Light or Energy Based Therapies for Treatment of Depression

Click the following links to connect to earlier parts of this series;

Part One    Part Two    Part Three    Part Four

Exploring Options for the Treatment of Depression, Part Five: “Let There Be Light”: Introduction to Light or Energy Based Therapies 

Children of Light

Darla says,

I crave the light. My biggest quest in life has been to know what is real and true. Depression pulls me into darkness and fills my mind with thoughts that are not true, so overcoming depression is central to my well-being. Alma 32:35 offers guidelines: “O then, is not this real? I say unto you, Yea, because it is light; and whatsoever is light, is good, because it is discernible.” This article is all about light, about discerning what is real and true in regard to health in every part of our beings: physical, emotional, and spiritual. Peggy and I invite you to ask the Spirit to confirm which of the ideas presented here might be helpful for your personal growth and progress.

As children of light we have a natural affinity to light and truth, but we are born into a world where ignorance and darkness continually challenge us. Ephesians 5:8 tells us, “For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light.” Light and truth increases as we open our minds to the truths the Lord is willing to teach us.

In days gone by people had no idea that microbes (bacteria, fungi, and viruses) existed. However, once the microscope was invented, a whole new world of microbiology became accepted science, which played a profound role in understanding and controlling disease epidemics. Today, new discoveries in regard to the mind, spirit, and emotions are making inroads on the epidemics of depression, anxiety, and addictions. The marriage of Eastern and Western science has opened up a whole new world of healing tools based upon the concept of “energy,” “life force,” or “light.”

Our purpose in this article is to connect this concept of healing light with the gospel concept found in D&C 50:24: “That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.”

Review

Let’s review a few principles covered previously in this series:

(1) Our spiritual and emotional body is holistically connected to our physical body. To treat any disease, we must consider all aspects of our being. Being able to connect to the emotions held in our body is an essential part of healing depression and related emotional illness.

(2) Within every cell of our bodies, within the very elements that comprise our bodies, is the light of Christ, literally, the "light” (energy) and “life” (life force) of the Creator of the world. The “breath of life discussed by King Benjamin (Mosiah 2:21) which preserves us, and allows us to “live and move” from “day to day” is a life force that surrounds and intelligently communicates with our cells. Consider this explanation by eminent molecular researcher, Candace Pert, PhD, “We know that the immune system, like the central nervous system, has memory and the capacity to learn. Thus, it could be said that intelligence is located not only in the brain but in cells that are distributed throughout the body, and that the traditional separation of mental processes, including emotions, from the body is no longer valid.[i]”

(3) Within each individual is a capacity for self-healing as we learn to access the resources inherent in our mind-body system. Many holistic or complimentary practitioners tell us their job is simply to remove obstacles that may be blocking the body from its natural ability to heal itself. The practice of mindfulness, “be still and know that I am God,” (discussed in Article IV) helps us learn to connect to our deepest spiritual and emotional selves; connect to God’s light, truth, and intelligence; and to connect to the multiple coping resources inherent in our mind and body system.

The Spirit and Emotion Level of Healing

A new concept we want to add is this: Disease, including depression, begins at the quantum level. Quantum is the smallest known quantity, which is vibration or energy. Medical treatment that aims to heal the physical body, deals only with the symptoms. The core of our symptoms exists at the quantum energy level. In energy science we say: “Where the energy goes, the body follows.” It is an eternal principle that things are first created spiritually before they manifest physically (Moses 3:7). When a medical treatment fails to relieve symptoms, it is evidence that the body needs relief at the quantum (spirit and emotion) level. This is especially true for depression.

Darla shares, “Like many people, I’ve had life-long physical challenges compounded by emotional challenges. Maybe it has been a blessing in disguise that I could rarely find answers in conventional medicine, so was compelled (and led) to turn to alternative medicine, including the energy clearing therapies we will be discussing. Early on, before I began to understand the scientific and spiritual basis of these therapies, they seemed strange and required a total leap of faith. But I was desperate enough to try anything that was not invasive or harmful, and soon learned that energy therapies were real and effective, and could be key to improving both my emotional and physical health.”

The bodies of living beings are composed of both physical and spiritual matter. Consider Joseph Smith’s teaching on the nature of our bodies: “There is no such thing as immaterial matter. All spirit is matter, but it is more fine or pure, and can only be discerned by purer eyes; We cannot see it; but when our bodies are purified we shall see that it is all matter” (D&C 131:7-8).

