health? illness and disease essentially have their genesis in disregard of some form, whether it be living with anger and frustration, giving your power away to others or reducing ourselves down to a fraction of our true power. In these examples the connection with disregard is not immediately clear, but to be living in such a way as to put your body into a state of heightened emotion or to hold onto your your truth and keep it hidden rather than expressing it puts a strain on your body. It is hugely disregarding to continue in life, allowing these things without addressing them.

     So what is it that allows us to live in disregard in all its different guises? . . . Not valuing ourselves and what we bring to the world – as if we did, we would not entertain the level of disregard we permit into our day-to-day lives.

138. I have to admit that I love the call to go deeper. It invites me to explore expressing qualities I may have kept hidden away for quite some time – all that love, joy, playfulness and harmony keeps requiring me to go deeper to be able to make this my new normal.

139. Thank you Stephen for a great article, it is opening up to and combining the combination of Western Medicine and Universal Medicine that will bring about true recovery in illness, which is happening in your case. I love the way you put this ” and Universal Medicine has been a huge support in understanding and developing the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.”

140. I agree Doug. Being shown something that we don’t want to see can be very uncomfortable. Once we get through the initial discomfort, there is a great healing and learning that follows. Still, I often avoid it if I can.

141. We are a living science listen to the signals your body sends.

     1. Beautifully said Doug.

142. “I have found that if I pay close attention to how I feel and honour that, then the symptoms clear without the need for medication”.
     Thank you Stephen for highlighting how important it is that we deeply honour and care for ourselves both on a physical level and an energetic one.
     I was also reminded that there is always more to unfold and expose when it comes to self care and listening to our bodies.

143. Yes we do have to work with doctors – but what a bonus for them, to have patients who are deeply committed to addressing the causes of ill health. It’s not about physical perfection, it’s about recognising that how we have lived has contributed to our ill health.

144. “Western Medicine was crucial to my recovery, but also only a part of the healing. Suffering ill health was a wake up call to consider my lifestyle and look after myself properly,” This is the very clear message presented by Serge Benhayon. Our body is constantly and consistently telling us if we are not taking loving care of ourselves and we have the choice to listen or not. Conventional medicine is there to support us and Esoteric Medicine and Conventional Medicine working together is the best medicine there is.

145. Yes taking responsibility is so freeing and well worth it- I love looking into how I have lived and how my body is showing evidence of those choices.

146. Yes it’s really interesting Doug to feel how I knew my choices were harming me, and yet did not feel inclined to choose another way. An example that sticks out is recurrent hangovers, and the resultant fast food choices to help ‘soothe’ the discomfort the next day. I knew nothing would really fix it, just get rid of the nausea for a few hours, then the low and sulky mood that would follow for the next few days that would just need to be waited out. This was repeated again and again with full knowledge of what would happen. It sounds pretty crazy now looking back on it, and spelling it out like this. What you have described here Stephen is a way the body communicates that forces us to stop and take note – we can of course still override the messages, but the opportunity remains. It’s really beautiful you have taken this opportunity to listen to your body and fine-tune what it is telling you. I would love to hear more detail about this, as I’m sure many would be able to learn from too.

     1. Yes Amelia, it is the fine tuning that is the key aspect and quite beautiful it can be if we pay attention to what we are alway being offered. As Doug also writes it is whether that willingness is there to take heed of the messages, which can be tricky. I feel it is also important from a personal point of view to not be hard on myself, that is a massive part of looking after myself, not running myself down with negative thoughts but appreciating the qualities I have. This is quite hard to write as even in expressing this I can feel a pressure to not talk myself up, and I often wonder whether that comes from society or a voice within me, quite possibly both.

147. “Within this I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for ” – I have also been releasing lately how there is an opportunity to bring even deeper care and love to how I am living. I accept that I deserve more and take responsibility to give that to myself I feel like I am breaking through lifetimes of patterns of constantly accepting less.

148. Stephen you share much in this blog that I can learn from. I have a condition that I will probably have for the rest of my life, but taking care of myself more and especially my diet and exercise, I feel will make a huge difference to the outcome ..Thank you.

149. I really enjoyed reading this blog again Stephen. I love how you share that to heal your irritable bowl syndrome you not just looked at what you ate, but at your whole way of living including how you were with yourself and in the world. This is shows indeed that not just the medication is medicine but our whole way of living.

150. Thanks Stephen for bringing our attention to the fact that our lifestyle choices have a huge bearing on the physical condition of our bodies and that an organisation like Universal Medicine is responsible for guiding yourself and many others to healthier and more responsible lifestyles

151. ‘I prided myself on being fit and healthy and this left me feeling exposed, abnormal and far from invincible. The reason these feelings were so strong was due to how hard I was on myself, and my unwillingness to fully accept and value myself as a tender and gentle young man.’ Stephen, this is a very honest statement, particularly for a ‘fitness instructor’ who has to present a certain image of fitness, which often is associated with being quite hard on oneself. It is lovely that you came to the point of accepting that ‘I am worth caring for’ and with this you have the potential to bring self-care into the fitness industry.

     1. Sandra it is a new way of being a fitness instructor, one who listens to the body rather that how the body looks, and self care in that industry would definitely turn the the fitness industry into a wellness industry.

152. Stephen, this is the type of personal account that needs to be documented in medical papers. Absolutely brilliant how you not only received much needed medical support, but the responsibility you took for your self care is what brought your health to where it is now, mostly symptom free and not medicated. These are the stories that will assist in revolutionising our health care system.

153. Two things really stood out for in this blog, the importance of refining – continually developing the way I eat and care for myself is crucial and the effect on myself and others from how I am with them. Both these things will have an ongoing impact on my well-being as well as others and so observing myself and how I am living, asking myself am I deepening my self care or not!

154. Thank you for sharing so honestly Stephen about your evolving relationship with healing IBS and how you have recognised ‘that if I pay close attention to how I feel and honour that, then the symptoms clear without the need for medication.’ How awesome is that? But I need to remember that the crucial bit is paying close attention and not moving through life on auto pilot.

155. I can personally relate to what Stephen shared about feeling shameful. I was quite arrogant in regards to health when I turned Macrobiotic a while ago, and because at the time I had a rumbling appendix condition which I somehow managed to stop and even lost weight, I thought I new it all but I was far from the answer. Today Macrobiotic is way behind, I am a lot more humble and pro medicine, I can only complement it by living a way that will be supportive to my body. I am also more appreciative to the understanding I now have.

156. “I was also embarrassed by the diagnosis, as it felt to me quite shameful, while also leaving me feeling weak and vulnerable’. There should never be any shame about any illness or disease we ever develop. It should never be seen as a sign of failure but rather one that brings understanding and appreciation to our lives and a willingness to work with and constantly refine and evolve our care for our human body every single day with both the support of Conventional Medicine and the clarity of Esoteric Medicine to heal the root cause.

     1. I very much agree Suse. Having an illness/disease provides a stop moment for us to consider how we have been living. It is not a punishment/curse/bad luck but an opportunity to bring awareness and change.

157. “Suffering ill health was a wake up call to consider my lifestyle and look after myself properly.” This is awesome Stephen as it brings our health back to self responsibility. How amazing would it be to share this with all patients within the healthcare system…I’m sure it would dramatically reduce our healthcare bill!

     1. Self care and self nurturing has amazing healing effects on the body. Having a colon issue myself and knowing that certain foods will trigger an event, my body is forcing me to only eat foods that will support it, which I am grateful for as it keeps me fully present with myself in the food choices.

158. Stephen you are another testimony of once we listen to our body, the body tells us exactly what it needs. And with self-care and self-nurturing the body will recover and can heal itself.

159. It seems that digestive issues are on the increase as I speak to more people who are having some uncomfortable symptoms so changing their diets but it is equally important to recognise there are other aspects of our lives that need addressing and this blogs confirms this to be the case. Thank you Stephen for sharing your experience.

     1. I think that’s a great point Julie and a crucial one at that – to be open to looking at what other factors could be contributing to the problem and not just look at food alone (although it is an important aspect too).

     2. I agree Julie, we can never isolate one part of the body or one area of our lives and expect that any symptom related to that will go away if we are not prepared to look at other areas of our lives as well. As everything is connected to everything else, the only way to true healing is to address the whole.

160. I agree Stephen that there is a critical balance between medical care and self-care, especially when it comes to more chronic illnesses. It would be easy to just ask for a cure from conventional medicine and expect it to heal everything for us but for a true and whole healing we need to develop self-care in our lives too.

161. “What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.” Using the “On/Off switch” is a commonly accepted method and certainly one I adhered to. I was convinced that if I cycled from south to east London twice a day I would allay any of the effects of excess eating, alcohol and partying. In retrospect I was so tough on my self & my body, either numbing it with excess or punishing it with the guilt of the excess – it’s no wonder I was depleted! Universal Medicine has inspired me to turn around this pattern & instead build an amazing bond with my body, a partnership that’s constantly evolving, a body that never stops communicating – true teamwork!

162. Thank you Stephen for sharing your journey from living with sickness to enjoying better health, accepting the role of modern medicine in your life along with Universal Medicine and “understanding and developing the self medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.” Beautiful.

163. When we consider how loudly our body does in fact talk to us, it is quite fascinating to realise that the body has always communicated like this. The louder our bodies get the greater the realisation of how clever we have become at smothering, covering, dullying, ignoring, lying and pretending that we couldn’t hear or feel this.

164. I would often find myself feeling better after making different choices, and then I would stop listening to my body as ‘all was good again’.. it would not be long until my body was again showing signs of imbalance and dis-ease and I would then stop and re-connect to what my body needed. This seemed like an endless round-about where once the tension of pain or discomfort was gone I would stop attending to and honouring my body, eating food and allowing a rhythm that would deplete me rather than support my vitality. I realised that I was settling for ‘no symptoms’ rather than deepening my vitality and connection with my body and inner-essence.

165. Yes Gill, I have found that the more I listen to my body, the louder and more clear it seems to give me messages. It’s like we have a dialogue together now where once, one of us wasn’t a good listener.

166. Wow, love this point you make, Stephen, “I was thankful that the medication was working, but I also knew that I had to keep refining the way I was taking care of myself. This was where the balance between medical care and self-care became critical to me.” I’ve come to understand how vital self care is as part of the treatment of an illness, but the amazing revelation is that self care and self love are the absolute loving ingredients for preventing any dis-ease in our body.

167. With all of the health problems in the world, it is amazing that the role we play, through our lifestyle choices, is not common knowledge as to it being the major factor in the cause of our ills. It is testimony to our disregard to the signals from the body, that it usually takes a scare, as you mention Stephen, before we start to look at how we live and/or get medical help. It is very much a man thing to hope it goes away, we are far more likely to resist getting medical help. Thank God for Serge Benhayon, living and presenting another way of being, that has us take responsibility for our choices and modelling what is the answer to the strains under which our heath system finds itself.

     1. Great comment Mark, because it is very possible to be aware of this moment now and to feel everything that is going on within it, to deal with all our issues gently and as they arise, and to generate a life that is full of love and honesty.

168. We have all ignored the symptoms our body was telling us that something is wrong. But when it affects what we want to do (i.e. playing footy) it certainly can get our attention loud and clear. Stephen, I love how you share that ‘Western Medicine was crucial to my recovery, but also only a part of the healing’. Maintaining ‘the balance between medical care and self-care’ is vital to our overall health and well being. It requires constant commitment in how we live our everyday, with total responsibility of the effect our choices have on our body and our lives.

169. I am in awe of our bodies communications… possibly because this is generally an unknown in the world. We are not taught this fact or made aware of the loud communications coming from our bodies, yet now I am aware of the signals the body is giving me I can adjust my way of being accordingly.
     It makes a world of difference to how I am living and I am constantly listening to the messages and altering the way I choose to live to support my health and well being.

     1. I agree Merrilee. It’s pretty amazing what happens when we even acknowledge that we have something dangling below our head. I know I never considered that my body required any attention of me until it was brought to my attention. Now I can’t even comprehend how that is not part of learning at school. Great, we can all add 2+2 but do we even know how to look for signs that our body is in distress and needs as much care as the people we are taught to care for?

170. Indeed each point of awareness offered from the body offers the ill choices of the past and a way forward.

171. We take a lot for granted don’t we especially when the symptoms have healed we think we can go back to the old ways. It is about changing the choices we make and understanding why we made them in the first place. Great you are back on track and seeing the choices that lead to the illness.

     1. Yes relieving the symptoms and returning to the ill choices that created the health issue in the first place, I think constitutes that definition of insanity, where we keep doing the same thing, and expect a different outcome.

        1. It’s definitely insane jenny mcgee, insanely common!

172. As Stephen says, and as so many people feel, we can think we are “ fit’ and actually be ignoring so many messages from our body. What Universal Medicine presents is the opportunity to literally turnaround this huge momentum of disregard so that we can start to listen to this greatest of messengers, the human body, which will always reflect the truth about what is affecting us and how.

173. The commitment you have made to healing yourself through the choices you make and the way you live is deeply inspiring to read. Along with being a great lesson in self discovery and development, I have found that this commitment to self loving choices in conjunction with western medicine is a very powerful and all encompassing way to heal and address anything that the body presents to be looked at.

174. Stephen something that no other doctors or specialists spoke about when I was diagnosed with the same condition was “how accepting and caring of myself I am”. This point you bring up is almost the foundation of the healing process and shows the importance of true complementary medicine i.e. Esoteric Medicine and Western Medicine. It’s an area that I’m finding coming up more and more in the fact that the level of care I have for myself combined with how truly accepting (or not) I am of myself plays a big role in the health of my body.

175. Measuring how much self care we can give ourselves that keeps us ‘healthy’ is not really self care at all. I did this a lot but eventually each time I plateaued thinking I had done enough I would find something else would come up in my body to show me there was more to do. I am learning to fine tune the listening of my body and I am amazed just how much it is telling me all the time.

176. It is marvellous Stephen how the body never stops speaking to us about what it is that is out of balance. Whether we choose to listen to it or not the body holds a supreme intelligence that requires our undivided attention if a true return to health is our goal.

177. “What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.” – I totally agree Stephen, this has also been my experience. Whenever you start to get a bit comfortable with a set routine or set diet and stop paying as close attention to your body, it is not long before things start to feel a little out of whack. I don’t believe we ever reach a point where you can say “this works for me, and I am sticking to this for the rest of my life”, I have found that what is needed is a commitment to listening to the body and and openness to continually experiment and adjust how one takes care of oneself.

     1. I have found the same Hannah, you can’t make any rules about what to eat, because it changes all the time – what feels supportive and what doesn’t feel right, it is different from one day to the next, depending on what you are doing in the day, and it is different between people too, so the simplest thing is just to tune in and the body lets you know. This is a great plan for other things too, like exercise and work. Staying connected and paying attention to the body means we can hear the messages it is communicating clearly and respond to them, and the benefits of working with the body, rather than continually trashing it, quickly become very clear.

        1. Yes Annie C, it really is as simple as staying connected and paying attention to the body – the best support we can give ourselves in all areas of our life, not just our relationship with food/diet.

     2. The refining process for my body I also find involves not only what I eat, but how I move, talk and express. It just does not work to stop and plateau, as we are constantly being asked to return to who we naturally are.

     3. I agree Hannah, we never get taught with nutrition that we can constantly be refining what and how much we eat, yet I have found this is an ongoing process where often less is more in terms of energy from eating food and also the type of food I need is forever changing.

        1. I agree Stephen G, less can definitely be more in terms of food and energy.. whenever I go over the top with dinner and eat more than needed, or have something with too much sugar, then it is instant lethargy, feeling like a lead balloon, and drifting into comatose sleep no matter how much I try to keep awake. And as you say, there is a constant refining of what is correct for the body at that moment, therefore impossible to follow a set regime. But when I get it right, my body feels incredibly light and alert.

178. Thank you for sharing this Stephen. Your experience shows so clearly the benefits of conventional medicine combined with the esoteric medicine of self-care and self-responsibility. If you had solely depended on the conventional medicine to fix the symptoms, the underlying cause would have remained. By taking responsibility for your part in the healing, listening to your own body, refining what you eat and how you live without stress and anxiety you are able to live in harmony with your body without the constant support of conventional medicine.

     1. Yes Mary, what Stephen is sharing here is true self responsibility for his own health. An inspiring blog.

179. Stephen great realizations you have shared with your inflammatory bowel situation. I can relate to your realization that life choices can make you sick or it can be your medicine. I can also relate to the realization that emotionally when you are open and expressive how this can have an affect on your physical health.

     1. Such a great point Concetta, it never ceases to amaze me just how much I can affect my physical health by the emotions I choose to have in my everyday life.

180. Thank you for sharing Stephen. ‘Universal Medicine has been a huge support in understanding and developing the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.’ – As you say, medicine is in the way we live every day and although that makes total sense, we, as a society need to take a huge re-look at what that actually means. What does that truly mean for us and the way we treat our body?

181. Thank you Stephen for sharing your inspiring words, you are a testament to our willingness to choose what is true and the support Universal Medicine and Conventional medicine offers that we are able to clearly see the choices we are making and why, then if needed make new ones.

182. Henrietta, you have described brilliantly the degree to which our actions can impact on our life, something as simple as how you move affecting the quality of your sleep and thereby the quality of the day you will have following. Once we realise we have the full power to create a life of supporting ourselves and our well-being, or a life of sabotage and struggle then it becomes a simple matter of taking responsibility for which choices we will make.

     1. And it is brilliant that Henrietta brings that up, as has anyone ever been taught before Universal Medicine the effect of how we move, or any of our daily actions on the following moments, the next day, week, year, the consequences of every step we take. It could seem a bit daunting, or it can be a wonderful opportunity to realise that everything is everything, and everything matters.

183. Thank you Stephen to point out this super important connection of our health and the power we have to restore and keep it with a self-loving and self-honoring life-style alongside a medication when it is physically supportive. This is an every-day-process of redefining and going deeper to trust the body’s divine knowing of every process of life and every process that is healing. The body is the best and wisest health-care-counselor – and always with us! It is worth to let go of the mindful pictures of ourself to embrace the bodies all knowing and it is inspiring too. As your article and self-observations, and life-changing you have so beautifully shared here.

184. “I still get the odd symptom, which I can feel is strongly related to my willingness to keep deepening how well I care for my body – within this I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for.” How powerful a statement is this Stephen…being open and willing to look at dis-ease in our body and to the root cause of disease is key in honouring our body and beginning to restore true health. Our self worth determines how far we are prepared to go with our healing…What your sharing exposes is the self-responsibility needed for true healing and the fact it is an ongoing process – one of self love.

185. Thank you for sharing your and your experiences Stephen. I shared this blog out loud with family members and it offered a fabulous point of discussion in regards to our health, our responsibility and the choices we make. It makes so much common sense yet we all realised how as a society this level of responsibility is not a known educated way of tending to our health and wellbeing. In fact our whole system is set up for us not to take responsibility.

     1. There is so much stress and anxiety experienced on a daily basis both by patients and doctors alike. So, we have the health systems in place which is amazing in itself, but who are the custodian of them if there are no true role models for what vitality actually looks like?

186. You show how the “needing to be fixed” consciousness does not work. I used to subscribe to this way of being… just wanting the doctor to fix me up so that I could get on with work and my life. Before Universal Medicine it never occurred to me that it was my choices and emotions that was making me sick. I wanted to constantly blame the world, work and anyone other than myself for why I was so stressed. It didn’t occur to me that it was my reaction to everything that was the problem and that by taking responsibility for my reaction I could change my health and wellbeing. It seems simple to me now, but what an enormous difference taking a bit of responsibility makes.

     1. What I love is that I always had that natural responsibility in me and I acted on it before I came to Universal Medicine, but what the way of the livingness presentations I heard allowed me to do was to get more of an understanding of exactly how important the balance is between medical care and self responsibility, and to now continually refine this care, understanding the importance of expression to wellbeing, that for me is the absolute gold that I wouldn’t have appreciated on my own.

     2. It didn’t occur to me either Rachel that my reacting to situations and stuff was my responsibility. I am now fully aware that it is my responsibility, if I react, I look at why and immediately open myself for understanding. For in the understanding is held the strength that supports me to not react next time I am faced with a similar situation.

187. Reading this today I can really relate to what you have shared here about being a man, and having an illness or disease that makes you less ‘manly’ – in the way our society portrays. I have seen Men like this, feeling less for how their bodies are responding with disease and instead of allowing their tenderness, focus on hardening to not allow it through. This is not their fault however, as this is how we as a society raise boys and perpetuate the cycle of how they choose behaviours that damage and harden their bodies for the sake of being ‘Men’. We need more role models like you Stephen to show how being a tender man really is the way.

     1. This is definitely a huge thing Amelia, it is a sensitive matter for almost all men that we might be considered less of a man for having ill health, for essentially breaking down, as the image we are told we are meant to aspire to is that we are unbreakable and should be tough and resilient in the face of adversity, when in fact the strength we require is not toughness but strength in our appreciation of self and a willingness to be vulnerable, raw and tender. There is so much bravado and writing this makes me consider the front that is necessary to play sports such as football, but that is a whole other story.

188. Thanks for sharing Stephen, I like how you say “Suffering ill health was a wake up call to consider my lifestyle and look after myself properly” Our society is growing more dependent on conventional medicine to fix their ailments with a magic pill, or more often, find some drug to help them continue the self-abusive lifestyle they are leading. This makes it easier for us to ignore the very loud signs that the body is giving us that we are going astray, and allows us to increase our level of irresponsibility, until sometimes we have to be woken up with a serious diagnosis, or an accident to make us stop destroying ourselves. Rather than see this as a punishment or misfortune, we can use these as an opportunity for great learning and self-awareness and so grow from the experience. Sometimes it is like we now have a choice whereas before there was none, because we were so blinded to our actions.

     1. Absolutely Annie, such a great opportunity for us to look at and appreciate – with no self beating, its just a trick, even an indulgence, to keep us in the status quo.

189. Stephen, I found it very useful to read the way that you have deepened your commitment to your health and yourself generally over the years. While it may have been initially triggered by a health problem, what is obvious now is that you deeply honour and value your body and listen to its messages to the best of your ability. It is a great reminder to me that dedication and commitment are key for sustainable, long term changes. Thank you.

     1. Thanks, what occurred for me was that I was committed in some aspects of my life to being healthy but before I discovered Universal Medicine there was too much confusion and mixed messages I was taking in about what was healthy and what was not, and I didn’t have the understanding of what was going on that I am now developing. This is one of the revelatory beauties of the teachings of the ageless wisdom and it all makes perfect sense.

190. Stephen, this article is deeply humbling. What you have expressed here about your continual willingness to go deeper with the relationship with yourself and your body – with the symptoms that process brings – is really quite profound. So many (including myself I can now feel) would be seeing symptoms as something they want to be fixed in order to be ‘better’, and so move on with life. There is definite reality to wanting to work on and improve symptoms, but what you have said here about deeply reflecting on why the symptom might be there in the first place is actually crucially important. As Serge Benhayon has been presenting for many years – we can address the symptoms all we like, but until we actually address the root cause, the illness or ‘dis-ease’ will remain.

191. It is indeed a constant refinement of our choices that is required as our awareness expands and as we are willing to honour the divine intelligence that our body communicates all the time.

192. Illness & disease requires us to re-engage with our bodies, ultimately it’s a window of opportunity to build a greater awareness of how deeply we care for ourselves, and yet over time as we become complacent with wellness, our self honouring choices slide and the body takes the hit. When we come to realise, as you have Stephen, that this a life-long partnership that requires dedication and commitment, then we will begin to understand the power of true vitality.

     1. Lucinda, I love how you have written that “over time as we become complacent with wellness, our self honouring choices slide and the body takes the hit.” This is so true of so many, and something that I have done in the past for sure. We do indeed have a life long commitment to our bodies, and it’s quite amazing really how we just expect them to carry on functioning, regardless of how we treat them. And what’s more, when something goes wrong we complain, and often don’t stop to consider that it may have been something we have done to ourselves that has caused the dis-ease. How different medicine would be if we began to take responsibility for our individual choices.

        1. Agreed Sandra, greater responsibility requires greater honesty, hence medicine becomes part of our everyday living.

        2. Yes Lucinda. So life therefore becomes our medicine!

193. Stephen, with such a healing taking place as a result of the choices you’ve made, it would be easy to get complacent but as you say “I’ve been medication free for a while now, but never take it for granted.” This to me sums up how true healing takes place, with a continual willingness to the level of care and nurturing we take for ourselves. Being open to what our body shows us where we may be going a little off course and looking inwards as to what choices we are making that may be causing this.

194. Amazing story Stephen. It is inspirational the way in which you have supported yourself in developing your ‘self-medicine’. This self-medicine is a step too far for many as it requires taking responsibility for our decisions. It is confirmation of what you already knew that your body reacted to certain foods and emotions. Well done with finding a way to treat your whole body.

     1. This is a great point Jenny that we look at a different choice to shift from an ill choice as if we are missing out on something. When really it is an opportunity of bringing more care and love to our bodies and ourselves. If we are doing that for ourselves then we are doing that for others too indirectly , so no one really misses out.

195. Thanks Stephen for sharing that you were “willing to deepen how well you cared for your body”. This is in itself the best medicine we can provide our bodies. Western medicine is a crucial part, but not the whole when we choose to not look at the root of our health problems.

196. ” I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health – how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.” Stephen, this sentence jumped out at me, because it takes all that we generally know, and are loosely taught, as an educated western society to another level. I have learnt that our expression is every thing, not only how much we do it, but the manner in which we do it to. What a great healing and opportunity you have been given, and have stepped up to receive for yourself.

     1. For sure our expressiveness is a key part of our health, if we don’t express how we are then we bottle up feelings, and if those feelings are emotional then it stands to reason that our bodies cannot be in a harmonious balance and instead enter a dis-eased state.

        1. So true, if I do not take care of what I feel and express where necessary, things build and I usually end up sick in some way.

     2. Yes Jenny that exact same sentence jumped out at me also, as it reflects a revolutionary way of taking responsibility for our health. “(T)hat my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am…” makes absolute sense but is definitely not the norm. Thank you Stephen, in sharing your experience of healing, your expression offers the opportunity for others to connect to and be inspired by what you have learned.

        1. And what I have found Hannah is that more and more there is a requirement to express as once I committed to being more open I feel the tension in my body whenever I choose not to express so fully. This just highlights the importance of every aspect of bodily expression and not holding back.

        2. I have found the same Stephen, expressing allows a greater openness, and with this new level of openness, a deeper level of expression is called for. The tension when one holds back from this process of expansion can be quite intense!

     3. Absolutely Jenny. I am only just starting to realise the impact that expression has. I have been aware of the impact of food and emotions on our health for a while but expression is a new understanding and work in progress for me. I am starting to feel what happens when I hold back from expressing what I truly feel and the impact this has on my body.

        1. I agree Lee, it is pretty clear how food and emotions impact on the body once you start paying attention to the body’s messages, but expression, or lack of it, is something I had never before considered as so crucial to our health. Since I now have experienced just how not expressing creates, but also drives our choice to then numb that feeling, with inappropriate food or other unhealthy distractions.

        2. I agree Annie, Sandra and Lee,
           I too am feeling the results of not expressing what I feel. The physical pain that I feel in my body is just as real as a muscle tear or other physical injury. I have been feeling this for some time, and too have begun to unravel all the reasons that I have been holding back from the absolute simpleness of saying what I Feel. Each time I do, the feel in my body is exquisite.

197. I found that I would only do as much (self care) as it took to keep me healthy. When my body started asking for a deeper nurturing of myself and I didn’t listen, my body started showing me the consequences of this disregard. I’m starting to truly appreciate my body’s voice, it show’s me so much love, all I have to do is bring a consistency to the loving choices I’m now starting to make.

     1. Taking care of our emotional health Michelle, a very good way of putting it. While emotions can make us sick, being honest and expressing how we feel can bring a great balance and stability to our bodies. If we don’t express feelings we have then our bodies can only become sick to clear what we have not dealt with. This seems super simple and makes me wonder why we don’t give this aspect of health more airtime (literally).

198. Stephen I agree that how we live our life is the most important medicine, the primary medicine in our medical chest. Conventional medicine is great at addressing the symptoms that can result from our ill choices, but unless we take responsibility for, and understand why, we have the symptoms we will be fighting a losing battle with conditions of ill-health and disease.

     1. What Stephen and you Anne are describing is indeed self-medicine for me. Unless I can take responsibility for what I am creating in my body through my choices it will be an ongoing losing battle.

199. Amazing story Stephen of your path to healing, this brings much wisdom and understanding to health along with conventional medicine. This is an ever evolving journey as everything is a learning with understanding and love, as the body has more wisdom than all the education systems combined. Imagine if all students began their learning by honouring and listening to their body.

     1. The only real way back to truth Yasmin… learning by honouring and listening to our bodies. The power of doing this changes everything. The way we live, love, eat, breathe, sing, dance and so much more. It’s like the vital foundation for everything.

        1. Our bodies are our vital foundation for everything, I agree totally Natasha. We are way more than our bodies but it is our bodies that allow us to feel and know we are from way more than just the physical. So it makes total sense to, as Stephen shared, continually develop our self care as we deepen our relationship with our body.

200. ‘It was upon attending Universal Medicine courses that I grew to appreciate all the signs my body had been giving me, and through the presentations of Serge Benhayon I started to listen to the wisdom my body shared.’ thank you Stephen I know that I too began to truly appreciate the wisdom of my body only after attending Universal Medicine courses. My body has always spoken very loudly but it’s only now that I truly listen. 🌷

     1. Me too, kathrynfortuna and Stephen. And it is nothing short of a blessing.

201. ‘I now realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person. This in turn has allowed me to become more communicative and open, and less withdrawn from life’.
     This sentence in itself is huge Stephen and if we all understood and lived it in full, the world (our bodies and behaviours) would be very different. Thank you for sharing your experience here.

     1. This line in Stephen’s powerful blog struck me too Anna. There is so much to consider from Stephen’s open and honest account of his condition. The first step was him appreciating what his body was telling him all along as to the effect on it from his lifestyle and food choices. Once he started caring for his body more he was able to appreciate himself more. Our bodies are wonderfully responsive , intelligent and they are designed to always come back to balance and harmony if we choose wisely in support of them.

     2. Anna I agree this sentence is saying so much, if we all truly appreciate it and live it, we would cause an amazing shift in this world including our bodies.

        1. Agree Amita, it would see us all letting go of ‘need’ for and from anyone else. A totally unimposing world.

202. Thank you Stephen for your open and honest sharing and showing that by taking responsibility in one area of life at a time changes can happen and to me it makes sense that if there is a digestion problem happening food is the first place to start. From here and with support from Universal Medicine other areas can be addressed and then we can see how all areas of life affect our health it is not one thing in isolation but it is good to have a starting point.

203. Thank you Stephen for your frank, open and sincere blog. Your observation that, “What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off,” is an incredible important one as with the fact that it is not just diet that affects one’s health and well being.

204. Thanks for sharing your personal story and path of healing, Stephen. Another great example of how conventional medicine does well to treat the symptoms but it is our understanding, knowing and living of the teachings of Universal Medicine that support the healing of what brings on those symptoms in the first place.

     1. Exactly Terri-Anne, and understanding what brings on symptoms in the first place is the integral part of healing. What is offered by Universal Medicine teachings has the ability to revolutionise the medical industry and this blog is a classic example of how this can be done.

     2. And medications have so many side effects these days Anne and Terri Anne, it is crazy to not want to get to the root cause of illnesses as it has to be best for our bodies that we limit our intake of drugs. Unfortunately, at present there is an unwillingness to see and accept that we have a major role to play in how well or otherwise we feel. I wonder how many people would be willing to look deeper if they were told that we do play a huge part in our health and wellbeing and that it isn’t a game of chance.

205. I found that I would only do as much (self care) as it took to keep me healthy. When my body started asking for a deeper nurturing of myself and I didn’t listen, my body started showing me the consequences of this disregard. I’m starting to truly appreciate my body’s voice, it show’s me so much love, all I have to do is bring a consistency to the loving choices I’m now starting to make.

     1. This is lovely Shelley. Our bodies show us so much love. I hadn’t thought of it in this way.

     2. Gorgeous Shelley, I love this that you have written here, and can relate to just attending to the surface levels of self care, but avoiding the deeper aspects of nurturing of my whole being that my body is asking me.This is a great blog as it inspires us to listen to and honour our bodies more deeply.

        1. This is what I’m finding too annacormack26. Where once basic self-care was where I was at, I’m now finding that I need to keep deepening that self-care and the quality of that care. Either way, my body tells me exactly where I’m at!

        2. It’s great isn’t it Angela, that our understanding and living of self-care is constantly evolving and deepening. What once was awesome, weeks or months later can seem like not much at all because we have embraced so much more love and care within ourselves. I love this and would then pose the question – how deep can this love go?

     3. Yes Shelley I agree…. it’s a combination of listening to the bodies voice and the consistency of the loving choices. Wow what a recipe for love ❤️

     4. Beautiful Shelley. I could feel this too in my own life and body while I was reading the blog. Especially this line: “I have found that if I pay close attention to how I feel and honour that, then the symptoms clear without the need for medication.” It is inspiring to pay close attention to what my body needs and honour it.

     5. Beautiful Shelley. Our bodies do show us so much and it is our choice as to how lovingly or not we respond.

     6. Beautiful Shelly. There is always a deeper level of self care we can bring to the body, which is often noted when a symptom or illness arises to let us know. What I find beautiful is when I make choices without there being something wrong, just because my love for my body is deepening and I want to take as much care of it as possible.

     7. Yes shelleyjones44 our bodies voice is so nurturing and indeed that’s a lovely way you have expressed this ” it shows me so much love”. When we listen we receive all we need to know, which in turn leads us to where we are required. How supportive is that !

206. The power of our lifestyle choice has an immense impact on our health. I have noticed how making the simplest of changes such as drinking more water, keeping warm, sleeping well etc., impact significantly on the way I feel about myself and go about about my day.

     1. I agree Abbysmileglow, it is All in the detail.

     2. Yes by making choices that are more honouring of our bodies, and less about the head/mouth/taste, can have a profound effect.

     3. Each moment we make the choice to change a pattern we know does not serve us, the body warmly receives this honest gift and the returns are deeply fulfilling.

     4. Yes abbysmileglow, such basic requirements that we so easily choose to ignore but I also realise how fundermental they are to our day to day livingness.

207. Stephen this is yet another amazing story that reflects our ability to heal when we take responsibility for our choices combined with esoteric and traditional medicine. It is so evident that this is the way forth with how we treat ourselves now and into the future. Making medicine and healing a true holistic process that incorporates all aspects of ourselves combined with the esoteric and medical intervention. I feel there is much opportunity for positive change in the way we look at and treat illness and disease.

     1. I agree Jade, what Stephen has shared here is an inspiration and testament to the power of self care and self responsibility. Very inspiring.

     2. I agree Jade, I also feel there is much opportunity for positive change in the way we look at our overall health, and from my experience, the marriage of esoteric medicine and western medicine is the whole package – one cannot work in full without the other when addressing illness and disease.

208. “What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off”. Stephen, this revelation can be life changing once it in embodied and lived. However, it entails mastering the arrogance of the spirit who has little regard for the human body as evidenced by the choices people make about what they put into their body or what they subject the body to. This arrogance extends to thinking that it is enough to care for the body on a part-time basis. However, as you have discovered there is no “on and off” switch when it comes to how we eat and care for our bodies. To make true changes requires ongoing commitment to keeping the ‘on’ button turned on!

209. Our body is a great tool that supports us to know exactly what works for us or not. It is interesting how much we resist its messages.

210. Untidy bowel movements never a happy face make 🙂 For me, the wake up call my body gave was skin rashes. I was hooked on thick greek yoghurt, eating it was a daily occurrence. The thing is, I never drank cows milk growing up as I was allergic to dairy. Dressed up in a different form, the yoghurt was delicious, but still dairy of course, and my body always said no to it. After several years of minor skin irritations, I got major skin irritations, or rather revolting rashes on my face and back. It got to the point that the rash began to tingle as I was walking towards the fridge with the intention to eat the yoghurt; I didn’t even have to have the food in my system, just the thought was enough for my body to cry out No.
     It is crazy that we have this facility – our body – that will give us everything we need to live a harmonious, joyful, healthy, full fun life. And yet it takes far too long for us to heed the messages it gives.
     In time though, I have learned to listen. I don’t need constant reminders to not eat a certain food, usually just a few 🙂 It is a constant refining as to what my body wants and needs nowadays, as it is for everyone I would imagine. I think it’s very cool that I am committed now as you are Stephen, and always willing to see my part in my own wellbeing.

211. It is sad but so true, we only tend to stop and really take notice of a medical condition when it stops us from doing something we want to do. Then it is easy to blame and become the victim of something that has ‘happened’ to us. It would be great if we could make it about the body first (looking after and listening to it) and then do the things we would like to do. In listening and responding to the body first, we might then end up doing a completely different activity to the one originally intended, as that one would support us more.

212. Thank you Stephen, our bodies are such amazing things, the way that they communicate with us and point out to us what we need to address is incredible.

     1. Brooke I absolutely agree with you – it shows that we don’t have to put up with the way our bodies are and we have the real opportunity to heal if we choose to actually listen to whats going on and then take the loving steps necessary. As science discovers the growing importance on lifestyle choices I am sure it will reach a point where the way we live, how we are in each moment, is what forms the basis of medicine moving forward.

213. How incredible are our bodies we do so many things to them and yet they keep going. Their ability to respond and repair is phenomenal, So paying attention to them is really great idea.

214. It is such a personal experience when we get sick or ill. I have always found myself feeling vulnerable, humbled and quite open to being supported by my medical and complementary health practitioners and also taking better care of myself when I am unwell. Inspired by Universal Medicine I have become a lot more proactive with my health. I now go to the doctor once or twice a year and seek other forms of support where I feel it is needed.

215. “This was where the balance between medical care and self-care became critical to me.”
     So great to read of you stepping up to become an active and informed participant in your care, absolutely key to preventing becoming a disempowered and dependant statistic in the health system, well done you.

216. Thanks Stephen. One aspect of your blog that stands out to me is the understanding you have come to where you realise that care of your body is a life long commitment. When we are seemingly healthy it is very easy to disregard the impact of our decisions on our body and just expect that our body will deal with whatever we demand of it. But as you say, the commitment to caring for our bodies is not one that can be switched on and off and sooner or later the body will tell us loudly either way, reflecting both our consistency and commitment.

217. Both two crucial points (Western Medicine & Universal Medicine) can support us during illness and disease to have a greater understanding and truly heal within our lives what we can heal. I too have been currently having an infection in my bowel, which has led me to Western Medicine (hospital, doctors, medication), but I also deeply benefit everyday from all that has been presented to me by Universal Medicine, that is now my Way of the Livingness, my religion, which has supported me deeply in the process of healing my bowel infection.

218. ‘Looking back, I feel I could have avoided the greater symptoms I suffered had I been willing to address how I felt in my body.’ This is huge, if we actually stop and pay attention to our body’s and what is going on in them, could we change the illnesses and diseases we are developing? Fantastic honesty.

219. ‘I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health – how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.’ This is an area so often overlooked when we consider health. How amazing this would be if expression was discussed in GP surgeries and hospital clinics, alongside other diet and lifestyle choices.

220. Stephen, it is lovely to read your blog. What I felt when I read it is the immense power we have to support our own healing through a constant, loving commitment to listen and respond to our body’s messages.

221. Hi Stephen, Your blog clearly shows us that we need western medicine sometimes and combining it with looking at our lifestyle and diet is so important as is consistency, not changing until we are symptom free and then lapsing back into old habits, but continually monitoring and refining how we live.

222. Your dedication to heal and take responsibility for your healthcare and choices is inspiring Stephen and your willingness to bring honesty to your illness and how you were living your life whilst exploring the intricate relationship between self-care and your body’s responses and symptoms is refreshing to be sure in times where there exist a multitude of excuses at our fingertips and others to blame.

     1. Thank you Stephen and Deborah, I agree, taking responsibility for our own health and wellbeing should be one of the first things we learn at school after honouring what we feel!

     2. Yes Deborah, your comment reminded me how easy it would be for me to choose to blame something external for my ill health, which would have totally disempowered me and removed my ability to heal as well. It is only by taking responsibility that I was able to improve my health and it is only by committing to this ongoing that I can maintain good health.

        1. Absolutely Stephen, and nobody grows from our blame and denial of our choices that arrived us at this juncture – yet everyone has the potential to be inspired by our owning and taking responsibility for our choices…the healing is never limited to one person but is there for the all.

223. The awareness that you express concerning what you body is communicating with you is awesome…”I’ve been medication free for a while now, but never take it for granted. I still get the odd symptom, which I can feel is strongly related to my willingness to keep deepening how well I care for my body…” How lovely it is, to have this relationship with ‘yourself’ and understand what brings up the old symptoms, for me it shows how amazing the changes to health can be when responsibility is chosen.

224. I love what you say about there being an ongoing refining process to our everyday self-care. That more than suggests responsibility and commitment, long term. It’s made me consider that the on-off pattern I can experience in my well-being only occurs because I don’t apply a consistent level of responsibility all the time. So when I ‘get there’, reach my goal or a level I’m content with, I get complacent and revert back to old habits. It’s only when I appreciate that wellbeing requires a life-long commitment to responsibiity for myself and my body particularly, that the pendulum stops swinging and consistency can take its place as a foundational basis from which to further refine.

225. When our bodies have something like this going on, I find more and more that it is a unique opportunity to let go of something, an unhealthy behaviour, a bad lifestyle choice… or something like that. I got a haemorrhoid recently (yes I know not a very pleasant topic but you’d be amazed at how many people have them) and it ended up being one of the greatest things that ever happened to me.
     As odd as it sounds it set me on a path to look more closely at everything… my body, my diet, my behaviours, my emotions, how I related to people and work.
     The wisdom of the human body is extraordinary – never to be underestimated.

226. I enjoy the clarity with which you write Stephen G. The power of making loving choices shared very simply. Thank you.

227. Thank you for sharing the balance between western and complementary medicine – it makes so much sense that part of our healing comes with how we take care of ourselves, and your story is a testament to that fact. I witness this in myself too, and how by being more aware of everything I am doing to my body helps me to understand why I am making certain choices. And if I do get sick, it is a simple process of looking at how I have been living as part of the recovery.

228. I can relate to this blog, I too have a bowel disease and was hospitalized 3 times, I had the steroids and nearly had to get my colon removed. Up until then sickness was an every day part of my life. I changed my diet and lifestyle. Looked into what I was holding on to and had much support from Universal Medicine practitioners, I am now no where as unwell as I was, actually I’m now healthier than I have ever been in my life, and that is due to what Serge Benhayon presents and what Universal Medicine is about. If I had kept on living in the way that I had I know I would not have a colon and my health would have deteriorated dramatically. A miracle yes but it’s all about choices. Thank you Stephen

     1. Thanks for what you share Natalie, I would love to hear more about your experiences. It is amazing the support that we can be to others in sharing how we have changed our lifestyles. There are many people who needlessly suffer ill health in the world and who are looking for that support, and by making some small dietary and lifestyle changes as a starting point, the effects on our health can be enormous.

229. Reading this, I get a sense that it makes sense that to increase our whole health – physically, mentally and emotionally – we need to increase loving choices. In turn increase our willingness to look at and awareness of the unloving choices. To keep looking deeper into what we are feeling and why. What I am now finding is the more I feel my body, the more I am aware of how simply the body knows what is and what is not loving for it, and how willing it is to go towards what is loving.

230. This is a very informative blog explaining your straight forward step by step approach to addressing your health concerns – this approach is ideal for any illness and dis-ease. The combination of your medical background and your understanding of the relationship between energy and illness and dis-ease work well in harmony.

231. What you have shared is GOLD Stephen. I particularly love what you say here, “Whilst diet is a huge part of the lifestyle changes I needed to make, I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health – how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.” Taking responsibility for our own health should never be underestimated. The power of our choices is amazing, as you have testified here. Thank You.

232. Diet and lifestyle have a huge impact on our health, whilst more and more people are starting to accept this, I like how you took your responsibility for your heath to another level Stephen. ‘I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health – how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am. I now realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person. This in turn has allowed me to become more communicative and open, and less withdrawn from life.’ This is beautiful.

233. Thats pretty huge Stephen. Thanks for your honesty. Imagine the impact just one man like yourself can make on humanity when you address the very fact that you are a gentle and sensitive being who, when listening to his body has the power to (along with western medicine) correct any ills that may be present. There is enormous strength in taking care of oneself and being honest about what’s really going on.

234. My health has improved out of sight rather than getting worse from dropping foods from my diet that contain gluten, dairy, yeast, salt and caffeine. I wish I’d known years ago the effect these things were having on my body and I’m grateful to Universal Medicine for offering me the opportunity to discover these benefits for myself.

235. It feels empowering to embrace what the illness is truly communicating about how we live. If we do not are we not living in the tension of not knowing truly why the disease happened to us in the first place?

     1. This is vital Joshua, ‘to embrace what the illness is truly communicating about how we live’, and is so empowering.

        1. Absolutely lorrainewellman

236. It was great to read Stephen how you went deeper than just eating a healthy diet and looked at foods that did not sit well with you. Self-care and self-love encapsulate not only how we treat our bodies but as you described how we are in relationships with others.

237. The love that life has for us indeed! Stephen even though seeing blood in your stool was something that you could ignore, not being able to play football, was not–which ultimately, whatever reason we require to come back to the body, we are given opportunity after opportunity to do so.