Inherent in our living bodies is spirit matter which is actively at work, yet which cannot be seen. In addition to our own intelligence and spirit, we are infused with the light of Christ. In D&C 84:45 we read, “for the word of the Lord is truth, and whatsoever is truth is light, and whatsoever is light is Spirit, even the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” From the revelations of Joseph Smith we know that the light of Christ is an intelligent, life-giving, pure matter. In other cultures, this life force is known as “chi,” “prana,” or “mana.” (Note the similarity of “mana” and “manna” or “bread of life” which God fed to the Israelites.) In earlier times, life force energy was only understood by cultures or individuals who were blessed with a super-natural ability to sense or even see this finer, purer matter.

Over a period of 5,000 years, Eastern healers developed a meticulously documented understanding of how life-force energy flows in the body. Dr. David Feinstein explains, “Your body is composed of energy pathways and energy centers that are in a dynamic interplay with your cells, organs, moods, and thoughts.”[ii] In modern times, research from pioneering scientists, psychologists, and doctors such as William Tiller, Bruce Lipton, Candace Pert, Fred Gallo, Roger Callahan, David Feinstein, and Dawson Church, all PhDs, along with many, many others, have demonstrated that it is the subtle energy system, fed by a universal intelligence or life force energy that intelligently guides the thousands of marvelous processes accomplished by our cells. Although we may not see this intricate system of finer, purer matter which flows through the “subtle energy system” of our bodies, it plays an essential role in our health. Dis-ease at all levels originates from blocks or disruptions in our subtle energy system. Getting to the root cause, or source is vital, and depression is no exception.

Degrees or Vibrations of Energy

At the quantum level, the spiritual and physical matter of our bodies has different frequencies or vibration. In her book, Feelings Buried Alive Never Die, Karol Truman explains: “Anything that is matter has energy vibration. Energy is a force that has many forms . . . the food you eat, the clothes you wear, your hair, your nails, your glands and your organs all have energy. Everything about you is energy.[iii]”

The more light or truth inherent in a particular matter, the higher the vibration; the less light or truth, the lower the vibration. So in addition to universal life force energy, which comes through our Savior and Creator, and has the highest, purest frequency, we also have negative or low vibration energies at work in our mind body system. (This is part of the opposition in all things spoken of in 2 Nephi 2:11).

Our beliefs and feelings, another form of “immaterial matter,” also have different vibrations or frequencies. E-motions are in fact, “energy in motion.” Positive thoughts and feelings have a higher vibration than their negative counterparts. A group of scientists led by Dr. W. Jerome Stowell, measured the frequency of a dying woman’s prayers and found that the “brain of a woman alone and dying in communication with God had registered more than 55 times the power used by a fifty-kilowatt broadcasting station sending a message around the world.”[iv]

When the Lord said, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts,” he was describing a scientific fact, that God’s thoughts have a higher frequency, degree, or energetic vibration than man’s thoughts.

The Need to Overcome Darkness is Part of Our Mortal Learning Experience,

Not Evidence That We Are “Bad”

If you are depressed you may be wondering, “How can I have negative energies or darkness weighing down the vibration of my mind-body system when I am trying so hard to do what is right?” Consider the Prophet Micah who said, “When I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me” (Micah 7:8). Job lamented, “When I looked for good, then evil came unto me: and when I waited for light, there came darkness” (Job 30:26). Knowing the inevitable reality of our mortal encounters with darkness the Lord promises “To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace” (Luke 1:79).

Let’s explore how “darkness” (negative beliefs and negative energies) becomes part of our mind-body system. In the Lord’s discussion of the spiritual and scientific principles of light and truth in Doctrine and Covenants, He explains two ways in which we experience a loss of light: “And that wicked one cometh and taketh away light and truth, through disobedience, from the children of men, and because of the tradition of their fathers” (Doctrine and Covenants, Section 93:39, emphasis added).

It is important to clearly understand this scripture because the last thing a depressed person needs is another “guilt-trip” and more self-condemnation. First, disobedience means that light is lost due to breaking the laws that bring light. This happens when individuals sin, but it can also happen because we simply do not know or understand or know how to apply or live the laws or principles that increase light in our mind body system. We came to earth to increase our knowledge and to experience those principles.

Peggy adds: I have a little theory I call the “Naked Lamanite Theory” which explains why we often find ourselves light-starved despite our best efforts. In the Book of Mormon we read about numerous conflicts between the Lamanites and Nephites. When the Lamanites showed up to battle “naked,” (with only a loin cloth and crude weapons), the Nephites didn’t need much armor or much better weapons to win the battle. However, when the Lamanites were prepared with armor, entrenchment, and more sophisticated weapons, the Nephites had to up the level of their preparation and quality of their weapons to win the battle. The laws we live and understand may have been just fine for less challenging times. They may have worked well for our parents; but, in our day, we are up against the most advanced and sophisticated forms of evil that have ever existed in this world and we need more armor and more “weapons” (knowledge, tools, power) in order to prevail against the challenges that bombard us. We need to add to our arsenal of strategies to support us spiritually, emotionally, and physically.

We Came to Earth With An Endowment of Light

We are literally “children of light” (John 12:36, D&C 106:5). The energetic fields of our mind body system not only “hold” the beliefs which have been developed through our mortal experience or passed down generationally, but also the veiled memories of our premortal life, and the blueprint for our eternal possibilities. The Lord says, “Behold, here is the agency of man, and here is the condemnation of man; because that which was from the beginning is plainly manifest unto them, and they receive not the light.” (D&C 93:31. We have the truth of who we were, who we are, and who we really can be, flowing within us. When we believe or act contrary to the truth inherent in our own mind-body system, we will feel a loss of light, even darkness, which may be imperceptible until we become ill with depression or some other kind of dis-ease. Healing from depression requires us to challenge ways in which we have ignored or “disobeyed” our own inner voice (most often in trying to please others). Earthly efforts to connect to this endowment of light may require that we eat differently, think differently, and care for ourselves in new ways.

False Traditions Rob Us of Light

The second way the scripture above mentions that light is taken from us is through the “traditions of [our] fathers.” Ironically, our families, a cherished source of tradition, can also pass down belief systems that rob us of light. In the science of energy, it is believed that along with our DNA, we inherit energetic “thought fields” which contain the beliefs and experiences of our parents and ancestors. Part of our healing journey through depression is to challenge belief systems that keep us stuck. In energy psychology terms, we need to “clear” these generational negative energies from our mind-body system.

This is especially true if there has been shame and abuse in our families, although even the best families can pass down habits and beliefs that are limiting. Consider the powerful work we do as we work to change generational beliefs and bring them in harmony with the principles of light and truth. Darla shares an example:

In my family, the tradition had been handed down for many generations to connect performance with worth.Common vernacular when we have been too sick or too tired to get anything done has been to say, “I was totally worthless today.” It is easy to see where this attitude could have originated in earlier days when survival may have depended on constant productive physical labor. However, it is a good example of a false belief that has not served me well at all, especially in times of extended illness. In D&C 50:23 we read, “And that which doth not edify is not of God, and is darkness.” There was nothing edifying about believing I was worthless when I was not being productive. One day when I was praying about this, I felt the Spirit confirm that I was precious to the Lord no matter what, and I wept with joy. I had totally lost touch with that reality. As I continue to clear the negative results of the false belief that I must prove my worth by productivity, and as I focus on the inherent worth of family members, living and dead, I begin to sense the power of this cleansing, light-giving process.

Not only do we do the proxy work of providing ordinances for our ancestors, but as “Saviors on Mount Zion,” we can also help to change the energetic/spiritual connections that flow from one generation to the next: “And now, my dearly beloved brethren and sisters, let me assure you that these are principles in relation to the dead and the living that cannot be lightly passed over, as pertaining to our salvation. For their salvation is necessary and essential to our salvation, as Paul says concerning the fathers—that they without us cannot be made perfect—neither can we without our dead be made perfect” (D&C 128:15).

In a classic discourse, LDS therapist, Carlfred Broderick[v] presents the concept that many valiant spirits volunteered to come to homes where they would innocently experience shame and abuse in order to purify their lineage. Through the power of the atonement, they become “Saviors on Mount Zion,” or “chainbreakers” who clear the poison of sin, anger, anguish, and violence from their family line so that both downstream, and upstream, that line may become pure.

The healing tools that are now available to us aid us in this quest. One sister who recognized her role as a “chainbreaker” shares:

In my family line, there is a long history of women who have suffered from sexual abuse, coupled with a long history of men who have struggled with pornography and immorality. Although the women in my family have been valiant LDS mothers from whom I have gleaned much strength, I have wrestled to overcome the passivity, low self-esteem, and lack of skills, which allowed my foremothers to endure such unholy treatment in their marriages. I have used many tools, including prayer, priesthood blessings, temple worship, self-help books, guided imagery, Rapid Eye Therapy, and energy psychology tools, to heal from depression and create a different life for myself and my daughters. Recently, I had an experience which demonstrated to me the beauty of healing from the “traditions of the fathers,” or in my case, the “mothers.” As I was prayerfully meditating, I saw my grandmothers and mother come to me, one by one, each bearing a gift. The gifts were unique and delightful, the “gift of managing money;” “the gift of valuing modesty in dress,” “the gift of love for music,” “the gift of valuing my feminine body.” In my mind came the words, “Lay hold upon every good gift and touch not the evil gift” (Moroni 10:30). As the Lord has helped me to clear the negative belief systems, negative energies or “negative gifts,” from my heritage, all that remains are the positive gifts. I feel that my foremothers and I are now truly connected with purified “bonds of charity.”