238. What stops me when I read this today is that the body even when it gets sick is our greatest gift. As someone that would push and drive myself in every way my relationship with my body has changed since coming to the Ageless Wisdom in that I now am able to see, as you’ve shared, my part and my responsibility for my health. I’ve found this incredibly freeing as no longer am I at the mercy of illness and disease.

239. Again and again I am touched by the humbleness of Serge Benhayon and all the people contributing to this website. Although there are so many miracles and healings happening around Universal Medicine, there is always this down to earth feeling and deep respect and love for medicine and our health care system.

240. Accepting that not only am I worth caring for, but that caring for myself in the most loving way possible is the foundation upon which my interactions and relationships in the world will grow – this has been a huge and beautiful step.

     1. Michael, I love what you share “caring for myself in the most loving way possible is the foundation upon which my interactions and relationships in the world will grow”, this has also been huge for me and a great learning.

241. It’s amazing – listening to our bodies and honouring that is medicine in itself and extra support in the form of prescribed medication isn’t always necessary.

242. Lovely sharing Stephen. When I think about our digestive system, sensitivity especially comes to mind. And I like how you shared that something like travelling or a change in routine could cause symptoms to come up. I find this as well and there is a big relationship with how I am reacting to life and what is going on in my body.

     1. Yes Harry, and there is a lot there I feel I need to consider more deeply, about how I must be more respectful of my body when I travel and take bigger steps to lessen the impact of being in a different routine, this impacts on my body clearly but I don’t always give it the attention it deserves.

243. The importance of ‘listening to all the signs our bodies give us’ – a great barometer of our livingness and the truth of how we choose to live. A lovely sharing with us all Stephen thank you.

244. Quite amusing really, if it wasn’t so serious, that as a young and apparently healthy male you decided to ignore the early symptoms of the bowel disease and only took notice when it interfered with your ability to play sport! That seems to be a very prevalent symptom, especially for men.

     1. That’s true Gabriele, and why we need to bring much more love and understanding to young men, because underneath the bravado are a lot of scared and extremely sweet and sensitive young men who really just crave to be loved and met with care and honour. Something that is not readily given to young men by their peers or society as a whole. If I was to analyse the squad of 22 young men that I played in that football team with, there is not one I would say does not fall into that category, absolutely beautiful men every last one of them.

245. Taking our precious bodies for granted, I have learned (the hard way), is a sure recipe for disaster, which usually comes in the form of illness, disease and injury, I love the way you were open to looking at a total care package for the healing your body was requiring; Western Medicine; the wisdom of Universal Medicine; and the willingness to address the way you were living and then taking responsibility for how you were treating your body – such a powerful and healing combination of knowledge and wisdom.

246. Great blog Stephen imagine a world where everyone started taking responsibility for their own health in the way you have shown us here. Would it be too rough to make people pay for treatment if their illness was caused by their own lack or willingness to make the right health choices like not smoking or drinking or over eating unhealthy foods?

247. One of the many things I have learnt from attending Universal Medicine presentations is how deeply sensitive my body is to my demeanour… I imagine that this was always happening, but I was so out of touch with myself on this level, despite decades of so-called introspective awareness, that I would not feel the relationship. Now I do… And my body lets me know clearly and strongly the effects of everything that I allow in.

248. ‘I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health – how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am. I now realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person. This in turn has allowed me to become more communicative and open, and less withdrawn from life.’
     This alone is extraordinary Stephen. Truly appreciating our selves is great medicine.

     1. I have also noticed this Kathryn if I have felt off being accepting and caring of myself is the quickest way to come back and being consistent with my acceptance and caring is a great way to not go off in the first place

     2. Gorgeous Kathryn. Yes self appreciation is great self medicine.

249. The true richness & value of self responsibility cannot be underestimated.

250. Very inspiring what you’ve shared Stephen, how you looked at your diagnosis as something you had contributed to by how you had been living and not just relying on the medication to heal your body. I just last week had a stop moment and wake up call by the Doctor, even though I was a little surprised, deep down I wasn’t really because I know my body and it had been showing me signs for some time. Now I’m taking medication but knowing that is not the only support my body needs. How powerful healing can be when self-responsibility is chosen.

     1. And bringing honesty to how we have contributed to our illness by the way in which we are living as Stephen has highlighted well is an ongoing process of reflection and refinement and forever bringing awareness to our body and its messages. It doesn’t end once we are symptom-free.

251. The more we listen to our bodies Stephen the more we are able to hear truly what harm we are doing and how painful this is to our bodies. The greatest wisdom lies in us being willing to listen and hear.

     1. So true Vanessa, it is about building a relationship with our bodies. And the way to this for me is being honest about what I feel and to take it seriously and to not put it aside as something of no importance. Living in this way provides me with a medicine that is able to heal all my hurts I hold in my body, with the help of western and complementary medicine whenever this is needed.

     2. So true Vanessa it is the willing to hear and feel our bodies, the more connected to this, the more we understand what is going on, so we can make choices that are supportive to our body.

     3. Yes our willingness to listen unlocks the inner wisdom we all have waiting to be heard.

252. ‘ I still get the odd symptom, which I can feel is strongly related to my willingness to keep deepening how well I care for my body’. Full responsibility taken here for your condition Stephen, a lead we can all follow. How well do we care for our bodies, and is there an end? No, there are deeper and deeper levels of understanding ourselves and our multidimensional nature.

     1. Absolutely Lisa – taking full responsibility is a super key ingredient in the healing process. And yes, it certainly does help us better understand ourselves, which in the future could possibly allow us to notice our behaviours and change them before they become illnesses or conditions.

     2. Yes Lisa, so much more further still to go and that is the beauty of our lives.

     3. Lisa a great point you’ve made. There is never an end to how we care for our bodies as there is always a deeper level of responsibility. To me this is a completely different approach to healthcare than the current system we are used to, of get fixed and go back to life again.

253. Combining the fabulous diagnostic skills and equipment that medicine offers and the deepening understanding of the energy of illness/disease plus my responsibility of my health, it seems I’ve started to turn around osteoporosis. Yah! It is with much appreciation to Medical Science, Doctors and Universal Medicine, I say thank you.

     1. That is huge Sandra. It is so great that you and Stephen have come to understand what the body truly needs and that you started to listen to it.

254. What this blog showed me is that if we ever think that we have found the answer, and stop being open to more unfolding, then we are lost, and we miss out, big time. Stephen’s first step was to accept that he needed medical care. Many would have stopped here. Stephen then looked at his diet and lifestyle. Most would stop at this point assuming that this ‘was it’, but Stephen went deeper, and came to the beautiful truth that ‘how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel’. He did not rest on this this huge revelation, still he says that paying close attention to how his body feels is an on going process. There is much for me to learn from this, and apply to all areas of my life.

     1. Well said Catherine. Step one medical care. Step two diet and lifestyle. Step three open expression and then the steps continue to deepen. ✨

        1. I love how you have developed what I expressed into a simple how to guide. How you describe it is how it unfolded for me and continues to do so. The open and expressing part took me longer to appreciate the importance of, but now I do it is as much a part of my self care as a healthy lifestyle or medical care.

        2. Diet changes alone are not the ‘answer’. I have seen people stick to a ‘healthy diet’ because they are scared of getting sick or people with very ‘healthy’ diets be hard and rigid with themselves, thus not developing any love for themselves. I have also observed people who are not so rigid with their food, who are accepting of themselves, blossoming and enjoying life. Relationship with self is key, then all the lifestyle choices can be made from there.

        3. I love your simple yet straight forward step-by-step approach which is applicable to any ill-ness and dis-ease. But why wait until the body has to loudly say that the way you have been living wasn’t working. Step two and three is something that I have started now and with the awesome support form Serge Benhayon I have been able to get a greater understanding on how important these steps really are. The deepening has no bounds.

        4. Part of opening up to expression is to be aware of and understand the feelings that are in the body and give full attention and expression to what is being felt. I know it not only helps me to register what is actually happening around me, which helps to not be so affected, it can also uncover the deeper programs I have running inside that are driving me without realising. Stephen I too have felt that to suppress what is there to be said results in a shutting down, and that energy turning inwards, creating all kinds of unpleasant symptoms. This is an ever deeper (and sometimes painful) but great learning.

255. Two great points here:
     Treating a disease does not only require medication and medical interventions, but changing what we feel helped us to get there in the first place.
     Once you have the disease, your relationship with it as part of your relationship with yourself becomes number one, even if not one talks in a literal sense to the other.

     1. Yes, dealing with the momentum that created the illness in the first place is crucial. Otherwise it just becomes a management issue and not a healing.

256. I hear that phrase “the wisdom of the body” a lot and it makes a lot of sense to me. The body really does know what is going on and it is quite extraordinary how much we do not listen to it. You story Stephen is a great example of paying attention to what your body is telling you. Like you it was through attending Universal Medicine presentations that I got to truly understand how important it is to listen to everything that our bodies are telling us.

257. When I read articles and comments such as these it prompts me to reflect on my own story and how much my life has changed since my first introduction to Serge Benhayon. How much my health has improved by bringing more self loving choices to how and what I eat and do and conduct my daily life.

     1. Agreed Michelle, it is always worth taking the time to stop and appreciate our health, the more positive we are about the positive, the more positive we become.

258. Related so beautifully Stephen and without the emotion that often arises when we discuss illness. The way you described your feelings of vulnerability with the illness and its diagnosis really stopped me for a moment. What a tension there must have been for you, a sense that you had to be a certain way to be a man and yet your body was clearly showing you that you are deeply sensitive and very delicate. No wonder men ignore illness. Of course they must when burdened by such a heavy weight of expectation and pressure to conform to a manliness that cannot afford to anything less than fighting fit.
     This is such a beautiful blog because it shows that, as you so eloquently stated it, medical care and self care are an essential combination for true resolution and a return to health.

259. I like the part in this blog Stephen when your health improved and then you just started to cruise a little, I can so relate to this – reaching a suitably comfortable place in health and just staying there, but never really addressing the underlying issues which then can still manifest themselves in to further health problems, and quite often do.

260. There is so much lived wisdom and advice in your blog Stephen. If only everyone started to make the connection between what their bodies are trying to tell them and the lifestyle choices they make and by committing to self and not leaving it all up to the doctors to sort out, we would have a much healthier population and health system.

261. Thank you Stephen for this sharing, I was very interested when you shared how you felt when you were diagnosed with the illness. It is very personal and can be a shock especially if it is so debilitating and we are asked to change our lives.

     Yet our bodies speak loud to us through illness/disease and only to support us to bring to our attention the way we are living is not working for us. This opens us to have a choice to make a change to support our bodies and naturally us in life…a quality life. As you have shared, we can change our lives and live a quality with the support of conventional medicine as needed as it too has a role.

     1. Our bodies provide such an incredible support. Whenever I have something significant going on, I can always look back and realise that I have had much softer nudges along the way that I need to take care of things. I have always known my body has immense intelligence, and often far wiser than my mental thoughts. However now that thanks to Serge Benhayon I am aware that my body’s intelligence actually supports me in my evolution, in my rebuilding a life of living with the energy of the Soul rather than the retarding energy I have been running on, it is a completely different conversation and I have a far deeper appreciation of the process.

262. You are an inspiration to me Stephen.

     1. Yes me too, loved how you shared so personally what it felt like when you found out and how you made choices to care and support you…look at you now! WoW

263. An awesome presentation Stephen on the importance of the choices we make in life, which they either contain love or without and the consequences of making unloving choices have a significant impact on the quality of life one will have.

264. It is remarkable how our bodies keep prompting us towards a greater understanding, appreciation and honouring of ourself, and that we keep getting these insights throughout our lives, getting louder and more physically significant when we try to turn a blind eye. I recognise your story of ignoring things for a long time until there is little option left to continue in that manner. Our bodies are a great ally in this way for our growth and evolution. And the support provided by Universal Medicine and Serge Benhayon to deepen our ability to observe, connect and read what is communicated to us by our own bodies is a true blessing.

265. The avoidance you mention is such a big one – so I do not to have to feel what is going on. Using what ever distraction that is easy i.e. food, tv etc to just not have to go there. I still have to catch myself when I don’t want to look at something. This feeling of not wanting to get it wrong is so embedded.

266. We prolong our illnesses by assuming that a little change, a little tweak here and there will take care of them. The relief is often only temporary. The only way to be free of symptoms is to seek the root of the problem and address it in an holistic way, to feel our hurts, to accept them, to let go of control and start taking care of ourselves the way we do a newborn.

267. I love the way you recognised that the body shares it’s wisdom Stephen. The cells in our body are naturally pulled to maintain and sustain their healthy state. I believe absolutely that our consciousness, emotions, thoughts etc. have an energy or vibration, the quality of which creates the disease or in your case arrests it, so the body can continue it’s alignment with what is natural. When the ‘it’s genetic’ card is played to excuse us from taking true responsibility for our own wellbeing, it does not change the fact that the body knows and works for and on behalf for it’s natural state. We have so much more to learn from our bodies – they are a sacred living source of wisdom holding the answer to our true wellbeing.

268. It is so common amongst men to not take care of their body. It is this belief that as a man you have to be tough enough to put up with things and I know men that pride themselves that they can make their symptoms “go away”. Knowing this I deeply appreciate what you share here and can acknowledge the amazing new standard you are setting for all men.

269. A great demonstration of how well modern and what you so aptly call self-medicine work hand in hand when we are willing to look at our choices and take responsibility for how we live on a daily basis.

270. I love how you write about it being an ongoing process – checking in with your body. It is a constantly evolving process. I too am wrapping my head around this as it’s never in the bag so to speak. I continually have to check in with me and my body to see what it needs and what it’s telling me. It’s the wisest conversation I’ve had in years!

     1. I too, have to continuously check in with my body and it is a commitment…but I love as you say ‘It’s the wisest conversation I’ve had in years!’ So true.

271. “Looking back, I feel I could have avoided the greater symptoms I suffered had I been willing to address how I felt in my body, both emotionally and physically.” How often do we / I ignore the messages our body gives us, only to experience the after-ill effects of the food etc? Initially those signs may be subtle, but if we don’t listen , then the messages become stronger. Then an illness may appear as if ‘out of the blue’ – but was this really so?

     1. That is a great point Sue, we do act as though the illness has just popped up out of nowhere, but every time I have looked back into how I was living prior to an injury the answers are always there, sometimes from years ago.

272. We can really sabotage ourselves with our bodies by eating some foods we know are not good for us. I love your honesty about how you weren’t living as well as you knew you potentially could be. And the other thing you’ve mentioned is the importance of expressing yourself and being open, that this is a way of caring for your health as well. I know this so well, when I choose to withdraw, I am getting tired, sometimes a headache etc. I lose the joy of living, in other words I don’t feel alive. Great medicine to appreciate and to choose caring for ourselves. Thank you Stephen for sharing your experiences with your health.

273. Similar to you Stephen, I was “unwilling to address how I felt emotionally and physically in my body” when I received a diagnosis of Polymyalgia some years ago…..
     My health and well being have improved exponentially since I practise more “openness and expression” taught by Universal Medicine practitioners, it has been key to uncovering the ‘tactics’ I have used to evade the truth of who I truly am.

     1. Yes Wendy, expressing how we feel is a complete game changer, I would say it is transformative if we really go for it and don’t hold back. That has certainly been my experience and it is an ongoing process as I learn more and more what it means to express as I am.

274. Very beautiful to reflect on how supportive your body was at that time to present with the Inflammatory Bowel Disease, as it gave you the opportunity to really stop and begin taking deeper care of you. For a lot of people, they can seemingly get by partying hard, eating bad, sleeping in irregular rhythms and appear like they are getting away with it. I love the honesty of your body, how it didn’t let you stray too far.

     1. It’s a great point Shannon, I used to believe I was unlucky that my body had broken down so easily, now I see I was closer to the sensitivity that we all equally have.

        1. Indeed Stephen, to honour our sensitivity and communication that our bodies is continually sending would offer the opportunity to choose a more tender and caring way of living.

275. Interesting article, I was diagnosed with Grave’s Disease last year along with lots of other existing health problems.
     Grave’s Disease and Inflamatory Bowel Disease are both Auto Immune Diseases along with other common diseases like Rheumatoid Arthritis, Psoriasis, Asthma and possibly as many as 90 other common and not so common conditions.
     In the United States today Auto immune diseases in total are the third largest cause of death in the population.
     Western Medicine says there is no cure for auto immune disease and each auto immune disease is treated by a specialist in treating the symptoms in each different field.
     Basically the cause of all auto immune disease is inflammation and the western medical specialists treat it with steroids, immune depressing drugs and in some severe cases radiation therapy where appropriate.
     Fortunately for the Students of Universal Medicine, Serge Benhayon has made us aware of the effect of different foods on the body, in particular Gluten, Dairy, Sugar, Yeast, Alcohol, Caffeine and other drugs. If we choose to give these up this will go a long way to resolving the inflammation causing auto immune diseases.
     My Doctor suggested that if I went to a Naturopath she could likely be able to help me. I went to an Esoteric Naturopath who with a few herbs and a lot of vitamins and love helped me to heal the Graves disease, boosted my immune system, cured my candida and improved my lung health. Not forgetting all the loving sessions from Universal Medicine Practioners.
     I have just had the results of a blood test explained to me by my Doctor and the numbers for the thyroid test are below the level where I have to see a specialist. I am thrilled.

276. Thank you Stephen for this honest sharing about you taking responsibility for your health by developing such a commitment to your body and thus yourself. It was summed up for me when you mentioned that your current state of health was ‘strongly related to my willingness to keep deepening how well I care for my body – within this I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for.’ I know when ever I don’t take fully responsibility, I can feel my body immediately change and an unwanted energy descend :- ( This commitment is everything to my health and wellbeing I am still learning and growing in my understanding of what this really means.

     1. I agree Bernadette Glass full commitment to each task in each moment can bring miraculous results.

        1. Rik this is such a simple statement but so powerful if we truly go there…full presence, full power.

        2. It’s only when I stop to appreciate what ‘full commitment’ and ‘each moment’ really mean, that that the full power of my potential (who I truly am) can be felt Rik Connors. My commitment for today! Thank you.

277. ‘I now realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person.’ So crucial. We often value everything and everyone else but us. We can also shift the emphasis so the value is for our achievements whether they are in sport, promotions at work or how we get on with our neighbours. The judgement of how well we are doing is for something outside of ourselves and not for us and how we feel inside. Allowing ourselves to feel, and honouring the wisdom of our bodies, supports us in developing this more loving relationship with ourselves.

278. Appreciating ourselves has a monumental effect on how we treat ourselves.
     It’s simple stuff:
     If I don’t value myself I can work myself into the ground to be a good worker.
     If I don’t value myself I can do everything for everyone else to be loved.
     If I don’t value myself I can eat foods which are not good for me to have a little bit of a reward because I’m not being recognised.
     Deepening our appreciation for ourselves and others, in my books, is a healthy lifestyle choice. A livingness with living.

279. Great description about the decline we can get in our new-found commitment to the body once it’s healed and ‘feeling better’. It’s as though our arrogance of invincibility returns once the symptoms clear and we’ve regained our full vitality. So we start the whole cycle over again – all for a moment of gustatory pleasure and at the full expense of our underlying health. What I’ve learned about eating – and living – according to my body’s needs and preferences is that the commitment has to be consistent and ongoing, fully lived every day, every moment. Anything else is just a denial of the wisdom of our bodies and a sure way back onto whatever our personal manifestation of the slippery slope is.

     1. ‘Invincibility’ – Brilliant word, Cathy. Indeed this is how we feel after ‘getting better’ from an illness or an injury.. The day when you can finally wake up after having the flu for 2 weeks and go, ‘IT’S GONE!’. But often when we go at it like this, as you say we just slip back into old behaviours and the pattern continues of disregarding our bodies.

280. Thank you, Stephen, for a great blog – so fun and refreshingly honest.
     I just loved the humour of these lines:
     “I did what most adult males would do and I ignored it, hoping it would go away. Later that year it became more of an issue as it was affecting my ability to play football – now that was a real problem, so I went to the doctor.”
     And the tenderness and vulnerability of these:
     “how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.”
     It is so beautiful to feel your evolution through this article.

281. Beautiful Stephen how your blog clearly shows the importance of combining western medicine and self-medicine of your lifestyle choices when you have a health issue. And your story is a great reflection that the way we live is our Medicine to to have a joyful and healthy life.

282. I was struck by your second sentence – “I did what most adult males would do and I ignored it”. I reckon many men would fall into the camp of ignoring symptoms. Why is this? Perhaps we have been conditioned to not care for ourselves? It was great to read your account of how the development of self-care – not such a macho thing to be doing – contributed towards your recovery.

     1. I often wonder too Jinya why I as a man would ignore a symptom and hope it would go away. It’s not a very intelligent thing to do and it may relate to our need to put on a front and pretend that we are indestructible, as that is what society expects masculinity to represent.

        1. I love reading your words here Stephen and Jinya. As men you are so willing to just go there, to be open and honest and to explore how it feels to be a man.

        2. Everything seems to be upside down when for men being macho ends up being about ignoring what is really going on. Stephen your openness and honesty about the development of self-care is what I call true strength and is nothing short of inspiring.

283. Thanks Stephen, your journey from disease to healing and understanding your role in it all by the choices you make and the care you take of your self is a very powerful story for others to read . Thanks for sharing your story.

284. Gastointestinal problems are a huge cause of absenteeism in the workforce, with many people just living with the problem as well, when actually they need to seek medical help. How incredible that this condition can be resolved completely with due care and attention to each and every person who experiences it.

     1. So true Shami – heaps of people have IBS and other Gut disturbances with no medically detectable cause. They often don’t realise how much food affects their gut and where a few simple changes can make a profound difference. People can have symptoms they have had for years – completely resolve!

        1. Yes so true Eunice and Shami. I had little awareness that what I was eating could upset my digestion so much. Our intestines are such delicate organs, it’s no wonder mine used to hurt so much, when I consider what I used to force them to digest. Like Stephen, cleaning up my diet has had wondrous effects on my digestive system (in fact my whole body). There is so much we can do on an individual basis to heal issues with our digestive system and in my experience, when we do, whatever support the doctors can offer goes a great deal further.

     2. Yes Shami. I had this, my body was clearly showing me with alot of gut and digestive problems, having tried all medication I eventually looked at my diet made some changes and the problems disappeared.

        1. Ruth, your comment makes me wonder how many people suffer with digestive problems and just don’t have the support to make the dietary changes that can make all the difference, don’t even consider that it is the food they eat that is causing the problem. Cutting out for example dairy, gluten and sugar can transform the health of most people, yet you won’t find many nutritionist that will recommend this. The system is stuck in a rut of old information that supports industries that should be becoming obsolete. The information is not easy to find and if we have never trusted the signs from our bodies it can take time and support to redevelop this.

        2. Absolutely Stephen we are today so well informed about health & nutrition – there are countless ingredients that the world health organisation knows should no longer be present in our diets, however the greed & monopoly of food giants keeps the truth hidden – it’s time we begin to honour the messages from our own bodies and get to the heart of what foods really serve us.