The Promise of Energy Psychology

This sister’s quest for healing was aided by tools which helped her experience joy in her life now, rather than continue in a life of suffering due to abuse and false traditions. The new paradigms and interventions emerging from the science of our subtle energy systems are truly exciting! They have given birth to profoundly effective and rapid interventions for healing emotional and physical disease that compliment and enhance the effectiveness of traditional healing strategies.

Darla says, “Various kinds of energy work have given me vital puzzle pieces in my quest to overcome depression. Because of it, at several crisis times in my life, I’ve learned how to reorient myself, feel the renewal of reconnection with light and truth and the Lord, and move ahead. In D&C 88:11 we read, ‘And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings.’ Wandering in my own personal wilderness, craving light and guidance, I’m so grateful each time I am enlightened, have my understanding is quickened, and feel renewed connection with the Spirit.”

Energy psychology pioneer, Dr. David Feinstein defines energy psychology as an approach to psychotherapy that is based in the principles of acupuncture and healing traditions that work with the body’s energies. Energy healing tools are a complement to traditional medical care. Many techniques based upon these principles have been shared by our readers, although the most widely known is Emotional Freedom Technique or “EFT.” (We will give specific ideas on how to use EFT in the next article in this series.) The beauty of energy psychology techniques, such as EFT, is that as we clear negative emotional energies from our body, we increase the flow of positive, life force energy, and activate our body’s abilities for self-healing. Candace Pert, PhD describes the benefits of everyday emotional healing: “When emotions are expressed . . . all systems are united and made whole. When emotions are repressed, denied, not allowed to be whatever they may be, our network pathways get blocked, stopping the flow of the vital feel-good, unifying chemicals that run both our biology and our behavior.[vi]”

“Thy Faith Hath Made Thee Whole”

Peggy shares a personal lesson on what it means to be “whole:”

I got a new yoga CD, and part of the practice is to reach up your arms to heaven and allow chi or life force energy and light to flow into your body, simple breathing and accepting this gracious gift.[vii] Each breath releases old, unwanted energies and breathes in new life.  It is gentle and encompasses the whole mind-spirit-body connection.  What a change that is from the "do, do, do" mentality that is so ingrained that it has felt like an addiction. Could the Atonement really be so broad, so universal, that a breath can cleanse us, ie. the "breath of life?"  All of these eastern ideas move me closer to the gospel and to the temple, not farther away. But they do move me farther away from the shame and "false traditions of my fathers.”

I woke up one morning full of thoughts about connection. Spirituality is about connection with God and the power of heaven. True religion increases our connection with God. God's greatest desire is to connect to us, and allow His light to flow into our bodies and cells and give us life-giving, healing light (energy). When I wrote down my thoughts about "connection" being the whole point of the gospel, I thought to myself, "Why is it so hard to believe that the Savior's greatest joy is to just connect with us, to sit together, even saying nothing, just allowing us to be in His presence and share the same space.It's so simple, but so often I’ve been too busy trying to work my way into heaven to get the message.  

The questions for us is not "How much can you suffer?” but “How much joy can you hold?”[viii] Simply connecting with God, stretching up our arms and allowing his joy to flow into us and heal us, allowing Him to flow into us-- can be the most powerful prayer ever.

Understanding the holistic nature of our mind/body system gives new life to the Savior’s concept of being “whole” as part of healing. The therapeutic principles we are discussing in this series invite us to unify our minds, bodies, and spirits (1) through seeing our bodies as a sanctuary for revelation and nourishment; (2) through the practice of mindfulness which invites connection with God’s light and our divine selves; and, (3) through the use of energy psychology techniques which work at the quantum spiritual/emotional level to clear negative energies and limiting beliefs. These practices are based upon exciting and eternal gospel truths, another witness to President Packer’s testimony that “The study of the doctrines of the gospel will improve behavior quicker than a study of behavior will improve behavior.” We believe that the Lord has prepared these tools “for such a time as this,” and that through the process of healing from depression, we can be led to a gratifying “new view” of ourselves, of God, and of the world.[ix]

Resources for Using Energy Psychology and Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT):

• To find discover the latest research and find qualified practitioners, you can visit the following professional organizations: Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology (ACEP) www.energypsych.org and the Association for the Advancement of Meridican Energy Techniques (AAMET) www.aamet.org
• A powerful resource written by an LDS professional which uses a Christ-centered approach along with energy psychology is Two Weeks to Health and Well Being by Melvin Fish, Ph.D. This book is available at www.drmfish.com
• Another self-help site which offers EFT for a variety of issues, including depression, is For $3.95, you can sign up for a 3 day trial membership and experience video-taped EFT sessions with Carol Tuttle, an LDS Master Energy Therapist.