285. “You are worth caring for”. Such simple words but so difficult for many of us to accept.

     1. I agree Suzanne, such simple yet profound words, ‘you are worth caring for’, is a gentle reminder to us all, especially in a world where taking care of others before yourself is rife.

286. Absolutely Gill, and there are quite a few examples of people who have shared their stories on this website that have made incredibly simple, yet consistent self-loving choices that as a result has meant they’ve avoided some very serious conditions.

     1. Yes agree Suzie, the miracle of self care.

     2. Yes I agree too Gill and Susie. Once on a path of an illness it is not always guaranteed where it is going to end. I am amazed by how self-care, love and true nourishing can turn many conditions we develop around. Our way of living is true medicine.

287. How blessed your life sounds having found the balance between western medicine and the connection to self care. The deeper your love for yourself grows, the deeper your self care develops – as you say so beautifully, “I have found that if I pay close attention to how I feel and honour that, then the symptoms clear without the need for medication.” Thank you for sharing how your responsibility to make loving choices has a major impact on your health. Such a contrast to our usual relationship with health.

288. “….related to my willingness to keep deepening how well I care for my body – within this I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for.”
     This is a beautiful little reminder as I start my day Stephen as yes, we are all truly worth caring for.

289. Your unwillingness to fully accept and value yourself as a tender and gentle young man is so apparent for young men growing up today. Outwardly fitness & health are seen as a measure of wellbeing – when inwardly the impact of pride and pressure create a hardness that so often buries the tender gentle young men that surround us.

     1. Yes Lucinda that is so true and very evident in today’s world. The toughening up and being strong and fit most definitely buries the beautiful tender and gentle man within. That is all that has been known and any man that has been sensitive and not playing ball with this stereotype has been made fun of and made to feel less as a man.

     2. Very true Lucinda – there is much more going on under the surface for young men today; although on the surface they can appear fit, healthy and proud, their inner state of being could be quite the opposite.

290. Thank you Stephen for this powerful blog – there is something here for everyone. It is so clear from your experiences how we have such a strong impact on our body’s health – from our attitudes, emotions and ways of living. I love how our bodies are such sensitive feedback systems that tell us how we are really living in our bodies – if we choose to listen. You did and adjusted the way you treated yourself and your body and it responded. Western medicine is a wonderful support for our bodies but only a part of the picture – what completes the picture as you have so clearly shared is how we eat, think, and live day to day. One of the most powerful things I have learned from Universal Medicine presentations is that living in a truly self caring, self loving way is our best medicine.

291. Very insightful story. It is very useful to know that ill health can be a wake up call to consider our lifestyle and look after our self properly, and that the combination of conventional medicine and Universal Medicine work so well together – conventional medicine’s support in taking care of the physical impact of the disharmony, and Universal Medicine’s support in deepening our understanding of the situation and developing daily life choices that truly support our growth and evolution.

292. Stephen I re-read your blog this morning and this stood out for me ‘What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.’ This is a great reminder to us all. I know from my own recovery from illness that, once well and over time, a complacency set in, I forget how ill I had been and returned to old patterns and habits of eating and living. The body has a great way of bringing us back, but shouldn’t have to. As as you say, there is no ‘on-off’ switch, only consistent and loving and care of self.

293. ‘This was where the balance between medical care and self-care became critical to me’. This sentence bounced out at me, Stephen. It encapsulates open humility and responsibility – thank you.

     1. Pharmaceutical intervention without self care can only take us so far. Only by adopting self care can we change our long term health for the better, drugs can give us support but it can’t change our patterns of living, only we can do that and only that can truly heal.

        1. Indeed Stephen. Medications are needed but are definitely not the whole solution – there is so much more to us and understanding the body and how it is affected by how we live!

        2. To be willing to understand or even look at this fact as a possibility is a step in the right direction. Stephen you have shared how taking that step and walking all the way with a certainty and knowing that to truly heal yourself needs to come from your choices to support you to do this. For me it makes complete sense that whilst you seek support medically where it is necessary, to look deeper than just finding a solution and looking at what has caused the dis-harmony in the body in the first place is what is going to heal it. Serge Benhayon has been an incredible support in getting me to understand this fact and I am very grateful for this.

        3. True. It is very easy to see that pharmaceutical intervention only goes so far. If self-care doesn’t become part of our lives, the dependance on self-medication increases, as do the doses, usually with a lessening effect and an increase of pain, symptoms and conditions as a result. A very clear sign that pharmaceuticals can support, but are not the answer.

        4. So true Stephen .. It’s why so many people fail giving up smoking or drinking, or diets or anything really. I tried many times with smoking and drinking and it was only when I resolved the root cause of why and truly supported myself I was able to stop it, and stop it for good. That root cause is healed and nothing in me will trigger that old behaviour again – never again !!

294. Thank you Stephen for a very personal experience of how caring for yourself is an ever unfolding and very joyful process, no perfection needed just an openness to what the body is communicating. I love how you link how expressive you are to your health. That insight is pure gold.

295. Hi Stephen, thank you for your honest expression of your experience – I’m sure there are many of us that can feel we can learn from your story – appreciating that illness and disease are but showing us to ponder more deeply on our lifestyle, our patterns, behaviours and attitudes. From attending the presentations of Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine I am learning the body is truly amazing, speaking to us quite loudly, letting us know when we are not listening, and when finally we do choose to listen to it, the most divine healing has the opportunity to take place.

296. I love the fact that expressing and being open is part of your physical healing, now that is something to ponder on. Holding onto what we are impulsed to express certainly can retard the body.

     1. I love the way this article and following comments opens up all the facets of healing: our lifestyle choices, western medicine, diet, self-care, expression and openness with others, and that all of this is encompassed by Universal Medicine. Thank you, Stephen and Zoe.

     2. I couldn’t agree more Zoe.

297. ‘…..within this I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for.’ I am finding how very true these words you have written are, Stephen. It is a continual process for me and each time I commit to caring for myself I find my self-care deepens and reflects back to me how healing and truly beautiful caring for my self can be.

     1. I agree Jane, this is definitely a huge step for the whole of humanity and a very needed one at that.

298. Yes the body is amazing and we are learning so much all the time.

299. I am continually inspired by the human body and what it lovingly teaches us.

     1. Yes one body has more wisdom then a thousands busy minds put together.

        1. That’s a beautiful pearl of wisdom Dean! A quote that needs to be shared all over the internet!

        2. The great thing is, everyone has a body so the wisdom is all there for the taking.

        3. This brought a smile to my face Dean, I was visualising thousands of busy minds put together 🙂 crazy.

        4. Good one Dean – and yet how much emphasis is placed on the mind? If we think about our education systems they are soooooo mind focused and the body ??? well a bit of exercise of course is thrown in for good measure but there is a complete lack of understanding of the importance of listening to the body and honouring what we feel. Imagine if all students were taught this first, and had their minds and intelligence sourced by love?

        5. That would be very cool Eunice.

        6. So simple and so true.

        7. Great Eunice, and imagine if we were taught to move with an understanding and feeling of the body, how we view exercise is completely different when we bring awareness to our movement and can appreciate the awesomeness and pleasure in simple movement. How simple it could be to teach all children to retain this awareness.

     2. The human body is a miracle in itself, the amount of wisdom it holds is beyond our understanding. Connecting to our body allows us to connect to wisdom.

        1. Very true Amita and what an amazing way to live life. I like to see it as inside out, which supports everything that then happens on the outside.

     3. Ive always felt the human body was a great piece of kit, now I have begun to listen to it, I am continually learning just how great .

300. This is a great blog Stephen. I used to have patients suffering as you did, the pain being unbearable for them at times. They knew that this was aggravated by their lifestyle and yet they were still searching for a fix so they could carry on living in the same manner. This would be a great read for the hundreds out there who suffer from this condition.

     1. Yes Lorraine, it’s interesting how many people know they need to change their lifestyle but still look for a quick fix so they can avoid doing this. We are all entitled to a choice and it depends on each individuals priorities. However the body will always let us know if we are making choices that do not support us.

        1. Well I was definitely one of those people Rebecca; someone who needed a quick fix or something new to get involved in as a way to avoid my feelings. It was actually Universal Medicine that really helped wake me up to what was really happening to me.

        2. I second that Dean, I was also one looking for a quick fix solution to my physical ills, and when there wasn’t one, just put up with it. Universal Medicine was the only medically intended body that encouraged me to look at a true holistic view of why the condition was there. For any condition.

     2. This reminds me of sportspeople, Lorraine, who come off the field injured, get taped up and go back out there again! It doesn’t make sense.

301. Thank you Stephen this brings so much wisdom to healing health and how we live to understand our part in our health along with conventional medicine.Very inspiring and true.This is an ever evolving journey and everything is a learning with understanding and love.

302. Accepting ourselves is such a big point. Once we accept ourselves we can truly accept life and from there on heal and evolve.

303. I see this as the crunch point: “The care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.” There are no quick fixes for our permanent and ongoing health: we need to honour our body’s needs on a daily basis and that requires a genuine respect for the body and a commitment to honouring it always.

304. great to read how your support from the medical system was a turning point of actually stopping and reflecting on what it was your body was telling you. To have the tools and understanding from Universal Medicine and look at the root cause and to take full responsibility for your health, dealing with issues and healing these, self-care and and openness to continually work with on these is super inspiring but really what I get from your sharing is that is down to a choice and one that you were dedicated to. Every choice we make has an immediate effect on ourselves and everyone.

     1. Absolutely Natalie, “Every choice we make has an immediate effect on ourselves and everyone.” Imagine this as a flow chart: take option A or option B, then take option A or option B…. Imagine after just 20 choices how far apart the two outcomes (and effects) could be!

        1. I like the point that you make here. There is a great need for more research into how our choices affect our body.

        2. That is a great way of looking at it Rosanna, it would be brilliant to put this into an example of how we live. It is remarkable the potential we have to live vital and full of energy, just as it is easy to fall into bad choices and feel sick. It is our responsibility either way, that I feel is the key to our future health, understanding and appreciating the huge role we play in how well we feel or not.

        3. Elizabeth, I agree, there’s a need for more research into how our choices effect our body. Food is an easy starting point, take for example the documentary film, That Sugar Film as an informal example.

305. 8 years after beginning to study with Universal Medicine, it seems so obvious now that if you develop the capacity to listen to your body, it provides you with great wisdom how to heal and be well. However, the rarity of the practice of listening to our bodies is reflected in how so much medicine is used for symptomatic relief (in particular relying purely on medication) and not seeking out the underlying cause, in particular with lifestyle disease. When Universal Medicine becomes a universally accepted complementary medicine, then we shall perhaps see an end to mushrooming costs of health care.

     1. Beautifully said, Simon, and the medical world will have a staggering number of case studies to refer to from the student body of Universal Medicine, to learn more about the power of staying connected to what our bodies are communicating to us all the time.

     2. Well said, Simon. We see the common sense in articles like this but the actual practice of listening to the body is actually very rare and takes an ongoing dedication that not all are currently willing to make.

306. Yes Lisa awesome to feel Stephens openness, sensitivity, vulnerability and strength by taking the necessary stop to look at the illness and learn from it. Certainly an inspiration for men and women alike.

307. I am noticing this for myself too, Gill. I have started checking in with my abdomen regularly throughout the day, to make sure I am not holding or tightening in that area. This is a really good marker of any reactions that are subtely (or not so subtely) running in the background.

308. Thanks Stephen for your sharing. From initially ignoring the symptoms you had to having a commitment to deepening the relationship with yourself, is truly inspirational.

309. It is beautiful here Stephen to feel your delicateness, sensitivity and strength all in one. An inspiration for other men no doubt!

310. Thank you Stephen for sharing your experience with inflammatory bowel disease and how through taking control of your health with medical care and self care, you were able to turn things around.

311. “I was also embarrassed by the diagnosis, as it felt to me quite shameful, while also leaving me feeling weak and vulnerable. I prided myself on being fit and healthy and this left me feeling exposed, abnormal and far from invincible.” Well said Stephen, this is such a common attitude towards illness. Through the presentations of Universal Medicine I am letting go of the need to appear perfect and the need to protect my vulnerability. I am accepting that illness is a stop and clearing from the body and not something to be ashamed of – like I have failed in some way, but a time to surrender and allow the healing I need.

312. I know certainly from experience that before I started to let go of my issues my body could not let go which meant a constant battle with constipation. Only when I understood the correlation between the two was I ready to start dealing with buried issues, but the mind was only a small part – I actually had to let go of what I was deeply holding onto from my body as all our hurts, ideals and beliefs are stored there. Whenever the symptoms are there again I know there is work to be done with acceptance and letting go.

313. Thank you Stephen for being open with this and sharing it for all of Us to observe and learn. It made me stop and feel too when I was diagnosed with an illness. For me there was no escaping responsibility and time to stop. The chronic pain was my wake up call – things needed to change.
     Universal Medicine, the modalities and practitioners were a true support, and when I took full responsibility anything was possible with my healing process.

     1. I love how this is expressed “…when I took full responsibility anything was possible with my healing process.” This is completely what I experienced when diagnosed with a serious disease so rather than feeling sorry for myself and like a victim I had the opportunity to make changes in how I was living with the support of Universal Medicine which empowered me through the surgery and in my life thereafter.

     2. Thank you Rik, illness and disease is very exposing and can take time to adjust to, but it is how we respond that matters. If we can accept the need for change, and see the ill health as a welcome sign from the body and not a burden, then the opportunity to build a more vital body will be there.

314. Such a powerful blog Stephen on many levels – so honest and open with how this disease affected you and how you turned your life around – truly inspiring!
     ‘I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health – how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.’ – Wow what a great reminder for us all to have this level of responsibility with our health.

315. “I prided myself on being fit and healthy and this left me feeling exposed, abnormal and far from invincible.”
     This is a great point Stephen, why a lot of people, especially men, don’t go to the doctors and get things checked out when we feel something is not quite right. I know it was the same for me. The feelings of embarrassment, thinking nothing would ever happen to me, and thinking that if I did have something it would eventually go on its own (because obviously I did nothing to attract the symptoms) all led to the overriding of any issues that I had.

     The presentations of Universal Medicine and Serge Benhayon has helped me to realise that our everyday choices affect us in many ways and that our bodies give us messages all the time, and that it is very responsible to listen and heed those messages.

316. What a gift you have given here in what you’ve written Stephen. This is not a subject openly discussed but in what you’ve shared you offer great healing and insight into understanding any disease. This line particularly stood out for me ‘my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.’ So true and if understood, completely empowering too. Congratulations on overcoming this disease and bringing your honesty and understanding to light, for everyone.

317. What I am reading and realising from all the blogs on this site is that we can actually make choices that support our body and this will begin the process of change.
     Why do we not have this simple teaching in our Education system?
     Why are we not informed of the details of what harm certain foods are to our body?
     Why are we not educated on understanding what Sleep is and what profound effects it has on our well being?
     Why are we not taught the harmful long term affects of drugs and alcohol?
     Why is no one in the world (other than Serge Benhayon) saying that our emotions have a direct affect on our health?
     Thank You Stephen for sharing your story and how in taking real responsibility you have turned your life around.

     1. Awesome comment Bina, I agree with all you say. Yes why indeed? With the mess society is in, the rate of illness and disease rapidly rising, it’s high time start we start asking these questions and deeply considering our own responsibility that individually we can make choices that support our body to be all we are rather than constantly hindering it.

318. I love that expression… The self-medicine of lifestyle choices. My kit just got bigger thank you.

319. I love this: “because of the choices I had been making, I became symptom free and then got a bit casual with my health”. It’s interesting how when things move away from that crisis/inconvenient state that prompted the changes and into being symptom free that we can let ourselves slip back into old ways of eating and living. The fact we do this asks me to question our motivation for looking after ourselves – whether it is coming from a deeper understanding of all that we are and honouring that aspect, or whether it’s simply to get rid of the uncomfortable and inconvenient symptoms.

     1. Great point Rosanna and one worth pondering. Does our motivation for looking after ourselves come from an honouring of all we are, or a wanting to get rid of uncomfortable symptoms? I know in the past I have chosen the latter, not wanting to feel the choices I had made that led up to the uncomfortable symptoms. The more I develop a loving relationship with my body the more open I am to feeling that my everyday choices impact on everything. I am relearning to honour all that I am in the choices I make and am finding this requires regular refining 🙂

320. I love the responsibility you have taken in your health Stephen, both the deepening care you have for yourself and in seeking the correct medical help. I also love how you show we have a much bigger part to play in our healing than just going to the doctor and taking the medicine they prescribe, but that in good health we actually have an active part to play every single day.

321. Thank you for sharing your story Stephen. It provides a very clear testimony to the benefits of taking responsibility for our own health – both physically and emotionally – in combination with western medicine.

     “What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.”

     Many people these days are becoming very aware of the importance of taking care of themselves but there seems to be this really strong attitude of moderation in doing this such that as long as we take care of ourselves most of the time then it’s ok on occasions to really bash yourself – often in the name of celebration!

     1. Great point Andrew, the moderation message is a strong one, “everything in moderation”. But how can everything in moderation be good for us if part of the everything isn’t good for us and is actually poisoning us. The real question is why we need the things that we know are poisoning us, why we still want to go there?

     2. Well said Andrew – consistency is key, as although many people are becoming aware of just how important it is to take care of ourselves, majority still believe that ‘on occasion’ bashing and abusing their bodies is ok… Thus illness and disease statistics are still very much on the rise.

322. This is an awesome article in revealing that one can truly take ownership and responsibility for their healing, knowing they have a choice in all matters concerning them along the way.

323. It was amazing to read your story Stephen and the frank openness you express it with, and to feel your dedication in taking true care and making self loving choices about how you live and what you eat. What resonated with me was feeling worth taking the time to make these loving choices for myself.
     In deep appreciation of what you shared and the healing it brings to all men (and women) thank you Stephen.

324. Thank you Stephen for sharing what can be seen as a delicate subject. The more we discuss and be open and honest about our symptoms the more likely we are to go to the doctor to get them checked out. All too often we deny or ignore signs that our body is showing us to let us know something isn’t right, which can lead to serious illness that may have been avoided.

     1. It feels to be really common Alison, that our first reaction is to ignore any pain or discomfort we feel in our bodies in the hope it will go away and because it can be seen as a possible ‘disruption’ to our lives. This is exactly what I did. I only went to my GP after a friend sat with me for several hours, until I agreed to go and see him and get myself checked.

325. Stephen I love how honest you are in your article, and how you have discovered that addressing how our body is feeling through food is not all that needs to be done if we choose to truly wish to care for our bodies as they are calling to be cared for. To bring to the fore that our demeanor impacts on our symptoms is so very powerful. It brings forth to all of us the possibility that we are actually able to make many huge changes to our health, simply by addressing how we are feeling, by not locking up or hardening to what we feel, but with the tenderness we all hold, honestly looking at what we are doing that is causing us to stress and our bodies to react. This honest understanding then gives to us choice about how we choose to live in our next day, a choice to begin to honour our body and treat it with the tenderness and love that it is crying out for.

326. This is so true Stephen, feeling your health is connected to how caring you are for yourself, and great that you, ‘now realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person’, and also that you, ‘ have to keep accepting I am worth caring for’. You definitely are.

327. I was touched reading this article. All to often many men ignore symptoms especially relating to the bowel and only do something about it when they are ‘nagged’ by a loved one or when it interferes with their lifestyle as in the case of Stephen, where it was affecting his ability to play football. It is written with honesty and it is so inspiring to see a young man take responsibility in addressing how he feels about himself and the self-loving choices he now makes. Thank you Stephen for sharing your story.

328. Our health is but a reflection of how we are with ourselves in every moment. Thank you for sharing how self-love, self-care and taking your responsibility can change your health completely.

329. Thank you Stephen, it was great reading your blog. I kept re reading the statement “The self-medicine of lifestyle choices”… this is so relevant, as there are many activities we do in life that can be considered as self medicating… for example eating to numb our emotions, smoking or drinking alcohol in social interactions because of feeling uncomfortable or awkward. These are just two examples of self medicating on lifestyle choices. It is awesome to see how self care has been your medicine to assist your healing of inflammatory bowel disease. Very inspiring to see how the body responds to self care and love.

     1. Johanne a great point – having grown up thinking I had to get help from the outside to understanding that self-medicine is actually first about the choices I make, is a complete shift in how to approach life but one that makes total sense.

        1. To continue doing the very thing that is causing the problems is utter lunacy really…why do we do it? If we want a different outcome then surely making a different choice is the way to go.

330. Thanks, Stephen. “The self-medicine of lifestyle choices” is certainly where it is at, accompanied by the willingness to look at our emotional reactions and how this adds to the ‘load’ we put on our bodies every day.

331. Extensive research evidences the shocking fact that “most cardiovascular disease and cancer cases are preventable by making changes in lifestyle choices that alleviate the five leading dietary and behavioural risks – high body mass index (overweight /obesity), poor nutrition, lack of physical activity, tobacco use, alcohol use” (Dr Grenfell, 2005).

     It truly is a blessing that Universal Medicine has provided you with such effective support in “…understanding and developing the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now your everyday living.” Your story is very assuring to all people with health challenges who are looking for the missing element in their treatment plans.

     It seems to me that Universal Medicine could be a blessing for humanity at large by helping us reduce the alarming world health statistics by supporting us to understand the ins and outs of how to integrate one’s ‘livingness’ with traditional medicine.

332. This is very amazing, for you to be so aware of what is really going on and to be listening so closely to your body that you can support yourself deeply with what it is letting you know. Inspiring.

333. Stephen, your blog is a good example of how ‘suffering ill health’ can be a huge ‘wake up call’ and it’s great how you realized that you had to ‘keep accepting I am worth caring for.’ I love your honesty in admitting how you felt so vulnerable and exposed – not so easy for one who is a fitness instructor but how great it must be for people to be guided by someone who is not being so hard on themselves.

334. For years it has been a pattern of mine to treat the body as though it was an inconvenience and that when something went wrong I would complain like it was the bodies fault and I had no part to play in the ache or pain that had developed.
     So learning that the body is telling me something and that it is wise not to ignore it, is giving me the opportunity to develop a closer connection to what my body is telling me and I no longer see the pain as an inconvenience.

335. Hi Stephen, the stop start habit that you talk about in this blog is something I am familiar with. Often, once I have made the changes that get rid of the symptoms, I slowly go back to my old habits that caused the problem in the first place. Self care is an ongoing commitment and as you say, we are worth caring for. I find my self care can get relegated to the bottom of my priorities because I put my ‘list of things to do’ first. Thanks to the presentations of Serge Benhayon, Universal Medicine and their modalities, I am taking greater care of myself and making it a top priority, because they have helped me realise that I matter.

     1. Debra, I once did the same. I found that integrating self care into my daily list and making part of daily activities, helped keep me on track.

336. Thank you Stephen for sharing your blog. You comment that “Western Medicine was crucial to my recovery, but also only part of the healing”. How true but so necessary in the healing process as we come to understand in full, what healing truly is. I am grateful for Western Medicine in giving me time to heal from the inside out.

     1. Beautifully said Mary – I do appreciate what western medicine can offer, and now understand how I play a role in my healing too.
        The strength of those 2 factors working together has not been fully understood by society yet – but it seems nothing short of a miracle.

337. The statistics evidence a shocking fact that “most cardiovascular disease and cancer cases are preventable by a change in the five leading dietary and behavioural risks – high body mass index (overweight /obesity), poor nutrition, lack of physical activity, tobacco use, alcohol use” (Dr Grenfell, 2005).

     It truly is a blessing that Universal Medicine has provided you with such effective support in “…understanding and developing the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.”

     It seems that Universal Medicine could be a blessing for humanity at large.

338. It is my understanding now that what Universal Medicine presents is crucial to the ongoing survival of the western worlds medical systems indeed our society in general . Strong word I know but pick any disease or disorder, from dementia to diabetes, and you will usually find an exponential growth that is not sustainable. Universal Medicine is laying the foundations for humanities return to a truly wholistic approach to well being and health. No it is not new, in fact there have been signposts for us through the ages always delivering the same message, but now it is possible, that this voice of clarity will be heard

     1. Indeed – Universal Medicine is carving the path for the medicine of tomorrow – today!

        1. ‘Universal Medicine is carving the path for the medicine of tomorrow – today!’ – Very well said Eunice; they are definitely the leading light of true medicine and true health.

339. Stephen, thank you for your sharing! Inflammatory Bowel Disease amongst other illnesses is certainly not an easy diagnosis to receive at any age but especially so when one is still in their early twenties! This is beautiful to feel how you have developed gradually the self care and learned about foods that support your body more. This is process for all of us, and in many instances it is illness or disease that prompt us to make these well needed and deserved changes. When I was 25 I got a pap smear test result that was borderline and this shook me up enough to start making changes to my diet and self care. This was just the beginning and then years later I came across Universal Medicine and really got to understand what true self care is! What a blessing! There are so many more layers yet to discover in self care and self love in all areas of my life – and now I can say that I am open to exploring this without necessarily being prompted by the presence of daunting medical test result – now this is true self care!

     1. Something super important so playfully put. Coming to a way of living that does not need a brick wall of a medical scare to wake us up, but living an every day life that incorporates self care and respect. This is huge – thank you, Henrietta.

340. Stephen, I have read your blog several times and what I get today is the level of detail and care you have applied to really listening to your body and therefore caring for it and your willingness to keep refining this further as a never-ending process. This is so supportive to read and encourages me to do the same, in the knowing that there is further to go in my listening and refining to truly care for myself more deeply.

     1. Yes Josephine – Stephen has set a great example for others to follow by the way he has approached his condition and taken responsibility for his lifestyle and choices.

341. Great article Stephen, you describe so clearly how this inflammable bowel disease has wakened you up to take more care for your body and how important it is to have a deep care for this amazing body we have to express here on earth.

     1. So true Benkt, it’s great to appreciate our body rather than take it for granted and treat it with disrespect, this is lovely to read, ‘how important it is to have a deep care for this amazing body we have to express here on earth.’

342. I really appreciate what you have brought up for discussion here Stephen. Strange as it may sound sometimes we forget how healing it can be to get an illness or disease. It stops us in our tracks and forces us to consider how we are really living and is a wake up call. Changing the way we live along with using conventional medicine when we need it feels like the perfect combination to bring true change.

     1. It is true Elizabeth that Illness and disease can stop us in our tracks…and this can be just what we need to start the healing process and take a really good look at how we have been living and how we have contributed to a condition. As much as we might kick and scream, our bodies invite us to surrender to a more responsible and loving way of living.

     2. ‘Strange as it may sound sometimes we forget how healing it can be to get an illness or disease’ – acknowledging the fact that this flies in the face of conventional thinking this is such a powerful thing to consider. When we get sick we are being offered an opportunity to review, consider and re-assess our choices, lifestyle and relationship with ourselves and life. The more I work with my body as an ally the more I understand and experience life in full. Thank you, Elizabeth.

343. ‘This was where the balance between medical care and self-care became critical to me’. What you say is true Stephen: we need both types of care. However critical medical intervention is, without conscious and consistent self care, ill-health can re-occur.

344. Great sharing Stephen, It is amazing how we can ignore our body and its only way to communicate with us. I loved your summary “Universal Medicine has been a huge support in understanding and developing the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.”

     1. Yes I agree – my eyes have been opened to the effect of lifestyle choices on our health and well-being as well, thanks to Universal Medicine.

     2. I agree Bernard, since changing my lifestyle and diet through developing greater awareness of energy and choices as presented by Universal Medicine, my health is better than it was in my 20s and 30s.

345. As men it is somehow a challenge to truly accept ourselves as tender and delicate beings and that we are worth caring for so we keep pushing and doing always at the expense of our bodies.
     I love your story and how you chose to commit to deepening the relationship with your body and got to listen to what was needed with regards to self caring choices and acceptance of your loving tenderness as a man. Thanks Stephen.

     1. Thank you for this comment Francisco, hearing directly from a man how it is a challenge to accept yourselves as delicate and tender and therefore worth caring for, broadens my understanding of men in particular and in general. I, too observe exactly what you say playing out and I feel we women too have to learn to accept and embrace the delicateness and sensitivity in our men, and cherish it in young boys so it doesn’t get crushed out of them.

        1. This is so true Josephine, we all have a responsibility to support young boys to be gentle and not feel they have to act tough. I teach three boys who have all got into boxing and I wonder with it where the impulse to take that up came from, as the way they describe the experience, it doesn’t really seem likes it represents who they really are.

        2. Francisco, although I am a woman I can totally understand the challenge that men are faced with in today’s society in truly accepting their tenderness and delicateness. There is so much pressure on a man to be strong, hard and incredibly exposing if seen crying or expressing how he feels. We seem to champion this way of being and we women have a part to play in all of this. I know I have looked up to this way of being in the past, but now as I am learning to accept and embrace my sensitivity, beauty and vulnerability within me, I am beginning to see and observe this in a man too. It is very beautiful and I absolutely agree with you Josephine in that we women have to learn to accept and embrace the tenderness and sensitivity in our men and in our young boys too.

        3. Absolutely Josephine and Francisco. The sensitivity and delicateness of boys and men is so beautiful, and is always there within. When honoured and treasured it becomes their true strength.

        4. This is a great point Josephine, for women to accept and embrace the delicateness and sensitivity in our men would support them to feel and live this truth of themselves.

        5. Francisco, thank you for your comment here. It has truly helped me to understand men to a deeper level and to remind me to meet them in their tenderness and as Josephine says embrace the delicateness and sensitivity of our men and to cherish it in young boys, but to also cherish it with in our adult men as well, as it is always there, just waiting to be met.

        6. Very true Josephine, It is so supportive to cherish this in all men and especially in young boys who are just craving to be met. Young boys are under so much pressure to conform so they can feel accepted in society, crushing their innate sensitive nature.

        7. Yes, I find it to be true that many if not most young boys are just craving to be met and allowed to express their sensitivity. I have observed though how rapidly they become rough and tough and often shun any expression of tenderness, or push that away. Having tender, sensitive men they can relate to as role models is vital. So often it is their fathers that are giving them the message to ‘man up’ and not be ‘cry babies’.

        8. It feels like only by men expressing how they feel and being open will it allow the young boys to feel safe that they can do the same, that they don’t need to put on a tough front. It is crazy how difficult it is to admit to being gentle and tender and how far removed our behaviour as men is from these natural qualities. Make no mistake this links strongly to the ill health so many men and women suffer.

        9. Absolutely Stephen, this breed of men is a rare species but not extinct thanks to Universal Medicine and all the men like you that have started to express and embrace their tender and delicate qualities. I agree if both men and women were closer to their natural qualities we would see a much healthier society at all levels and on the whole we do not take into account how our lack of expression damages our health.

        10. I agree Josephine, ‘I feel we women too have to learn to accept and embrace the delicateness and sensitivity in our men, and cherish it in young boys so it doesn’t get crushed out of them.’ I can see from my 4 year old son and his friends that delicateness and sensitivity are natural qualities in boys and I can see the pressure they are under from all around to be tough and hard.

        11. How lovely it is to observe the tenderness in young boys before they take on all that toughness and hardness. I have a very sweet memory of my then seven or eight year old nephew picking wildflowers for me and tenderly making me a necklace as we were out on a beautiful summer evening stroll. I felt how lovely and honouring of both of us that simple gesture was.

        12. That’s true Josephine, it feels to me that women need to first accept and embrace the delicateness and sensitivity in themselves before they can feel it in others. It is there in all of us, isn’t it.

        13. That is so very true Josephine the embracing of the delicateness and sensitivity in our men when they are boys… I feel this can also be cherished in girls as well, but boy’s are taught at such a young age to ‘harden up’ or ‘toughen up’ that immediately they start to loose there natural pure sweet, delicateness and tenderness that they are. I agree it is also up to us woman to embrace and encourage this also and not to leave them unsupported in this returning.

     2. Indeed Francisco – there aren’t many (any?) men down the pub or in the gym talking about how tender and delicate they are – and if they did they would probably be ridiculed and teased. It takes a man who truly knows himself to be able to overcome that and stand and express the truth of who they are – as you have done.

     3. Beautiful, Francisco. Stephen’s blog is super inspiring because he charts the turn around to accepting himself more and his delicate nature, to be now living with true commitment to look after himself on every level.

     4. The world is definitely enhanced by all the men who celebrate and express their natural tenderness – so much hardness and machismo is simply dissolved away – thank you Francisco and Stephen.

346. great to show another way Stephen. I have seen quite a few young men with ulcerative colitis who ended up needing their colon out – whilst surgery can be needed, one wonders if they had had access to esoteric healing, dealing with their stuff and being empowered to make different choices whether they could have avoided the surgery?

     1. Yes Eunice, it would be interesting to see if the choice to deeply self care would reduce the need for surgical intervention. There is surely a lot to be said for making lifestyle choices that care for the body. I know of one friend who didn’t make those changes after the disease and did have to have surgery. It is another big question as to why we still make unloving choices when we have been given such a wake up call. We are the only species on earth that act in such a way and I know I many times I have done things that were not so intelligent and worked against the needs of my body.

        1. It is interesting that for some it may be too challenging to make the lifestyle changes needed to avoid surgery. For some surgery is a way to help them continue with life as they know it without having to change. We all have a choice.

        2. Yes indeed Rebecca – it is quite clear to me that some people do not want to change and to be honest I would have been one of them in the past!! Yet I now have the experience of making different choices and reaping the rewards – so it is so clear to me that this is the way ahead for those who are open to it.

        3. It makes complete sense that by making changes to our life style we can change the way our bodies can heal from disease. To be diagnosed with a disease and to not attempt to change lived patterns for many is puzzling, as we are all very intelligent. I wonder what it is that keeps us locked in and unwilling to look at different options? I know for myself there is an underlying stubbornness to keep things as they are, even though my body is shouting loud and clear to change.

     2. Eunice there is a lot in this question you pose “if they …empowered to make different choices whether they could have avoided the surgery”? What will it take for all people to feel empowered to honestly look at our stuff when it first arises? To have the combined support of esoteric healing and medicine will be exactly what the doctor orders one-day soon, in a galaxy not so far away!
        It is becoming so obvious that this is the essential direction we need to be developing now as the current system is imploding on itself.

        1. I agree – that is a huge question that would be worthy of deep questioning – could different choices avoid illnesses getting more and more serious to the point we need surgery?

        2. Yes indeed Meg a question to deeply consider. There are many blogs on this site and that are living proof that different choices can change the direction of illness.

     3. It seems the amazing support offered by conventional medicine has been used to become even more irresonsible about our own health and expect someone else to pick up the tabs for our choices. Esoteric Medicine that deeply inspires the individual to reawaken their awareness of their body and the impact of their choices, as well as become more responsible in their own lives is vitally needed.

     4. Great question Eunice, one that could be opened up even further – How many surgeries in general could have been avoided if the patients had access to esoteric healing, and learnt to self-love and care for their bodies?

     5. It would be great to have a study on this, then with statistics showing what many of us feel, the NHS maybe more inclined to implement these much needed changes.

        1. That’s assuming that everyone would want to make the necessary lifestyle changes – and the fact is many people don’t!

        2. True, maybe they need some encouragement. What if they did not have free NHS if their disease, illness was as a direct result of how they had been abusing their body and they knew this? Is that being responsible? It is so important that people start to value and take care of themselves, and that help is available for those wanting to bring this into their lives.

     6. I have known people who don’t want to change but perhaps that was just a fear they needed support to overcome. It can be hard to accept we have a problem sometimes, even when it is staring us in the face.

347. Completely awesome to read this, Stephen. Thank you.

348. Stephen thank you for being so honest and sharing this, many people will be able to relate with what you have written and articles like these help us to see the bigger picture, the root of the issue and help us to get real with what is truly going on. Amazing you were able to listen to your body and make changes in response to this, so many people do not and keep going doing what they know is wrong. How refreshing to hear you taking responsibility and in doing so greatly benefited your own health and wellbeing.

     1. It is true Samantha, it is amazing and I have much respect for Stephen for writing such an intimate part of his experience in life. Having experienced irritable bowel syndrome in my teens and early twenties and overriding it with work, stress, anxiety and food etc… I can see how Universal Medicine and all the modalities have supported me to overcome this illness, as I now no longer have such symptoms after my choice to let go of many disregarding choices of the way I was living.

     2. Absolutely Samantha – blogs like Stephen’s and all the ones on this site are brilliant as they are super honest, and help everyone to see the bigger picture of what’s going on.

        1. Yes it is about taking responsibility for our health. Our health really is in our hands through the choices we make.

     3. I agree Samantha that it is refreshing to hear how Stephen took responsibility – and what an example he is now as a fitness instructor helping others to make changes in their lives. Great blog Stephen.

349. I agree Amelia, there is always a deepening of the tenderness and love we are able to bring to ourselves and just when we may feel we are there, there is more. Such a beautiful and never ending unfolding.

     1. So true Beverley and Stephen, whether it is conventional medicine, making different lifestyle choices or refining the quality we are with ourselves in life, there is always more that is available to us in terms of true medicine.

        1. I love how your blog so clearly depicts how self-responsibility is a powerful medicine.

        2. I agree Jenny. There is always more. And this never comes from a ‘not being enough’ but an opening to the depth and grandness that we actually are.

350. I love how you talk about this being a constantly refining process Stephen. I have found this too with my own self-care that there is always deeper to go, and more tenderness and love I can bring to myself – it never ends how deep we can go it would seem!

     1. I have found that to Amelia. It seems that self-love has no limit to the depth which we can take it and the way we have not loved ourselves, our unloving choices and patterns, keep on being revealed the deeper we go.

        1. Well said Amelia and Jeannette, every time my self-love deepens I find it incredible to have lived any less than that, and it is beautiful to feel that there is always going to be more love and joy ahead.

     2. Absolutely Amelia, self care is a constantly refining process, going to a deeper level, and increasing our levels of love and tenderness, gorgeous.

     3. I so agree Amelia, I am constantly discovering that I am being offered the choice to deepen my connection with my self and it is absolutely beautiful. I am beginning to get to know the beautiful, caring, tender, loving woman that I really am. A woman that I never imagined myself to be a few short years ago. Yet here I am finding that I am just as beautiful as any other person that I have ever compared myself to in the past. I know deeply how precious I am and now being able to feel this I have no need to compare myself to any others any more. The grace of living this has no words that can describe the true beauty of how it feels.

     4. I agree too Amelia….I think back over the past few years especially around food and realise that my body is constantly talking to me about what food it wants/needs. It’s quite amusing sometimes, because I go – really? you don’t want that anymore? And it goes – no! It makes for interesting supermarket shopping expeditions as I talk to myself around the aisles!!!! But I love it!

        1. So true Sarahflenley. There are supermarket aisles that I skip past now. It is so much simpler not being tempted by foods that the body simply does not want anymore.

        2. I agree, I would never have believed I would have given up some of the food I no longer eat, but my body tells me very loudly that this and that isn’t for me.

351. Irritable bowel disease is so common and and often accepted as an untreatable condition. It’s great that you were able to take control and share how you now live without medication, by your commitment to the deepening ongoing process to honour how you feel and now live everyday.

352. Stephen, I related to your comment: ‘Universal Medicine has been a huge support in understanding and developing the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.’ I, too, have learnt this first hand and in effect guide the direction of my own health and well being. Inflammatory Bowel Disease seems to be gaining in our community. It would be very supportive for your article to reach those suffering for some further understanding.

353. I like the term you use in your blog Stephen – ‘self-medicine’ meaning taking care of ourselves through our observing our daily choices and how they affect the body and making changes accordingly. This is just as important as what we would call conventional or traditional medicine i.e. going to seek professional help. The two go hand in hand.

354. You struck a point there when you said that you were a bit reluctant seeing a doctor when you recognised the symptoms. We could learn a lot from women in this regard. They seem to be more open to see a doctor when something doesn’t feel right.

355. This is a condition which affects so many and can have devastating consequences if not fully addressed. I agree that food and diet do make a difference but on their own do not heal the condition. Being willing to look deeper into how emotions contribute and how we bury things deep inside us does make the difference. And yes, medicine is required at times and this may be a loving thing to introduce when necessary. Sometimes the ultimate consequences have to be experienced before a person is willing to look at all of this and realise what the illness is presenting to them.

     1. Yes Anna, and medical science is I am sure not yet fully open to the possibility that our emotional state will affect our health, yet when we consider it, what is there to lose by being more attentive to the possibilities that emotions will affect greatly how we feel in our bodies.

356. I know first hand Stephen that food is just a part of what contributes to our health and wellbeing. Many years ago, I fell in a total heap at a time when I was eating all organic foods and was the fittest I’ve ever been, but I was an emotional wreck and no amount of good food and exercise could counter the damage I had done to myself through the choices I’d made, and the dramas I’d created and fed.

357. This is gold Stephen…”I have found that if I pay close attention to how I feel and honour that, then the symptoms clear without the need for medication.” – this statement alone revolutionises how we approach illness. Yes we still need medication and it is there to support us when we do, but to really support ourselves, we can listen to what our body is telling us, whether that is to not have a certain food, or whether a pattern of behaviour triggers symptoms.

358. Great sharing Stephen. I particularly love this reminder ‘I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for’. It is amazing that we have to keep accepting this isn’t it? I mean, it feels like it should be the most natural thing, yet I know that until I met Serge Benhayon everything I saw, heard and felt in society told me otherwise. So I share your appreciation for Serge and Universal Medicine, because I can now say I am worth caring for too.

     1. This is huge Simone isn’t it, that need for a constant reminder that we are worth it, but from my experience if we don’t consider ourselves worth caring for, why should we expect anything similar from anyone else.

359. Truly inspiring Stephen. You certainly are a living miracle, such an amazing turnaround from this dis-ease. You have demonstrated, through your experience, how powerful the marriage of western and esoteric medicine work so beautifully together to bring about true healing. How you chose to listen to and honor your body and take responsibility for you, your well-being and how you were living is a testament of how our bodies are always guiding with what is needed to live harmoniously.

360. Thanks for sharing your story Stephen. Yes a change of diet can get us so far, but from my experience we also need to look at how we are within ourselves to truly heal an illness or disease. Indeed Western Medicine plays an important support role but it is also super important for us not to just be reliant on medicine to fix us, but to play our own role in healing by addressing our issues and hurts which are the root cause of the illness in the first place. Well done for going there and truly healing.

361. When our health starts to show that ‘all is not well’ it is I feel in those vulnerable moments that deep down we know that we have to make a choice – yes we can totally rely on medical intervention and allow the health systems in place to help control/manage our (dis-ease) health OR we go into a “I can sort this out myself” mode. With the understanding that I have now and the observations and comments that I have read – when we allow medical help and self help to work together the end results become much more a healing. We then adjust through choice our way of living which causes the dis-ease in the first place. I was very stubborn about allowing the medical system to help me with my dis-ease (wake up call) but eventually with the combination of the two choices open to me and with the amazing support of Serge Benhayon/Universal Medicine and the amazing esoteric practitioners that all changed. So thank you Stephen for this awesome sharing.

362. Today’s world lays so much emphasis on diet and fitness, granted these are important aspects of health & wellbeing but not if they are compartmentalised from our everyday living – as Stephen has stated it is how we are in every moment that impacts our health. Our ability to communicate, to express, take care of ourselves and truly appreciate ourselves – these are the parts that make up who we are and cannot be discounted if we are to take further responsibility for our health and begin to self-medicate.

363. I love that you knew that you needed to change the way you were with yourself and your level of care before attending any Universal Medicine events. It just shows how natural it is to care for and listen to our body. We only need to have this pointed out when we get too stuck in unnatural ways. It also highlighted for me that self care isn’t about fixing a problem so we can get back to our old, not so healthy or loving ways as soon as possible. It is just coming back to our natural way.

364. This is a great article Stephen. Thank you for sharing how Western Medicine and self-medicine are the key to healing the body. Sometimes we do need a big stop with our health which then gives us the opportunity to reassess how we are living emotionally and physically. If we would only appreciate our bodies more and connect and feel what messages the body is sending us and choose to make changes in our lifestyle as you have done Stephen then maybe there wouldn’t be the escalation of illness/disease we have today.

365. It is common I think Stephen, that we override our body’s reactions to every day foods like dairy and gluten because they are such a normal part of societal everyday living. It is ‘inconvenient’ in the beginning to give up such commonly accepted foods and requires a higher level of commitment and responsibility to one’s body and health and also one has to encounter the reactions of others who think you are weird, too precious or a nuisance and can even get angry with you for making the food choices you do. It just goes to show how there is such a pervasive consciousness around food which starts with our first sips of milk from our mothers, and then quickly escalates away from what it is that our bodies truly need to eat to support them.

     1. You make a strong and valid point Josephine, it is rather bizarre the reaction that ensues when we make choices to be healthier, time and again I have encountered people reacting almost in disgust that I would choose to not eat certain foods that I feel harm my body. This is such a strong and common reaction yet when we stop and consider it makes no sense at all.

     2. Great points Josephine. There is a strong belief or consciousness that everything in moderation is ok, or that eating small amounts of say gluten or dairy are ok. But my response to that (and note to self here) is that a small amount of something that the body can’t handle is poison…and would we have just a little bit of arsenic or other poison?

        1. Love that you’ve brought this belief in, ‘everything in moderation is ok’ or how about ‘a little bit of what you fancy does you good’. Really? What an insidious set up that is – designed to appeal to the more indulgent aspect of our natures and not our truth.

366. It is about paying attention to how we feel and honouring that where the healing lies. This is what I find for myself. And I love Miike what you say about developing your real face and letting go of the automatic responses. Thank you.

     1. Absolutely, these automatic responses actually drain me, because I don’t pay attention to what my body is communicating to me in the moment.