Click the following links to connect to earlier parts of this series;

Part One    Part Two    Part Three    Part Four

Exploring Options for the Treatment of Depression, Part Five: “Let There Be Light”: Introduction to Light or Energy Based Therapies 

Children of Light

Darla says,

I crave the light. My biggest quest in life has been to know what is real and true. Depression pulls me into darkness and fills my mind with thoughts that are not true, so overcoming depression is central to my well-being. Alma 32:35 offers guidelines: “O then, is not this real? I say unto you, Yea, because it is light; and whatsoever is light, is good, because it is discernible.” This article is all about light, about discerning what is real and true in regard to health in every part of our beings: physical, emotional, and spiritual. Peggy and I invite you to ask the Spirit to confirm which of the ideas presented here might be helpful for your personal growth and progress.

As children of light we have a natural affinity to light and truth, but we are born into a world where ignorance and darkness continually challenge us. Ephesians 5:8 tells us, “For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light.” Light and truth increases as we open our minds to the truths the Lord is willing to teach us.

In days gone by people had no idea that microbes (bacteria, fungi, and viruses) existed. However, once the microscope was invented, a whole new world of microbiology became accepted science, which played a profound role in understanding and controlling disease epidemics. Today, new discoveries in regard to the mind, spirit, and emotions are making inroads on the epidemics of depression, anxiety, and addictions. The marriage of Eastern and Western science has opened up a whole new world of healing tools based upon the concept of “energy,” “life force,” or “light.”

Our purpose in this article is to connect this concept of healing light with the gospel concept found in D&C 50:24: “That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.”

Review

Let’s review a few principles covered previously in this series:

(1) Our spiritual and emotional body is holistically connected to our physical body. To treat any disease, we must consider all aspects of our being. Being able to connect to the emotions held in our body is an essential part of healing depression and related emotional illness.

(2) Within every cell of our bodies, within the very elements that comprise our bodies, is the light of Christ, literally, the "light” (energy) and “life” (life force) of the Creator of the world. The “breath of life discussed by King Benjamin (Mosiah 2:21) which preserves us, and allows us to “live and move” from “day to day” is a life force that surrounds and intelligently communicates with our cells. Consider this explanation by eminent molecular researcher, Candace Pert, PhD, “We know that the immune system, like the central nervous system, has memory and the capacity to learn. Thus, it could be said that intelligence is located not only in the brain but in cells that are distributed throughout the body, and that the traditional separation of mental processes, including emotions, from the body is no longer valid.[i]”

(3) Within each individual is a capacity for self-healing as we learn to access the resources inherent in our mind-body system. Many holistic or complimentary practitioners tell us their job is simply to remove obstacles that may be blocking the body from its natural ability to heal itself. The practice of mindfulness, “be still and know that I am God,” (discussed in Article IV) helps us learn to connect to our deepest spiritual and emotional selves; connect to God’s light, truth, and intelligence; and to connect to the multiple coping resources inherent in our mind and body system.

The Spirit and Emotion Level of Healing

A new concept we want to add is this: Disease, including depression, begins at the quantum level. Quantum is the smallest known quantity, which is vibration or energy. Medical treatment that aims to heal the physical body, deals only with the symptoms. The core of our symptoms exists at the quantum energy level. In energy science we say: “Where the energy goes, the body follows.” It is an eternal principle that things are first created spiritually before they manifest physically (Moses 3:7). When a medical treatment fails to relieve symptoms, it is evidence that the body needs relief at the quantum (spirit and emotion) level. This is especially true for depression.

Darla shares, “Like many people, I’ve had life-long physical challenges compounded by emotional challenges. Maybe it has been a blessing in disguise that I could rarely find answers in conventional medicine, so was compelled (and led) to turn to alternative medicine, including the energy clearing therapies we will be discussing. Early on, before I began to understand the scientific and spiritual basis of these therapies, they seemed strange and required a total leap of faith. But I was desperate enough to try anything that was not invasive or harmful, and soon learned that energy therapies were real and effective, and could be key to improving both my emotional and physical health.”