367. Thank you Stephen for sharing so honestly your experience with IBD and how you have used the support of Western Medicine but also addressed your own responsibility to make changes in your diet and the way you approach life. I love how you sum up the point you have now reached of ‘developing the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living’.

368. It is great that we are talking about this as so many people have bowel issues and have a tendency to see it as normal, as part of life. It is such an important and vital part of our body which is so easily neglected. Thank you Stephen for starting this conversation.

     1. Exactly Mariette, digestive and bowel dysfunction is considered normal in our society and there are so many pills, potions and gels to help keep everything moving along without stopping to look at why this is happening or what is causing it.

369. Stephen it’s powerful to read about someone who has navigated what would be deemed today as a healthy lifestyle and how this story, this illusion keeps us in a comfortable cycle until the body says no more. It’s rare to feel the levels of self care and understanding that you have come to Stephen and truly how this will inspire other men.

370. Thank you Stephen for sharing your experience. It demonstrates beautifully how there is a relationship between our emotions, choices and health and wellbeing. They are inextricably linked, even co-exist, where, when there is disharmony, the body responds with symptoms of ‘dis-ease’.

371. Thank you Stephen for sharing. Our bodies are always telling us what’s really going on, aren’t you amazing for truly listening to your body, especially at such a young age.

372. I love the way the body can show us our choices if we pay attention. I have ignored what my bowels were telling me for so long, just writing it off as IBS until it got so painful that I could no longer ignore and had to have deeper investigations. What this process has shown me was the extent of holding on and burying the things I had wanted to say for as long as I could remember, ever since childhood.
     Sure changing my diet has helped enormously but speaking up is helping my body in ways that I could never imagine.

373. So true Stephen, men like to ignore their body signs, so did I. And these signs are always coming back to present us the decisions we have made in life. To listen to my body, being aware of what it is telling me is my “new” way of living and I have learnt, that these signs are much more than speaking about illness only. My body is a huge instrument of reflection in every second of my life. I just have to listen.
     As I heard I have 19 muscles to create a smile in my face. By observing my smile in the last days I noticed, that I am – or should I say: my body is – expressing underneath my consciousness … nearly all of the time. I wondered if this is what I wanted to express truly, or if there is something different happening. Now I have notice, that by increasing my awareness to my face, especially my smile, I am leaving a plane of communicating kindness and politeness, which I entered automatically but not by my true will. So I am actually discovering and developing my “real face”. I like that one.
     Thank you for the inspiration.

     1. A great point you raise, Mike. Is our facial expression a true representation of what we feel inside? And how many of us dare to walk around with our ‘real face’? This is something to ponder on, thank you.

     2. “Now I have notice, that by increasing my awareness to my face, especially my smile, I am leaving a plane of communicating kindness and politeness, which I entered automatically but not by my true will. So I am actually discovering and developing my “real face”. From such early years we are encouraged to enter this plane of kindness – our desire for a baby to smile. Beautiful Mike that you are honouring your true will and reflecting to others that calibration is simply a choice.

     3. Indeed a great point Miike. I too know this moment of smiling in a situation and then wondering about me, because this was not a true expression…so I asked myself, “where did this come from?” And found: it comes from my choice not to appreciate myself, to not accept and honour what I am. From a place of not loving me and not expressing me in full, I am always missing something (of me) and here comes the need to fill this gap – I am looking for recognition from the outside. And this recognition is easier to get with a smile….
        To show my “real face” – as you say – I have to appreciate it (me), to really deeply accept who I am and that I am precious.
        I am -and my real face, my true smile- is worth to share.

374. Thanks for your blog Stephen, the medicine of self-care and self-nurturing is crucial to our everyday life and feelings of vitality. Sometimes a little nudge is needed to initiate this important aspect of living, but seems to go unrecognised by many, leaving it up to someone else to fix, it’s just self-responsibility. It’s great to hear your health has returned, well worth celebrating that.

375. What you write is amazing Stephen. I suppose it would take science many decades to come to the conclusion that you have come to. I too have been fortunate to learn how my choices impact onto my body and how to be truly caring with it. The deeper my understanding develops, the more I cherish my body, and the more my mind is boggled by it not being something that is embraced amongst all humanity as a basic foundation of life.

     1. Well said Jinya. Yes it is mind boggling how this is not understood and embraced generally by humanity. It is such a simple reality that we can’t help noticing if we are willing to pay attention to our bodies.

376. From feeling you needed to be invincible, to recognising that your body was talking to you, then listening to it and making many life changes – what an amazing turn around in your life Stephen. I can feel the appreciation you now have for your body, and that ignoring it is no longer an option. Very inspirational!

377. Stephen, great you listened to the wake up call and made some very clear and self loving life style choices. Thank you for sharing the importance of looking after ourselves.

378. Hi Stephen, what a great blog. So pertinent, and interesting how we treat our bodies, we abuse them until we no longer can and then try and fix them so we can get back to abusing them until we get to understand that we’re worth taking care of and our bodies are worth taking care of, then self-care become part of our livingness as you describe in your experience. The feeling I have reading your blog is that it’s awesome that our bodies stop us, through illness whether major or minor as without it we would potentially have no stop to our irresponsible behaviours – your blog has really allowed me to feel this. And then of course there is what we deem acceptable body discomforts, those things like wind / gas which we might be prepared to put up with until we no longer can, and I can feel that that’s where the deepening of care needs to go, that we need to look at those ‘minor’ discomforts too and feel what they tell us. Thank you for reminding me to look deeper.

     1. Michelle I used to see these symptoms the pains, tightness, headaches as irritations that got in the way of what I wanted to do. Things that slowed me down and tried to get me to stop. Looking back its clear I certainly needed those signs although i often didn’t listen to them until they got really bad. Now I welcome what they bring as it certainly helps me stay in touch and be aware very quickly if there is something I am doing that is not supporting me. Without these signs in the first instance I doubt I would ever have stopped.

     2. This is hugely important, what you share Michelle shows that we can’t rely on Doctors to remedy everything for us and have to learn to trust that if there are minor ailments and symptoms we are suffering then something we do needs to change. It is beautiful that we all have this inbuilt detection system, for the majority of us we just need a bit of support in learning how to use it. That for me was where Universal Medicine was and is so supportive.

     3. Yes it’s so vital to heed our in-built detection system – our bodies – and feel exactly what it tells us. And then when we do need to engage with medicine we are playing our part and creating a more supportive way to work with doctors and not laying it all at their door to fix. This is how we can work with medicine, how we can heal.

379. The way in which I have abused myself over many years with eating delicious tasting foods that hit my body in explosions of “I can’t digest that!” has allowed me to identify the most prevalent times when I choose this.
     Being anxious, not wanting to feel sadness, hurt, jealousy or comparison – I follow through with a craving that then adds to the weight of how I’m feeling.
     When I choose to allow myself to explore what I’m trying to ignore, it gives me an opportunity to be honest with what’s going on, work through it and let it go.
     Thank you Stephen for sharing that it is how we look ourselves that supports true healing.

380. Stephen I love how you have shared that your health is also determined by how open and expressive you are. We have a tendency to look at food and exercise, knowing their impact on our health, but how much we express and how open we allow ourselves to be can easily be overlooked

     1. Yes Vicky and this is something I have become more and more aware of. It is an undervalued aspect of our health care, how much we are willing to express how we feel, are we open and honest about what is going on for us, I know I wasn’t at all but I now recognise the power of sharing how I feel and not being concerned about having to look good. Putting up a front doesn’t get me anywhere, so I’m trying to take that wall down, brick by brick.

        1. I totally relate and agree Vicky and Stephen, that our expression or lack of it, is an undervalued aspect of health care, and perhaps it is time to shine a light on this partiuclar area… ‘how much we are willing to express how we feel, are we open and honest about what is going on for us’, is a great question and an invitation to stop and feel…. feel our bodies and what it is commnicating, and then express from the honesty this brings.

381. I love how you express that true medicine is your lifestyle-choices, Stephen.

382. It is lovely in particular to hear a man share a very personal health story – it seems to be that men, as you suggest, are often reluctant to follow through on matters related to their health let alone share what you have shared. Thank you Stephen for being so open and willing to break the mould.

383. Thank you Stephen. What a wise sharing and learning that I am sure many will benefit from. We tend to have a ‘healthy way or guidelines ‘ in life however these are more of an ideal to reach and do not always fully support the tenderness and gentleness we naturally are. A true way supports all of us.

384. Thanks Stephen – I found lots to reflect on in your blog, especially the connections between health and self worth. Your recovery through holistic self care and responsibility and traditional medicine is a great confirmation of how we are naturally meant to live our lives.

385. Brilliant Stephen, this is a subject we tend to be bashful about so it is inspiring to read your sharing. You highlight the pride that we as men often carry in our ‘health’, yet we only resort to self-care as a fix or to arrive at an outcome. I love how your body and this illness helped you to reclaim your gentle demeanour on a 24/7 full-time basis.

386. The link you make between being thinking we are “fit” and being truly healthy is an important one. If in our attempts to be fit, we are overriding what we feel then it can’t really be that healthy for us.

387. This sentence, coming from a man who experienced his illness with growing awareness, is really something doctors and patients alike need to take note of: “Looking back, I feel I could have avoided the greater symptoms I suffered had I been willing to address how I felt in my body, both emotionally and physically.”

388. Great Article Stephen! Really amazing to have such positive results from choosing to care for yourself through taking the necessary medication and staying connected to how you treat your body through diet and lifestyle choices. Another example of how powerful we can be in assisting our bodies to heal.

389. Inspirational Stephen, It is lovely and awesome to appreciate how claimed you are when you speak about your self-worth and the worth of your own body. After all, it is the vessel that you walk around in for every single moment! It is not an easy thing at times for people to choose what is caring for their bodies when they may hold attachment to certain foods or lifestyles but what you have shared shows that there is a far more vital and truly healthy way of living and one that is possible when we make such choices. Thank you.

     1. What you have said Cherise is so true, once we claim ourselves, our self worth and the worth of our body, life takes on a whole new meaning.

     2. I agree Cherise, it is all too easy to put an activity, life style, food or situation before your own health and well being. Stephan’s example shows the benefits looking after yourself can have on your life.

390. In the past I too didn’t listen to or take care of my body – in fact I was very abusive. Over the years thanks to the presentations of Universal Medicine I have learnt to listen to, respect and care for my body. I have discovered that my body carries a huge wisdom and is a great friend. My body actually loves to work so caring for my body does not involve checking out. In fact I now work 7 days a week, starting at 3:00am most days. Through developing this relationship I am now at 58 years of age fitter and healthier than I ever was in my whole life and having a great time.

     1. This is a real testimony Nicola to what is possible when we care for ourselves and our bodies! How many of us can say that our energy levels increase to this level as we get older?

391. “the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.” I love the way you have ended with “self-medicine”, Stephen, not something many would consider to be possible, or that it has anything to do with our everyday choices. The choices can be many, from what food supports us or not, and the way we can allow thoughts and emotions to dictate those choices or not, to being open to medical support or not. I know in the past health issues have been confusing for me, swinging from one remedy to another, but now I see it as one whole, seeing life offering me an opportunity to feel what is right for me at the time from all the many choices possible. This is Life’s Medicine.

392. Great blog Stephen, I loved reading how you have related the way in which you value and care for yourself to your physical health, and the impact this has had on your condition. Thank you for sharing.

393. Thank you for so openly and honestly sharing your story Stephen, it’s a testament to true healing, and shows the incredible changes that can take place when we choose to listen to and care lovingly for our bodies.

394. I have a very very similar story and learning process, and it keeps going on, as you say, you get the odd symptom, and we have a clear and immediate body response to show us what we are doing and living. It can be taken as a curse or it can actually be a great opportunity to be in touch with your body and your choices. I now feel how certain behaviours and not only foods, affect me, how excess tiredness affects my bowels. And there is always a checking in through my relationship with my digestion.

     1. Yes, Julia, and there are behaviours I have that I am still coming to understand affect my health and whether I might have a flare up that is not found in conventional medical information. Like you I look on it more and more as a fortunate situation that I have a sensitivity that allows me to care more deeply for my body. I used to think it was bad luck that I couldn’t tolerate certain foods, and felt frustrated that my body was so reactive, now I appreciate the clarity of what is given to me.

        1. Very true Stephen, after years of refining my diet I have come to appreciate just how delicate and sensitive my body is and that it converses with me all the time, letting me know loud and clear when I over step the mark. What I mistook for ill health was my body telling me, ‘don’t eat that food because I can’t digest it.” The gift of this is feeling extremely well and this far out weighs any short term satisfaction I might enjoy with certain foods and is a continual support in choosing the correct foods that my body can digest and prefers to run on.

        2. I have experienced this too Stephen. My body very clearly, for years, showed me how I didn’t tolerate certain foods. I saw it as something wrong, that I had this sensitivity, Universal Medicine helped me to understand, accept and appreciate what my body shows me, which I now do.

     2. Thank you Julia for sharing your insight. It is very inspiring to read that you allow such honesty in your life that you are open to feeling how your behaviours affect your body.

     3. I like what you share here Julia. I haven’t had IBS per se but enough of issues of a similar-but-different nature to have been through a similar process, working also with Universal Medicine practitioners as well as my trusty medical professionals. Food is definitely part of the equation but I’m also finding excess tiredness affects my bowels. It feels like a deeper level of self-care is called for – I’m getting that message on quite a few fronts!

        1. Thank you all for this insight that tiredness affects the bowels. I had not seen this before and will use this information to more closely observe.

395. Wow, Thank you for this Stephen, how we view our bodies or what we hold onto in terms of the pictures of how it (the body) should behave or look like or how it should function is a huge point here and I can certainly say from experience it’s these pictures that I have found that can hinder our willingness to make supportive choices. Reading this blog was a great reminder, in that if we feel the body underneath what we think or believe or hold as the way the body should be, it can tell us in advance what it needs and how it prefers to be without effort or trying.

396. What an unusual story of recovery, by that I mean there are probably lots of people with a similar condition who never fully recover. The combination of lifestyle choices and medical support have served you well. Congratulations for choosing your health!

     1. Congratulations indeed Heather, I agree. It is a miracle when life can be changed and symptoms healed so dramatically by making what can be absolutely normal daily supportive and loving choices.

        1. It truly is a miracle Cherise! Like many more that so many people on this blog site have experienced and others like it. Many miracles performed by everyday people with everyday choices like what you eat, drink, how you treat yourself. So simple and powerful.

397. Lovely expression of your experience concerning gaining more awareness of your body and committing to looking after yourself. As you say “What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.” I too have experienced this, I began committing to my body and its health 10 years ago and it is a continuing process, there are times when I am still aware that certain foods do not feel good and can see that this process will not end. I am however feeling absolutely brilliant, I did not know I had the ability to feel so vital, well and content in my own skin and this as you say is also down to being aware of how I treat my body if I get caught up in emotions and drama. I am now learning to care for the whole of me.

     1. Very true Samantha and well said. I too have embarked on a journey of learning to listen to, respond, refine the way I treat my body and diet is a very important part of this self care. The most amazing thing is how well I feel too, as you say an un-expected bonus arising from carefully nurturing my body. Stephen’s recovery is living proof that the way we treat our bodies can either make us very ill or make us very healthy, it’s all down to how we choose to live our daily lives.

     2. Sam, I have had the same experience as you – I had to learn to take care and now feel much better. What Serge Benhayon talks about works.

     3. What you share Samantha is true. The health, vitality and how delightful this feels in my body compared to five years ago is amazing. Taking care of what our bodies need really works. It’s a step by step process but it’s a winner all along the way. All that is needed is willingness to pay attention to our bodies and respond accordingly when shown the relative information.

        1. I love what you bring here, that it’s about a willingness to take care of our bodies and listen to them, and that it’s an ever deepening process, and one where we have no idea will take us when we start it. We need to be continually willing (as you all mention here and Stephen describes so well in his blog), to keep going, to keep refining and not put a cap on it. Evolving in other words.

        2. love what you are saying here Sandra ‘Taking care of what our bodies need really works. It’s a step by step process but it’s a winner all along the way’

        3. Sandra I love how you have expressed looking after our bodies is actually really simple and nothing can get in the way unless we choose to complicate matters by ignoring what we feel. Brilliant.

     4. Samantha, I too have started on this journey for myself in the last 5 to 10 years and i am now really appreciating how much it is supporting my life and health. It has been the gradual changes that have been the great support and a great way to understand my body and how I feel.

398. Hi Stephen, I really enjoyed reading this blog – it clearly relates the connection between how we live and the well-being of our body. So often we don’t stop to consider this and just turn to western medicine to fix us. The fact that you took responsibility and are consistently looking at how to deepen your own self care is something we would all do well to consider.

     1. Yes, I agree judykarenyoung, it is often the case that we use western medicine to fix us so we can continue to live the lives we were living which changes nothing, it does not evolve us, but does leave the door open for the illness or the ailment to return. Our health is in our hands every single day and in every single choice we make….and that word all of a sudden pops up, the big ‘R’ word….Responsiblity of how we live and what we chose without a doubt comes back to us.

399. A true testament to our own inner medicine through our choice to self-care and self-love combined with a dose of western medicine to bring a holistic way of taking responsibility for our health and well-being. Thank you Stephen for sharing what is possible.

400. Similar to you Stephen I also needed a huge wake up call in the form of illness in order for me to ‘wake up’ and take a long slow look at my life style choices and my part in the illness I found myself with, as there was no-one to blame. I can see now that it is the most sure fire way, our bodies get our attention for the sole purpose of stopping the ill momentum we are living in, which provides the ‘stop’ moment that is needed. The wisdom of our bodies… when we do not listen, the body knows exactly what will make us listen.

401. I can feel how much personal growth you have experienced through the process of inflammatory bowel disease. In my experience my health conditions and ailments have always offered me a point of reflection to see how I have been living and treating myself.

     I alsways marvel over the ingenious of life (GOD) and how there is a greater magic at hand when we get “dealt” our illnesses. A different illness may not have spoken to you in the same way as this particular one did.

402. What I love about what you have shared here Doug, is that it can be so simple…from 30 years of symptoms to no symptoms after cutting out gluten & dairy…a walking miracle. Send a letter to this doctor and tell him the good news 🙂

403. Thank-you Stephen for being so open in regard to your illness. Your commitment to feel, listen to and honour your body and your willingness to make the changes needed to support you in your healing, is is a great example of taking responsibility for yourself. How inspiring this would be for your GP to see his patient being willing to play his part, in taking the care needed for himself and not expecting him/her(the GP) to fix it.

404. I like this line in particular … ‘self-medicine of lifestyle choices’ as it means that there is a high level of responsibility always in how we live our lives.

405. Amazing what self care and feeling what is going on with your own body as well as seeking support from professionals can do.

406. We often focus on our diets as being the key to our health and well being without any appreciation of the impact of self care when in truth they go hand in hand.

407. Great blog Stephen, thank you. Two things stood out for me that I need to remember, firstly that “how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel” and secondly in regard to your healing “This is not something I assume or expect will happen – it is an ongoing process and one I am committed to living and developing”.

408. You mention ” the balance between medical care and self-care became critical to me” – this is absolute GOLD – self responsibility and working with conventional medicine is a sure way to commence any true healing the body and disease is offering.

409. ‘What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.’ I agree Stephen, sometimes I try to get away with eating certain foods but I never can for long as my body shouts for me to listen to what it needs.

410. ‘What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.’ I agree Stephen, sometimes I try to get away with eating certain foods but after a period of time my body is shouting for me to start refining my diet again.

411. Imagine if children were supported and encouraged to stay connected to their bodies, as they naturally are when very young…what a different world we would live in.

412. It’s really interesting that you admit to putting sport above your health, that it wasn’t till your everyday activities were disrupted that you sat up and listened. I wonder how common this approach is and how much could be caught sooner if we learned to listen to our bodies?

     1. That is really worth highlighting Rebecca – I feel this is all too common and puts significant strain on our health care systems when a lot of what is treated can be easily prevented if addressed sooner than later.

        1. Totally agree, I wonder how many cases could have been caught and treated earlier and with higher success rates if people presented the issues when they first appeared, not after a few weeks/months/years. We need to teach our children to have self respect and care that they instantly take their bodies symptoms seriously.

     2. Hi Rebecca, waiting until everyday life is interrupted seems to be the main indication level that we listen to; men in particular aren’t willing to seek care at earlier indications from the body. May we all lessen the threshold whereby action stems from.

        1. I agree Oliver, why do we wait for our everyday function to be interrupted before we stop and look at what’s going on. There are so many signals and messages before this point if only we are willing to listen and take action.

413. How often I have eaten something and thought “I wonder if I can get away with this?”!! Clearly I know the answer simply by asking the question. It is my responsibility for the level of care I take for myself. I am not going to get in trouble for stealing a cookie from the cookie jar, but my body will let me know and I am the only one who has any consequences to suffer.

414. Fantastic blog Stephen. A spot-on example of the marriage between western medicine and self care and what level of healing is possible when we marry the two. Our bodies are always communicating to us and are there to help us heal and make the lifestyle changes needed when we listen to their messages. You have demonstrated this so clearly and with such simplicity.

415. It’s so common isn’t it to feel ’embarrassed, shameful and weak’ when suffering an illness. Which leads to hiding and withdrawing and often depression…. And yet, if we could see our illnesses differently and freely speak about them and discuss the choices that led to them, perhaps we would all develop more loving attitudes to our bodies. Through Serge Benhayon I’ve come to learn that illness is a clearing, and my view of it has changed. I have some conditions that ‘hover on the brink’ like yours, Stephen, where a slight lapse in self-care will cause flare ups. But instead of feeling like a weak victim, I am now grateful for having a sensitive ‘meter of disregard’ in my body that will fire off the moment I let my self-love down!

     1. This is a great way of looking at illness Dianne and could be transformative for so many, you are right that the illness often causes even more of a shutting down and mental trauma. yet it really is brilliant that the body can so clearly give us the signals that we need.

        1. Since matter always follows energy, when we are sick it shows that there has been disharmonious energy prior to the illness. So this gives us an even stronger message: to look at the energy we have been living in our whole lives, and learn from that instead of going into ‘mental trauma’.

416. Thank you Stephen. It really is something to pay attention to, why we override what our body is telling us for so long. I know my body tells me even now after years of studying it that it is not happy with some of my food and lifestyle choices I make, but because they are part of my routine I do them before I think to not do them. Or eat it before I say no to eating it. It would be so much easier for the doctor to give me a pill or a cream as it takes a real dedication and responsibility to our own health and wellbeing otherwise. Thank you for the reminder.

     1. I have the awareness of what certain foods and life style choices do to my body and yet I still override what my body is communicating. This is a great indicator for me to keep developing my self-care, self-nurture and self-love.

417. Hi Stephen- I love the phrase “I am worth caring for” as this is so relevant for us all. Our body is such a great marker for us -it’s amazing how we think at times we can ignore it but we always get reminded again as your body kept reminding you. The self care you have described and the results clearly show us how the body responds to truth and love.