The bodies of living beings are composed of both physical and spiritual matter. Consider Joseph Smith’s teaching on the nature of our bodies: “There is no such thing as immaterial matter. All spirit is matter, but it is more fine or pure, and can only be discerned by purer eyes; We cannot see it; but when our bodies are purified we shall see that it is all matter” (D&C 131:7-8).

Inherent in our living bodies is spirit matter which is actively at work, yet which cannot be seen. In addition to our own intelligence and spirit, we are infused with the light of Christ. In D&C 84:45 we read, “for the word of the Lord is truth, and whatsoever is truth is light, and whatsoever is light is Spirit, even the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” From the revelations of Joseph Smith we know that the light of Christ is an intelligent, life-giving, pure matter. In other cultures, this life force is known as “chi,” “prana,” or “mana.” (Note the similarity of “mana” and “manna” or “bread of life” which God fed to the Israelites.) In earlier times, life force energy was only understood by cultures or individuals who were blessed with a super-natural ability to sense or even see this finer, purer matter.

Over a period of 5,000 years, Eastern healers developed a meticulously documented understanding of how life-force energy flows in the body. Dr. David Feinstein explains, “Your body is composed of energy pathways and energy centers that are in a dynamic interplay with your cells, organs, moods, and thoughts.”[ii] In modern times, research from pioneering scientists, psychologists, and doctors such as William Tiller, Bruce Lipton, Candace Pert, Fred Gallo, Roger Callahan, David Feinstein, and Dawson Church, all PhDs, along with many, many others, have demonstrated that it is the subtle energy system, fed by a universal intelligence or life force energy that intelligently guides the thousands of marvelous processes accomplished by our cells. Although we may not see this intricate system of finer, purer matter which flows through the “subtle energy system” of our bodies, it plays an essential role in our health. Dis-ease at all levels originates from blocks or disruptions in our subtle energy system. Getting to the root cause, or source is vital, and depression is no exception.

Degrees or Vibrations of Energy

At the quantum level, the spiritual and physical matter of our bodies has different frequencies or vibration. In her book, Feelings Buried Alive Never Die, Karol Truman explains: “Anything that is matter has energy vibration. Energy is a force that has many forms . . . the food you eat, the clothes you wear, your hair, your nails, your glands and your organs all have energy. Everything about you is energy.[iii]”

The more light or truth inherent in a particular matter, the higher the vibration; the less light or truth, the lower the vibration. So in addition to universal life force energy, which comes through our Savior and Creator, and has the highest, purest frequency, we also have negative or low vibration energies at work in our mind body system. (This is part of the opposition in all things spoken of in 2 Nephi 2:11).

Our beliefs and feelings, another form of “immaterial matter,” also have different vibrations or frequencies. E-motions are in fact, “energy in motion.” Positive thoughts and feelings have a higher vibration than their negative counterparts. A group of scientists led by Dr. W. Jerome Stowell, measured the frequency of a dying woman’s prayers and found that the “brain of a woman alone and dying in communication with God had registered more than 55 times the power used by a fifty-kilowatt broadcasting station sending a message around the world.”[iv]

When the Lord said, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts,” he was describing a scientific fact, that God’s thoughts have a higher frequency, degree, or energetic vibration than man’s thoughts.

The Need to Overcome Darkness is Part of Our Mortal Learning Experience,

Not Evidence That We Are “Bad”

If you are depressed you may be wondering, “How can I have negative energies or darkness weighing down the vibration of my mind-body system when I am trying so hard to do what is right?” Consider the Prophet Micah who said, “When I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me” (Micah 7:8). Job lamented, “When I looked for good, then evil came unto me: and when I waited for light, there came darkness” (Job 30:26). Knowing the inevitable reality of our mortal encounters with darkness the Lord promises “To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace” (Luke 1:79).

Let’s explore how “darkness” (negative beliefs and negative energies) becomes part of our mind-body system. In the Lord’s discussion of the spiritual and scientific principles of light and truth in Doctrine and Covenants, He explains two ways in which we experience a loss of light: “And that wicked one cometh and taketh away light and truth, through disobedience, from the children of men, and because of the tradition of their fathers” (Doctrine and Covenants, Section 93:39, emphasis added).

It is important to clearly understand this scripture because the last thing a depressed person needs is another “guilt-trip” and more self-condemnation. First, disobedience means that light is lost due to breaking the laws that bring light. This happens when individuals sin, but it can also happen because we simply do not know or understand or know how to apply or live the laws or principles that increase light in our mind body system. We came to earth to increase our knowledge and to experience those principles.