418. Wow, talk about exposing the guard many youth can hold as having a ‘young, strong, fit and able body’ when it is never truly fit, able or strong as we may claim it to be when we have not been giving it the loving care and attention it has been asking for.

419. A great example of the ever evolving “balance between medical care and self-care” and the pivotal role taking responsibility plays in the equation; you wouldn’t be where you are today without Universal Medicine and the honesty and commitment to yourself inspired by the workshops.

420. Hello Stephen, this blog really offers all of us a lot. In particular as men and the things we place more important or before ourselves and our health. The fact that a lot of men don’t get regular check ups with their G.P. That men don’t just go straight to their G.P. when physically they are suffering and as you say your illness started to affect your football and that’s when it became a ‘real problem.’ Why do we as men wait for that long, what are we attempting to ‘prove’ and to who? It is about time men started to really support themselves in how they feel and as you say Stephen it starts with listening to what our bodies tell us. I think this is a very honest assessment of things Stephen, thank you.

421. An mazing story you’re sharing here Stephen. We do get the symptoms, but we so easily override what our body tells us in no uncertain terms; for as long as we can get away with it. It’s very inspiring to hear of a young man like you, who is actually starting to listen to his body, instead of obeying what Society tells us young men have to be like. It’s so special to feel a self-caring and self-loving young man.

422. I too have healed a chronic disease with the support of both Western Medicine, Universal Medicine Therapies and making more responsible lifestyle choices. This combination is the way to go for future generations.

423. Stephen this is a great testament to the fact that how we treat ourselves is directly linked to the body we walk about in. I know so many people who suffer from IBS and a few who have Crohn’s. It can be very debilitating and I am going to share your story as it is so empowering!

424. It amazes me how the body responds in such a positive way to the esoteric way of life. It is wonderful to feel your gentleness in your words and this is from accepting who you are and not needing to fit into a mould to feel good about yourself. Thank you for sharing your story.

425. “I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for” and deeply so Stephen. Thanks for sharing how we can work in partnership with conventional medicine – to take responsibility for how we are living and to lean on conventional medicine to do the parts we can’t.

426. Great blog. It has highlighted for me that being diagnosed with an illness and disease is an opportunity to make changes in our lives. But how many people actually see it like this? I certainly didn’t until I began studying with Universal Medicine and came to understand the significance of what being ill offers us. Our bodies offer us so much in every moment of every day to learn more about how we are living that is not in line with the energy held deep in our hearts. It is for us to hear the messages. Thank you for sharing your story about what your body was saying and how you dealt with it.

427. Stephen I really found your blog inspirational. I have a medical condition that Is slowly progressing and to take a leaf out of your book I need to be more careful with my eating habits. To really give 100% to self care and nurturing my body and not be half hearted about it. I have great support from the Universal Medicine team when I need it and this makes a huge difference in how I feel.

428. A powerful call to self-responsibility Stephen, and just how willing we are to truly care deeply for ourselves – asking us to question, are we worth it? What you’ve shared about your health, and the part ‘self-medicine’ plays is so important for us all. Whether we have a condition, illness or disease, or ‘nothing apparent’ going on, our bodies are always letting us know just what does and doesn’t constitute truly looking after ourselves.
     And I agree absolutely. Until I came to the work of Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine, I had little idea about how every aspect of how I live impacts upon my body, including what you’ve shared about our willingness to be open and expressive – I would definitely love to read more from you on this subject (another blog please!), as it feels you have got in touch with a great deal of what this has meant to your health and wellbeing overall.

429. Stephen it’s fascinating to consider that for you being open and expressive actually plays a part in how well you feel That really opens up the whole topic of what is medicine. I feel that we will get to a point in our evolution where we will come to understand that every thing is potentially either medicine or poison.

430. As others have said it is lovely how honest you are especially when you mentioned at the time the ‘real’ problem was not being able to play football! I feel many of us do this, in that, after being diagnosed with something instead of asking why and changing the way we care for ourselves we look at what we will miss out on. Also that we don’t automatically want to take care of ourselves, refining our lifestyles choices to support ourselves and our body until we have an ailment or illness. Thank you for sharing.

431. Stephen, a great sharing of your journey with IBS. The clarity and honesty with which you have shared this will be a huge support to those who are seeking the root cause of this very debilitating condition.

432. I love it Stephen – “developing the self-medicine of lifestyle choices that is now my everyday living.” It is inspiring to read of your willingness to look at what your body was telling you, and then your willingness to change how you were living your life. Thank you for sharing.

433. I love how simple you have shared your experience Stephen and in reading your blog i realised even more that there is no such thing as a ‘cure’. Our body is constantly communicating with us and symptoms and ailments are part os this communication. It is not about getting rid of the symptoms but about earning to understand what they are telling us, time and again. As you shared so beautifully your symptoms will go but when your body is asking you to take a next step in the relationship with yourself the symptoms will be there to prompt you.

     1. Thanks for your wisdom Carolien, that is exactly how it unfolds for me, any symptom is a sign to take my self care to the next level.

     2. Beautiful, Carolien, this really opens up our understanding of physical symptoms and the significant communication that is there for us to be guided by.

     3. Thank you Carolien, what a great way to learn about ourselves and be guided with self care.

434. I love the simple clarity in which you write Stephen. You are naturally a sensitive, tender and gentle man and to me it seems crazy that the world encourages men to be anything other than that! It really is no small wonder why there is so much illness and disease. “how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am. I now realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person” The gorgeous quote I feel needs to be shouted from the rooftops! Thank you so much Stephen for writing your blog.

435. Another beautiful example of how taking responsibility for the way we live can be huge.
     i love your honesty about ‘hoping things will fix themselves’ – I don’t think it is confined to men – I have been guilty of not wanting to see what’s really going on too.

     Paying attention to ourselves is so important in our healing – which of course relates to the quality of our choices, how we feel about ourselves and our choice to be open.

     1. I agree Hannah, that mindset is not a male only way of thinking, I know I have put off going to the doctor in the hope it clears up or goes away by itself. Its learning that we are worth looking after and there is nothing wrong or wasted in getting something checked out.

436. Cool story Stephen on the benefits of really taking care of yourself and how that has an impact on every aspect of your life

437. I agree Stephen, when I began to really honour what my body was telling me life began to unfold and make sense. I pushed my body so hard as a way to get through life and wouldn’t listen to all the little signs that all was not well. Even though I have finally begun to surrender to the wisdom I still find I can get pulled back into old behaviour patterns, however, life is not about perfection but becoming willing to listen to the signals and to gently learning to love myself.

438. This is so beautiful to read Stephen, ‘I still get the odd symptom, which I can feel is strongly related to my willingness to keep deepening how well I care for my body – within this I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for.’ You are a true role model for men because you are willing to ‘look after yourself properly’, value and accept yourself.

439. This is a super honest and open account of your journey with bowel disease, and I can relate to a lot of what you have shared. I agreed very much with the part that taking loving care of ourselves can not be switched on and off as we please…..but rather daily consistent loving choices is key to maintain good health. And similar to you Stephen I also came to; ‘ realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person’. I have found that this is a foundation to build self love on.

440. Thanks Stephen for such an honest account of your journey of self care. It is strange really how we take our body for granted until something really goes wrong and even then we can just want to get better so we can resume the ill choices we were doing before. I understand that you went deeper and took responsibility for what you were creating in your body by looking at not only your diet, but stress levels and lifestyle.

441. Thanks for sharing this Stephen, I feel to print it out as an inspirational read for others too! You’ve shown such a gorgeous commitment to yourself, and this inspires me to pay more attention to what I eat – to deepen my own commitment in this area. Thank you.

     1. Yes Janene, This came across strongly in Stephen’s blog in that you have always had a level of commitment to your health and wellbeing. What you share with us is how you continue to refine this through listening and honouring the wisdom of your body.

        1. Yes Marcia, this is very true. What I would say is that I had a very strong level of commitment to being well but not the tools to truly be well. That has been developed since I attended the presentations and workshops of Universal Medicine as this really helped me to develop this and awoke me to the wisdom of my body. On a practical level this has meant not overriding the signals my body gives me and not making lifestyle choices just because they are normalised in society, such as, drinking alcohol, eating gluten and dairy and sugar, going to bed late, acting hard and putting on a front because I’m a man, the list could go on.

442. I can really relate to the feeling of shame, weakness and vulnerability following your diagnosis. Even when I went down with a flu a month ago, I experienced that – thinking ‘Now all my colleagues will think that I am not as healthy as they believed I ought to be because of the way I am specific with my food!’
     I can now see how I was projecting my own judgment onto them, and was really judging myself for failing to live up to an image of how I should/could be, and therefore not getting the confirmation and recognition I was seeking outside of myself.

443. Yes – thank you for your honesty Stephen. I really enjoyed reading your discoveries and allowing yourself to become the tender and care man you have always been. An inspiration to the many hardened men who are yearning for permission to be their naturally sensitive, nurturing and caring selves.

444. Stephen, i love the realness and fragility of this post and find your words here so inspiring: “how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am”.

445. Everybody has these wake up calls, some severe, some subtle. Most people chose to ignore the signals from their bodies until they are un-ignorable. I know I have. Universal Medicine has taught me to shine a spotlight on any symptoms and by taking responsibility, really pinpoint my behavior that is the cause.

     1. Well said Bernie, it’s very interesting to feel the connection between our daily choices, physically and emotionally, and the health of our bodies.

446. Beautifully written, Stephen and making a very clear point – that our lifestyle choices and our emotional state of being directly affect our physical health, and to take responsibility for this is key to being able to truly heal any condition (as well as seeking the relevant medical support). Thank you for sharing how you have learned to love and deeply care for yourself, and what a difference this has made.

     1. Beautifully expressed Janet, It’s very inspiring how Stephen has learned to love and deeply care for himself, medically and also with lifestyle choices, and what a difference this has made to his health.

447. It’s a very interesting blog Stephen, to feel the balance shifting between making use of the western medicine offered, but knowing that it had to be backed up by your lifestyle choices, but also that there was a point where you held back from the steroids as a step too far for how things were going. Very thought provoking…

     1. These were really beautiful examples of listening to the body. Medicine was needed and was embraced, but there came a time when more medicine was not what was needed. I so often subscribe to one or the other and I can be very black or white about things. I love how Stephen listened to his body and allowed his body to lead the way. Very inspiring.

        1. Well said Nikki. There is a very fine balance here between medicine and lifestyle. Ultimately we can listen to our own bodies and allow them to lead the way as Stephen has so beautifully portrayed here.

448. Stephen I loved how you have made the connection between everyday living and our total feeling of health and well-being, and have made that an important part of your ‘medicine’. This has also been my experience too – bringing medicine and self-responsible choices together for healing. Amazing what can be achieved when we play our part!

449. Thank you for sharing Stephen. We can never get enough reminders about how we can ‘treat’ ourselves with our medicine as well as using Western medicine. Nothing like a big tablespoon of self acceptance, trust and love.

450. Loved reading your openness and honesty Stephen. It’s amazing what our body tells us and how much of an impact we have when we listen to it and make changes and different choices. So many people need to learn or listen to this part- it’s pure gold, so thank you for sharing.

     1. Very true Emily and well said. Our bodies speak to us all the time, and when we get sick we have forced our bodies into giving us a pretty loud message that we need to treat ourselves differently. We all need to learn to feel, listen and respond, we occupy a very sensitive, complex and beautiful body that can feel so amazing when we treat it with loving care and respect.

     2. I know my body is speaking very loudly all the time, whether I choose to listen, or not.

        1. haha yes, so true Dean… most of the time it’s actually not subtle at all.

        2. True, it’s just us that like to turn the volume down.

     3. It’s amazing really how as humans we find the concept of listening to our body as some great revelation, when it is the most natural way for us to know if what we are doing is working or not. I’m sure other species are smarter than us with this and wouldn’t, for example, eat something that has made them sick once before.

        1. So true Sandra, we are distinct in not listening to our bodies, while every other species on this planet just gets on with it without hesitation. Maybe Mother Nature is trying to teach us something here!?

        2. Most definitely Rowena…maybe this is the case too with all the ‘natural disasters’…our planet is most certainly talking to us.

        3. Good point Sandra, I guess we are behind on the eight ball with that one.. I know I continue to eat something even though it has made me feel sick once before. Interesting to note why that is..

     4. It is gold Emily, our bodies speak to us 24/7 in a way that can share every pocket of information that we may require.. there really is something very precious about this fact.

451. A great sharing Stephen and I can defiantly relate to what you have experienced and expressed, looking after oneself is a part of life and a part of our evolution and yet we are not taught this in family homes or in our schools or even at work, which high-lights why it was such an alien turn to me for so long. The importance here can not be under estimated as it has given me a deep understanding of myself, my surroundings and my relationships with others. Life has become such an important revelation to me as it reflects precisely what choices I have been making.

452. I am always inspired by someone who, when they develop an illness, take time to address all their choices that may have contributed to it and choose to go forward making more loving and supportive changes in their life. Thank you Stephen.

453. A great example Stephen of you experiencing, feeling in your body what was needed and having an opportunity to make a choice. I have also had bowel problems for most of my life and knew exactly what caused it to occur. In my arrogance I ignored the warnings and continued to abuse my body. Three years ago I was introduced to the concept of actually caring for myself and my body. Self-care. Not from a position of being selfish but from self-love and respecting my body. Changing my diet and how I lived my everyday life has led to no bowel problems what so ever. What if I had listened to my body many years ago? So much discomfort could have been avoided. A beautiful reminder for me of how I have, like you, made changes to the choices I make and to feel these changes in my body. Thank you.

454. This is a great read which shows that addressing our food choices and then what leads to us making those choices i.e.. feeling worthy of the care we give ourselves has a huge impact on our health and it is inspiring to read your lifestyle choices are your self -medicine. Thank you Stephen.

455. Fantastic Stephen. It’s all in the choices we make.

456. How you have understood it requires a deepening commitment to continually care for your self and health is wonderful. Not assuming and ignoring is essential for our bodies to receive the love, care, nurturing and nourishing they are truly worthy of. And how well do they reflect this back when we do place them first and foremost? As opposed to how quickly they can show us that being abused sets up deterioration into ill health.
     How much space would be made in the medical system if people all took the care and responsibility as you have with your health? Very inspiring.

457. Thank you for sharing your journey. Bowel problems are so common amongst us all, it’s not until we start getting serious conditions we decide to take care of ourselves. Your blog is a great inspiration to us all.

458. Stephen your turnaround from living with chronic symptoms to being virtually symptom-free by changing your diet and lifestyle should be celebrated to the max. It makes such sense as symptoms are our bodies only way to tell us something isn’t right – and when we understand what is being said and why, a true healing can occur…and as you’ve discovered, medicine is a key part of this.

459. Thank you Stephen for sharing your experience about the link between valuing and appreciating ourselves and our health and wellbeing. ‘I now realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person. This in turn has allowed me to become more communicative and open, and less withdrawn from life.’ Just goes to show our conscious loving choices can have such broad reaching and delightful side effects.

460. Thank you sharing your remarkable turn around Stephen. Goes to show the power of the choices we make – beautifully in your case to self love.

461. Sometimes the arrogance can kick in, and it can be easy to not choose help, or just simply the humbleness that you might need help. A huge reflection for us all (:

462. Thank you for sharing your experiences Stephen. Hugely supportive. I love that from the outset you knew that you had to not only rely on medication but had to look at the way you were living. To deepen your relationship to your body, meant looking not just at the physical but also how you were living emotionally. Some really great insights. Thank you.

463. This is great Stephen, that you have now discovered that any symptom flare-ups are a sign for you to look at deepening how you care for your body – and crucially with the choice to do so, grows your own self acceptance – knowing that you’re worth caring for.

464. As men, isn’t it crazy how our first reaction to a medical issue is to ignore it and hope it just goes away. As you point out Stephen, it challenges the male psyche that we are invincible. When we let go, feel, and accept our vulnerability we become so much more open to true healing and more accepting of ourselves in all our beautiful imperfection.

465. Thanks Stephen, I love how you relate your body’s well-being not only to the healthy life style choices you are making and to listening to your body but that it is also very much connected to how much you deeply care and honour yourself/your body and are willing to continuously deepen this. It does very much resonate with me.

466. I love the wisdom you are sharing from and about your body, Stephen. How we have to keep deepening the way we care for ourselves with what and how we eat and all the other choices we make. There are such beautiful details in what our body tells us if we are willing to listen.

467. Thank you Stephen. Your line: “Later that year it became more of an issue as it was affecting my ability to play football – now that was a real problem, so I went to the doctor.” made me laugh but it is actually quite sad and interesting too that we most of the time only look after ourselves if it affects the way we function in life. I was living like that too, only stopping when it was really necessary. Now like you with the support of the awesome teachings of Universal Medicine and Serge Benhayon I am living in a way that listens to the little signs, pains, moods etc. which is great.

468. My wake up call was in the form of a torn cruciate ligament in my knee after falling over when I was drunk. I had to stop and reconsider how I was living. It took a few more years of drinking less heavily, but I eventually stopped completely after attending Universal Medicine workshops and courses.

469. Yes Stephen this marriage is needed and your blog shows very well how you did and your process. At the moment I suffer a severe tendinitis in the left shoulder just because my resistence to go to the doctor trying to avoid to take the anti-inflamatories and other medicines. At the moment I am facing the family beliefs about natural medicine that hide an old fight inside me.
     I feel very near and I appreciate your blog in this very moment.
     Tank you

470. I have also noticed that pattern within myself – that a health issue is not an issue until it starts to impact on the things I want to or like to do. My poor body it tries to let me know what is going on but I ignore it’s gentle whispers and then it has to yell. I would be very frustrated with me at times if I was looking at this from the outside in.

471. Well said Stephen. I enjoyed reading the part where you shared that your body felt the effects of how caring and accepting you were of yourself. To do less than love our bodies is a sure fire way of watching the discomfort return.

472. Great article Stephen – I love how you use the term “self-medicine” to describe the lifestyle choices Universal Medicine has supported you to develop – choices which have had such a massive impact on your health and well-being.

     1. Me too Hannah – and I would say ‘self-medicine’ is one of the most powerful practices out there!

473. Thank you Stephen. Refining how caring, loving and accepting of ourselves we are is such an ongoing process. When I don’t go hard on myself I find it such an enjoyable process and can fully appreciate all the new awareness that comes my way.

474. I am learning that listening to our body and self care are so very important, along with the many choices we make in our life. Thank you Stephen great blog.

475. Thank you Stephen for sharing your story with us. I love that your body keeps presenting you with further ‘clues’ of how to deepen your relationship with yourself and where to take your nurturing. Truly beautiful.

476. Is it possible that we never get away with eating or doing things that don’t support our bodies? Could it be that it just shows us at a later point, rather than straight after the choice took place.
     Of course one type of food is generally not responsible for causing a serious illness but what about a consistent way of living that is disregarding to what supports our body and what it needs. Could serious illness develop after 30/40 years of eating food that is not good for the body or of behaviour that is very stressing on the body?

477. I love everything about this post – from your willingness to share feelings of vulnerability and even shame, through to an understanding that sell-care never has a finish line but is forever being refined! You are living proof that we are our own best medicine by the way we live and express, thank you.

478. Stephen this is a great example of the true healing that can come when we combine western medicine with self-care, that one cannot be without the other — and that it is our willingness to take that responsibility and deeply care for our bodies, not just expecting western medicine to fix the problem, that makes all the difference. The wisdom with which you share through your lived experience is exquisite — thank you.

479. This is very inspiring, to read how your deepening understanding of your body and awareness of self care bought about a true healing. There is no going back once this level of care and love for ones body is found.

480. I’ve been ‘getting away’ with ignoring the signs that tell me when I have eaten enough, and the effects afterwards aren’t comfortable. Recently though there has been a shift, and I find myself eating much lighter, and I find that I’m further refining my diet .

481. “I now realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person. This in turn has allowed me to become more communicative and open, and less withdrawn from life.” This is a great point that you make Stephen. I have come to understand that appreciation of oneself is great medicine for healing all aspects of life so I am not surprised it worked wonders on you, along with self care, self responsibility and modern medicine of course..

482. The wisdom of the body is something that has existed forever, yet we don’t realise the power of this wisdom and the body’s absolute commitment to sharing continually, and un-relentlessly messages regarding where we are really at – if only we would let go of arrogance and listen. Your openness and commitment to allowing your body to guide you Stephen, is inspiring. Thank you for confirming yet again the blessed relationship we have between Universal Medicine and Conventional Medicine.

483. Reading this I am reminded of how very sensitive we are and especially our digestion. The esoteric approach to health is a powerful combination with western medicine. You will understand how we get ill, how we need to live to get better and then the aid from medicine and treatment that supports the body to heal. thankyou Stephen for sharing.

484. Stephen I love how you talk about the wisdom our body shares. It does indeed share with us all day every day and I’ve found learning to listen has been one of the greatest experiences – and I am continually learning so much. I too have learned from the teachings presented by Serge Benhayon through Universal Medicine just how much my body communicates and what amazing things are possible as a result when I listen and act accordingly. My body is my best teacher currently.

485. I am sure many doctors out there would welcome patients like you into their surgery Stephen. It is so important to be a willing participant of the process, taking deep care and appreciating yourself and your part to play in the healing, instead of just rocking up to the doctor expecting them to put you back together so you can continue to live how you were. Illness and disease is a stopping point, a blessing in disguise, inviting you to look deeper and Universal Medicine is most definitely a key element in this process too.

486. An honest and inspiring blog Stephen. I love how your acceptance of the ‘Marriage of Western and Esoteric Medicine’ (SB) complement each other and together this has brought such amazing changes to your true wellbeing and health care.
     The new-normal to bring forth for humanity to benefit from.
     Thank you!

487. Yes Stephen it is so true what you have shared. Taking care and supporting our bodies is an ongoing process. If we continue to stay open to what our bodies share we can make better choices for life.

488. Thanks Stephen for what you have shared. What I could feel as I was reading was that you were already connected with your body and how this was confirmed for you through Universal Medicine. It seems that you gained a much deeper sense of appreciation and understanding on how you were living, which actually gave you a choice on how to live and the fact that you are making them is very inspiring.

     1. This is very true Jennifer, I was always very aware of my body and how I felt, it was the support of the Universal Medicine teachings that gave me full trust in myself to listen to these feelings and live accordingly. There is a lot of information out there about IBD and many other conditions that doesn’t always feel right in the body, the body is always the true marker of what are the best choices for us.

489. This is a great blog Stephen. It is, as some have noted, rare for a man to take such pro-active care of their body and to be open enough to go to the doctor. I was the same. About 2 years ago, I made a big change and started to have a very open dialogue with my body and also with my doctor. One of the things I did was go and get a full medical check up. I shan’t go in to all the details here, save to say that it was one of the most amazing things I have done. There was actually nothing seriously wrong with me, and the doctor commented that I was in great health. This was good to hear, but what far out-stripped that in importance was how the process smashed away all those old patterns of; if it ain’t broke-don’t fix it, man-up…or more simply that the body is just a machine. My relationship with my body and with my health is now totally different and it feels great to be listening to it and taking care of it.