Peggy adds: I have a little theory I call the “Naked Lamanite Theory” which explains why we often find ourselves light-starved despite our best efforts. In the Book of Mormon we read about numerous conflicts between the Lamanites and Nephites. When the Lamanites showed up to battle “naked,” (with only a loin cloth and crude weapons), the Nephites didn’t need much armor or much better weapons to win the battle. However, when the Lamanites were prepared with armor, entrenchment, and more sophisticated weapons, the Nephites had to up the level of their preparation and quality of their weapons to win the battle. The laws we live and understand may have been just fine for less challenging times. They may have worked well for our parents; but, in our day, we are up against the most advanced and sophisticated forms of evil that have ever existed in this world and we need more armor and more “weapons” (knowledge, tools, power) in order to prevail against the challenges that bombard us. We need to add to our arsenal of strategies to support us spiritually, emotionally, and physically.

We Came to Earth With An Endowment of Light

We are literally “children of light” (John 12:36, D&C 106:5). The energetic fields of our mind body system not only “hold” the beliefs which have been developed through our mortal experience or passed down generationally, but also the veiled memories of our premortal life, and the blueprint for our eternal possibilities. The Lord says, “Behold, here is the agency of man, and here is the condemnation of man; because that which was from the beginning is plainly manifest unto them, and they receive not the light.” (D&C 93:31. We have the truth of who we were, who we are, and who we really can be, flowing within us. When we believe or act contrary to the truth inherent in our own mind-body system, we will feel a loss of light, even darkness, which may be imperceptible until we become ill with depression or some other kind of dis-ease. Healing from depression requires us to challenge ways in which we have ignored or “disobeyed” our own inner voice (most often in trying to please others). Earthly efforts to connect to this endowment of light may require that we eat differently, think differently, and care for ourselves in new ways.

False Traditions Rob Us of Light

The second way the scripture above mentions that light is taken from us is through the “traditions of [our] fathers.” Ironically, our families, a cherished source of tradition, can also pass down belief systems that rob us of light. In the science of energy, it is believed that along with our DNA, we inherit energetic “thought fields” which contain the beliefs and experiences of our parents and ancestors. Part of our healing journey through depression is to challenge belief systems that keep us stuck. In energy psychology terms, we need to “clear” these generational negative energies from our mind-body system.

This is especially true if there has been shame and abuse in our families, although even the best families can pass down habits and beliefs that are limiting. Consider the powerful work we do as we work to change generational beliefs and bring them in harmony with the principles of light and truth. Darla shares an example:

In my family, the tradition had been handed down for many generations to connect performance with worth.Common vernacular when we have been too sick or too tired to get anything done has been to say, “I was totally worthless today.” It is easy to see where this attitude could have originated in earlier days when survival may have depended on constant productive physical labor. However, it is a good example of a false belief that has not served me well at all, especially in times of extended illness. In D&C 50:23 we read, “And that which doth not edify is not of God, and is darkness.” There was nothing edifying about believing I was worthless when I was not being productive. One day when I was praying about this, I felt the Spirit confirm that I was precious to the Lord no matter what, and I wept with joy. I had totally lost touch with that reality. As I continue to clear the negative results of the false belief that I must prove my worth by productivity, and as I focus on the inherent worth of family members, living and dead, I begin to sense the power of this cleansing, light-giving process.

Not only do we do the proxy work of providing ordinances for our ancestors, but as “Saviors on Mount Zion,” we can also help to change the energetic/spiritual connections that flow from one generation to the next: “And now, my dearly beloved brethren and sisters, let me assure you that these are principles in relation to the dead and the living that cannot be lightly passed over, as pertaining to our salvation. For their salvation is necessary and essential to our salvation, as Paul says concerning the fathers—that they without us cannot be made perfect—neither can we without our dead be made perfect” (D&C 128:15).

In a classic discourse, LDS therapist, Carlfred Broderick[v] presents the concept that many valiant spirits volunteered to come to homes where they would innocently experience shame and abuse in order to purify their lineage. Through the power of the atonement, they become “Saviors on Mount Zion,” or “chainbreakers” who clear the poison of sin, anger, anguish, and violence from their family line so that both downstream, and upstream, that line may become pure.