     1. Otto, what I can feel behind the choice you made to go to the doctors was a deepening level of care for yourself. This is beautiful to feel and to claim as how many of us wait until there is a problem to visit the doctor. I am not surprised to hear that your relationship with your body and health has stepped up to another level of wisdom.

490. WOW. Every doctor in the country should read this comment Doug. In fact, why stop at the doctors? Every person should read this comment, since every person has the same opportunity to self-heal and to take responsibility for their own health.

491. Stephen, what an awesome blog – super honest and super real and relatable! Regardless of whether or not we have had the same condition or symptoms, I’m sure many of us can relate to what is shared here, and to consider that the key to true healing is a partnership between western medicine and a willingness at the same time to take responsibility for how we are living, and how our choices affect not only health but everything we do.

492. Super top blog Stephen and what a subject to talk about. Bowel related stuff is hot topic as so many people suffer and I love what you say that diet is a part of it but we need to address other things like how we are feeling and expressing everyday. Holding on to our emotional pain means our body cannot flow in its natural rhythm.
     I love talking about poo so I plan to visit this blog again as I have much to say on this subject..

493. It is amazing that it is only us who influence our health and well being.
     During puberty I strongly rejected myself and as a result was rejected by others.
     I needed a valve for the rejection so I needed to find a part of my body that I could deem ugly: my feet. After two years of repeatedly making very unloving comments about my feet warts started to appear and within the next few years nearly covered half of the soles of both feet. The more I hated myself for them and the more I felt ashamed, the more warts appeared. My GP was very wise and relaxed and told me that no medication in the world would truly work, but that the day I would stop thinking about them my body would clear the warts away. He was right ;o)
     When falling in love one of the first comments of my new partner was how much he actually liked these special feet of mine and that the warts were simply something to accept and that he was sure they would go. Suddenly I was able to let go of this theme and within just two weeks, the warts darkened and simply fell off.

494. It is so refreshing to see inflammatory bowel disease discussed so frankly and with such honesty and wisdom. I have seen people suffer greatly with bowel problems and other illnesses that some see as ’embarrassing’, Often not seeking medical attention because of the shame. These things have a huge affect on people’s lives. Thank you so much for sharing this Stephen. I know that many will find this blog inspirational and helpful.

495. Stephen, I loved your honesty and vulnerability in expressing how inflammatory bowel disease affected your life. Not many men would be open to share such intimate feelings, without self judgement or self loathing. And the wisdom that has come to you because of it is awesome and inspiring -“I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health – how open and expressive I am plays a big part in how well I feel and that my health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am. I now realise the importance of valuing myself and appreciating me as a person. This in turn has allowed me to become more communicative and open, and less withdrawn from life.”

496. We so often hear that digestive problems are due to not being able to digest life. What reading your blog confirms to me Stephen is that part of digesting and accepting life includes accepting how and who we are, accepting that we are worth taking care of, that we are valuable and also to engage in life means to be open and allow ourselves to express and communicate. Medicine is so often seen as medical treatment solely from the medical profession, but there is so much more medicine we can give ourselves by the way that we live our lives.

     1. So true Shevon – thank you for your clarity in expanding on the energy behind digestive complaints. I too have come to this awareness with the support of Natalie Benhayon and understanding acceptance and allowing life to be without needing it to be a certain way. This is great medicine.

     2. Beautifully expressed Shevon – thank you for expanding this blog with your comment. As you point out medicine is often seen as medical treatment solely. I have found that when I am sick if I focus only on having the symptoms resolved, I am accepting such a narrow view of wellness and in truth no real healing has occurred. The use of Esoteric and Western Medicine together is a true support for any body, and offers the opportunity for true healing and understanding of our choices to occur.

497. Stephen the choices and changes you made to your lifestyle is a responsibility not everyone is prepared to take when they are diagnosed with a disease, even when it helps the management of symptoms. It is especially touching to read a piece like this from a man and express the vulnerability you felt. I have known so many men that neglect their health through denial and most likely to avoid feeling and admitting to the vulnerability we all feel in ill health. You are a fantastic case study for healing through a combination of conventional medicine, esoteric medicine and lifestyle changes.

     1. Great what you share here Deanne, I also know a lot of men who have this tendency to neglect their health and pretend all is fine, not wanting to take responsibility for their choices. I love the vulnerability that Stephen reflects here, this is a beautiful reflection which is very needed in today’s society.

498. thank you Stephen for sharing so openly and honestly about your condition and healing – this will give other people who struggle with such issues permission to do the same. It is encouraging to know that such symptoms respond to true self-care – love and appreciation for oneself and addressing lifestyle choices.

499. Wow Stephen the learning you have had in listening to and caring deeply for your body is very inspiring. I love how you have described lifestyle choices as self medicine, I have found this to be true in my life also.

     1. I loved this awareness too Bianca and how Stephen found the important balance between self-care medicine and prescribed medicine to support his healing.

500. Constant signals are being communicated to us by our bodies…gosh we get skilled at shouting them down. Anything to avoid feeling just how delicate we are.

     Even now, after many years of developing more awareness with the foods that do not agree with me, I still find that there are certain foods that I want to hang on to. The communication is so clear. The question is do I want to listen or not?
     It is the willingness to surrender into the body that is the key to true and lasting healing. This has certainly been my experience.

501. Woohoo I love it when men express so openly and honestly! Plus, what a re-defining and inspiring quote: “health relates strongly to how accepting and caring of myself I am.” Like you said, health is everything, every part of how we are living, not just diet.

     1. If we eat healthy then we are healthy is one of the greatest misconceptions going, sure diet does play an important role in our wellbeing but the quality in how we live determines our true health.

502. Thank You Stephen!
     For stating truth about illness And disease in such a clear way.

503. I agree Stephen, lifestyle choices are the best medicine we can give ourselves. It’s so wonderful and an empowering way to live to know that we can be in control of our health and vitality through the choices we make. It’s so great to hear that you were honest and willing to see your part and not rely on western medicine to do the ‘fixing’, because in truth there is no such thing.

504. It always astonishes me how we can spend a great portion of our life overriding what certain foods do to the body no matter how comfortable we may feel. I love how you have shared your discovery of the power we have to heal ourselves by making different but simple lifestyle choices that over time nurture the body back to true health.

505. Very interesting article Stephen, I love what you say here, “What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.” Often people stop doing the things that support them when they begin to feel ‘better’ which may be ‘better’ but actually be far from ‘well’ still. I have done this myself and it doesn’t work. On and off, better and worse are just 2 ends of the same scale and are not true wellness. Your commitment and dedication to your body and both western medicine and your loving self care shine through.

506. “Looking back, I feel I could have avoided the greater symptoms I suffered had I been willing to address how I felt in my body, both emotionally and physically. Whilst diet is a huge part of the lifestyle changes I needed to make, I have grown to understand how much my demeanour also impacts my health.” This is profound Stephen – taking responsibility for our health and not just leaving it up to the medics. Thankyou for your open sharing.

507. ‘In this process Western Medicine was crucial to my recovery, but also only a part of the healing’; it’s amazing you can say that Stephen – a lot of people when diagnosed with an illness, just take the medicine given and expect all symptoms to go away without looking at the way they’ve been living. You have proven the huge difference between relying on pills and treatment to cure you, and taking your health into your own hands… the latter being 100% more effective.

508. What becomes really apparent when reading your blog Stephen, is so very simple – we are the medicine we so desperately seek and our greatest prescription for health and vitality is the way we live – every day in every way. Thank you for sharing this.

509. This is a fantastic blog Stephen. Diagnosed with a serious condition that could have affected your entire future, you took responsibility on every level from Western Medicine right through to your awareness about your personal expression. Your commitment to self-care has paid off and your story is most certainly worth sharing – imagine this article in a medical journal with the facts from your doctors to back it up. Pure gold.

510. Great open and honest blog Stephen. I can relate very much to this idea that sometimes it takes a big health scare to shatter the illusion that we are invincible and therefore break the pattern of ignoring our naturally occurring tenderness and vulnerability. Illness can soften us, open us up to others. This is the healing power of illness and disease.

     1. Wow Andrew, that is an amazing and beautiful comment. It is so true that illness and disease can open us up, quite a healing is there if we choose to feel it and respond with kindness to our bodies.

511. Thank you Stephen for sharing so honestly your health and ways of living from illness and disease to one of self care, honouring, love and the responsibility of yourself. The amazing support and inspiration from Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine is showing the way to true healthy living. Medicine with simplicity, truth and the added knowing is an amazing thing to have in ones life.

512. “What I have learnt is that the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process and not one I can switch on and off.” I have found this to be true for me too Stephen. Observing what I eat and how much, depends on what I need, which can vary day to day. When I eat too much I notice it’s because I don’t want to feel my emotions and I want to numb myself. I have also learnt that my daily choices and the quality I am in is my self-medicine.

513. This reminds me of when I had my heart attack. Up until that moment I knew I should be doing something with the way I lived and what I ate and drank but chose to ignore what was presented. Perhaps it’s a ‘man’ thing – to ignore what is so plain to see. It’s that willingness (or in my case unwillingness) to address the feelings in my body that resonates. However, that’s all changing because of the love of everyone associated with Serge and Simone Benhayon and Universal Medicine and moreover as I appreciate myself more and more. Great reminder, thank you.

514. Reading your article Stephen reminded me of my own experience years ago of suffering intermittently from excruciatingly painful eyes which some doctors diagnosed simply as allergic reactions. Sometimes the pain was so great I would nearly pass out. Eventually a doctor diagnosed me with dry eye / Sjogrem’s Syndrome, which presented me with a treatment program. I too can recall the feeling of vulnerability, and also a knowing that somehow I could change what was going on. I started to look after myself, removing myself from smoky environments and making sure I had sufficient sleep. This care for myself has developed and deepened over time by listening to my body and the wisdom shared at Universal Medicine courses. I still use eye drops as needed and very occasionally have flare ups, usually when I have travelled, but feel very much that it was me making different lifestyle choices combined with medication that have enabled me to live mostly symptom free.

515. Stephen your open and honest sharing is something that has made me reflect on my experiences that were similar albeit slightly different. The blood in my stool was a daily experience as was the pains in my stomach. At first it was the diet that I spent a number of years refining but it was only after sessions with Serge Benhayon and making adjustments to the overall way I take care of myself that the pain started to go. It was clear that one thing alone is not the answer but the overall way I treat myself and go through life. When I don’t take the same care for myself then the blood and sometimes the pain comes back so it is a constant sign and reminder for me. You pose a great point to consider in that if I look back had I made different choices sooner then I would not have put myself through so much pain.

516. Thankyou Stephen. In this blog you give a wonderful example of how life itself is the greatest medicine we can gift to ourselves.

517. Thank you for sharing Stephen, as you said: “Suffering ill health was a wake up call to consider my lifestyle and look after myself properly”. It is great that you decided to do just that and not simply return back to the way you were living before. It is so easy to take the medication, for the symptoms to go and then to return back to doing what got you Ill in the 1st place!

518. Great share Stephen, I laughed out loud when I read ‘I did what most adult males would do and I ignored it, hoping it would go away’.
     It actually isn’t funny at all, that we (women too) often ignore symptoms and pains from our bodies, hoping they will go away, instead of listening to these messages our bodies are sending us, and seeking true and professional support to help us heal.

     1. ..and yet we would probably be the first to suggest that another person telling us about such symptoms should go to the doctor!
        Undoing all the labels of ‘selfish’ and replacing them with ‘self-valuing’ is an ongoing unfolding.

519. Reading this I can feel the great change you have made in yourself, Stephen, and it is beautiful to feel the tenderness and openness with which you share. As you say Western Medicine was crucial in your recovery but without your own willingness and commitment to take responsibility for your wellbeing the healing would have been incomplete.

520. Thank you Stephen for such an honest article. Your choice to deal with this situation by making changes to the way you live is very inspiring, especially the knowing that “This was where the balance between medical care and self-care became critical to me.” So often we expect the medical profession and prescribed medicines to resolve issues that we have created by the way we live, we arrogantly continue with the same life style and wonder why an illness returns or deteriorates. It is so uplifting to hear that you realised that it is not just diet that counts, but that your emotions and self expectations play a huge role too. When we are hard on ourselves and refuse to acknowledge or appreciate our innate tenderness, it causes many very delicate structures in our bodies to toughen up, thus disrupting their natural function. Universal Medicine and Serge Benhayon have been and continue to be a huge source of wisdom and information that has also enabled me to regain and maintain my health by the way I all of my life.

521. Thank you Stephen for sharing your account of how taking responsibility for caring for yourself in many ways and supported by conventional medicine has enabled you to enjoy much improved health. A very clear message from a fitness instructor.

522. Stephen what an incredible story you have to share about being willing to take responsibility to listening to the messages of our bodies and adjusting our choices to support what our bodies need.

523. When we ignore the first signs our body is telling us something is not right, it then has to speak much louder until we are willing to listen. Like you Stephen there have been times in my life when I have waited until an illness is affecting other areas of my life before I seek support. I would then see this illness as a nuisance that is getting in the way of what I need to do rather than seeing it as a stop sign. As you say “Looking back, I feel I could have avoided the greater symptoms I suffered had I been willing to address how I felt in my body, both emotionally and physically.”

524. Thanks Stephen, an awesome confirmation that while medicine is great to help and support us through an illness, it’s through our commitment to taking full responsibility for our health through our own daily choices to look after ourselves that will help us to truly heal. And it starts by becoming aware of what true self care is – understanding what supports us and what brings us down, then letting go of those things that do not serve us. The Government is buckling under the huge economic burden of our country’s ill health, imagine if many more would take the steps to truly self-care, how much more vital and well the population might be.

525. The balance between medical care and self care, I love that. This is a balance which is needed with all illnesses and diseases, because for me one can not be there without the other.

526. This blog is a great lesson to us all that our health and wellbeing in firstly our responsibility and that every choice we make contributes to a positive or negative outcome to our health whether it be diet, sleep exercise or stress levels.

     1. Yes Kevin. Agree 100%. I had always seen my body as simply a machine. Fuel in, poop out, keep it well maintained and only ever take it to the doctor if it is broken. It was a very cold and functional relationship. Over the years and through the inspiration of Universal Medicine, I now have a very different relationship with my body. I hear what it is telling me. I take good care of it. I get it checked out frequently by doctors and I feel the effects that my choices have on it. That said, I am still capable of over-riding it, not listening, putting rubbish food inside it and driving it too hard. So this blog and all the comments are a great reminder to me. Thank you Stephen. Thank you everyone who is commenting.

527. Stephen, I can really relate to your sharing, as I have also experienced becoming ill and not truly listening to my body and for me the wake up call was that I have been already shown what, in this case food, can do to me and I did not listen to my body. Only when I attended Universal Medicine courses which were confiming what I in moments had felt and known I would cut out the harming foods like all diary products and gluten. It only took one week and I could feel how my body healed and got stronger. If only the inner knowing of the body, which is the truth, would be more accepted how different our world would be.

528. It is great hearing about your experience as I can personally relate, thank you.

529. What struck me Stephen is the fact that you ignored the first symptoms of your disease and that I do recognise this as being something I would do too, “something what most adult males would do”. Why is it that I tend to ignore the symptoms from my body to be taken seriously, and even more when I do recognise it that I feel that I have a reluctance to see a doctor for it. I feel that you give the answer to my question with what you say “I was also embarrassed by the diagnosis, as it felt to me quite shameful, while also leaving me feeling weak and vulnerable. I prided myself on being fit and healthy and this left me feeling exposed, abnormal and far from invincible”. Although I am discovering that I am very sensitive , tender and loving and that vulnerability is a great way to be for a man, I also can feel the old way of being a man in me, feeling the pride for having ‘control’ over my life and the belief that men must be strong and tough.

530. Stephen, your line: “the refining of how I eat and the care I have for my body is an on-going process” is such a universal truth to heed.

     I’ve found that when I’m inconsistent and drop my standards of self care, then my body suffers, my productivity decreases and my joy of life diminishes. In short, a waste of time.

     Consistency – that’s what it’s about!

531. A great example of the potential for true healing when combining conventional medicine with all that Universal Medicine has to offer.

532. Thank you Stephen for a great blog. The level of self care that we have for ourselves seems to be an ongoing and deepening ‘practice’. It is so easy to slip back into disregard for what our bodies are telling us until we can no longer ignore what is being said, and then we get back up into the saddle of self care. Listening does get easier the more we discipline ourselves and create our rituals and rhythms to support us.

533. This is great Stephen. The responsibility you’ve chosen to take with your own health is awesome as is your willingness to be supported by but not rely on medicine to provide the “fix”. It shows what we can do for ourselves when we love and care for ourselves deeply. The comment you made “I also felt certain that I could regain my health in the long term through the choices I made” resonates strongly with me as I too have had issues with my health that I am turning around by my listening to my body (and also with the support of medicine and practitioners of the Universal Medicine modalities) and making much more loving choices in response. And too having observed the choices of my parents and older siblings whilst growing up and seeing the consequences to their health and feeling certain that if I made different choices it would mean that I did not suffer those ailments and this has proved to be so. What we can do for ourselves through self-responsibility is huge as is as trusting that deep inner knowing that we all have.

534. Stephen it’s very inspiring to hear how you managed this condition through deep self care, especially at such a young age when most other men are trashing themselves at work, in sport, by being hard and aggressive and with food and alcohol. You are a true role model for all young men to feel the power of being tender and caring with oneself, that it’s not weak and pathetic but instead that it builds a deep self appreciation and inner confidence to enjoy life and be yourself.

     1. Those were my thoughts too Danielle. How inspiring for other young men who often cover up their sensitivity with sport, food and alcohol, to read this article.

        1. Absolutely Lorraine, it also allows women to feel how men are as equally sensitive and tender as women and that they want to be cared for and nurtured equally as much as us. This is a strong reflection to hold for a man, because of the expectations from society for them to be tough and that caring and nurturing is for ‘sissies’. I say well done Stephen for going above and beyond what society has portrayed about men to give us the true strong man, in his tenderness.

535. Wow Stephen. The lived wisdom of this piece and what you have brought to others understanding of health – as a wholeness and not just as a physical experience – is HUGE. thank you for sharing and writing your experience so eloquently and with such insight.

536. Some years ago when doing Aged Care work, I had a similar wake up call Stephen, I am grateful that the medication I was prescribed helped the symptoms.
     I was not aware of the importance of caring for me at that time and did not speak up about my exhaustion. I realise now, truly caring for another without self care is impossible.
     Opening up, communicating and expressing my self clearly, taking responsibility and listening to my body have played a huge part in my healing, now much healthier than before the call.

537. Thank you Stephen for sharing your story, it just makes sense doesn’t it that if we take care of our selves through listening to our body’s messages and taking action to support it that we can live a healthier life. This has been my experience too – an ever increasing awareness of life choices by being in constant communication with my body and not trying to live life from my head. For me life originates from my heart and then spreads to all parts of my body which then translates information back through different feelings that alert me to stop and take more self loving care. Simple!

538. Wow Stephen, I can feel in this sharing your absolute knowing, regardless of the times you ignored it, of how true your body’s reflections are. If we committed to listening and heeding our body’s advice, how much disease would disappear virtually overnight. And consider the impacts of this on ourselves, our families, communities of all sorts, let alone our global economy. This is huge!

     1. I agree Bernadette, the impact of everyone committing to listening to their body would be HUGE and to think all we have to do is pay heed to what our body is constantly relaying to us to avoid all sorts of medical problems from developing. This needs to be taught at kindergarten, at schools, in fact everywhere. It is so simple and yet so powerful.

        1. Yes Kathleen and the more we begin to trust our bodies, the more questions we will ask about our true health and wellbeing and take responsibility for the ills we suffer. I cannot imagine what my health and wellbeing would be like these days had I not felt the truth of what is offered by Serge Benhayon, his family and the esoteric practitioners from Universal Medicine.

539. Stephen you are proof that using the “self-medicine of lifestyle choices” in your “everyday living” restored you to health. The awareness and caring you developed for yourself are now part of your life. Thank you for a great blog.

540. This is a hugely supportive article for so many people in the world who ignore or dismiss signs and communications from their body and feel they cannot do anything about it anyway … I’ll be sharing this on fb right now! Thank you, Stephen, fantastic.

     1. It’s funny – one of the people in our family has always been very sensitive: skin, food, allergy’s. And for a long time we all saw this as a problem to have to deal with. However, by listening to her body, and making the lifestyle changes needed she has developed a very supportive way of living… and we have tended to make the changes as a family (removing gluten, dairy and alot of the sugary things). Quite the opposite to being a curse I would say that sensitivity is an absolute blessing.

541. Stephen, this sentence is so true.
     “I feel I could have avoided the greater symptoms I suffered had I been willing to address how I felt in my body, both emotionally and physically.”
     There are many medical problems and incidents I too could have avoided had I listened to my own body instead of overriding these impulses with facts and information. We can say “thank goodness” to Western Medicine, but we can also say “thank goodness” for Universal Medicine too.
     Thank you for sharing your personal account with us.

542. Thanks Stephen for this very interesting blog about IBD and how you have managed to turn this condition around with your dedication to self-care and listening to your body. One of the things that stood out to me was the level of detail you speak of that we need to apply to our self-care and listening to what our bodies are saying and the ability to do this is linked with our feelings of self-worth, also how our health is affected by how self-appreciative we are. Valuable insights indeed.

     1. I was also touched by the detail given in this article and the impact of our choices directly relating to what plays out in the body.

543. Stephen, thank you for sharing your story, it is great how you were able to combine self-care with Western Medicine, it is definitely an ongoing process of development for all of us and your support as a fitness instructor is much appreciated.

544. It is such a simple awareness isn’t it – but how so many of us struggle to find that place!
     “within this I have to keep accepting I am worth caring for. I have found that if I pay close attention to how I feel and honour that, then the symptoms clear without the need for medication.” Thankyou for sharing this Stephen.

545. Wow, what a fantastic and very helpful blog. Thanks for sharing your story. I can certainly relate to the ongoing communication between my body and the choices I make, and how illness is a way for the body to help me wake up and initiate deeper awareness of myself, and in that make more changes that support my health and overall wellbeing. Thanks for deepening my understanding of this.

546. Hi Stephen, great that you realised you had a REAL problem when your playing of football was affected. (cheeky here). But really great that you realised yourself that you had to change the way you were living, especially your eating, obviously something was speaking to you from within, and you heard it. But as you have shared, your connection later to Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine helped you understand the details of accepting and caring for yourself so that you have very little problem at all now. That is really awesome. These are the details that I am still currently working on, constantly refining them, as I and my body gradually make all sorts of adjustments. I guess this will go on for the rest of my now very loving and joyful life.

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