The healing tools that are now available to us aid us in this quest. One sister who recognized her role as a “chainbreaker” shares:

In my family line, there is a long history of women who have suffered from sexual abuse, coupled with a long history of men who have struggled with pornography and immorality. Although the women in my family have been valiant LDS mothers from whom I have gleaned much strength, I have wrestled to overcome the passivity, low self-esteem, and lack of skills, which allowed my foremothers to endure such unholy treatment in their marriages. I have used many tools, including prayer, priesthood blessings, temple worship, self-help books, guided imagery, Rapid Eye Therapy, and energy psychology tools, to heal from depression and create a different life for myself and my daughters. Recently, I had an experience which demonstrated to me the beauty of healing from the “traditions of the fathers,” or in my case, the “mothers.” As I was prayerfully meditating, I saw my grandmothers and mother come to me, one by one, each bearing a gift. The gifts were unique and delightful, the “gift of managing money;” “the gift of valuing modesty in dress,” “the gift of love for music,” “the gift of valuing my feminine body.” In my mind came the words, “Lay hold upon every good gift and touch not the evil gift” (Moroni 10:30). As the Lord has helped me to clear the negative belief systems, negative energies or “negative gifts,” from my heritage, all that remains are the positive gifts. I feel that my foremothers and I are now truly connected with purified “bonds of charity.”

The Promise of Energy Psychology

This sister’s quest for healing was aided by tools which helped her experience joy in her life now, rather than continue in a life of suffering due to abuse and false traditions. The new paradigms and interventions emerging from the science of our subtle energy systems are truly exciting! They have given birth to profoundly effective and rapid interventions for healing emotional and physical disease that compliment and enhance the effectiveness of traditional healing strategies.

Darla says, “Various kinds of energy work have given me vital puzzle pieces in my quest to overcome depression. Because of it, at several crisis times in my life, I’ve learned how to reorient myself, feel the renewal of reconnection with light and truth and the Lord, and move ahead. In D&C 88:11 we read, ‘And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings.’ Wandering in my own personal wilderness, craving light and guidance, I’m so grateful each time I am enlightened, have my understanding is quickened, and feel renewed connection with the Spirit.”

Energy psychology pioneer, Dr. David Feinstein defines energy psychology as an approach to psychotherapy that is based in the principles of acupuncture and healing traditions that work with the body’s energies. Energy healing tools are a complement to traditional medical care. Many techniques based upon these principles have been shared by our readers, although the most widely known is Emotional Freedom Technique or “EFT.” (We will give specific ideas on how to use EFT in the next article in this series.) The beauty of energy psychology techniques, such as EFT, is that as we clear negative emotional energies from our body, we increase the flow of positive, life force energy, and activate our body’s abilities for self-healing. Candace Pert, PhD describes the benefits of everyday emotional healing: “When emotions are expressed . . . all systems are united and made whole. When emotions are repressed, denied, not allowed to be whatever they may be, our network pathways get blocked, stopping the flow of the vital feel-good, unifying chemicals that run both our biology and our behavior.[vi]”

“Thy Faith Hath Made Thee Whole”

Peggy shares a personal lesson on what it means to be “whole:”

I got a new yoga CD, and part of the practice is to reach up your arms to heaven and allow chi or life force energy and light to flow into your body, simple breathing and accepting this gracious gift.[vii] Each breath releases old, unwanted energies and breathes in new life.  It is gentle and encompasses the whole mind-spirit-body connection.  What a change that is from the "do, do, do" mentality that is so ingrained that it has felt like an addiction. Could the Atonement really be so broad, so universal, that a breath can cleanse us, ie. the "breath of life?"  All of these eastern ideas move me closer to the gospel and to the temple, not farther away. But they do move me farther away from the shame and "false traditions of my fathers.”

I woke up one morning full of thoughts about connection. Spirituality is about connection with God and the power of heaven. True religion increases our connection with God. God's greatest desire is to connect to us, and allow His light to flow into our bodies and cells and give us life-giving, healing light (energy). When I wrote down my thoughts about "connection" being the whole point of the gospel, I thought to myself, "Why is it so hard to believe that the Savior's greatest joy is to just connect with us, to sit together, even saying nothing, just allowing us to be in His presence and share the same space.It's so simple, but so often I’ve been too busy trying to work my way into heaven to get the message.  

The questions for us is not "How much can you suffer?” but “How much joy can you hold?”[viii] Simply connecting with God, stretching up our arms and allowing his joy to flow into us and heal us, allowing Him to flow into us-- can be the most powerful prayer ever.

Understanding the holistic nature of our mind/body system gives new life to the Savior’s concept of being “whole” as part of healing. The therapeutic principles we are discussing in this series invite us to unify our minds, bodies, and spirits (1) through seeing our bodies as a sanctuary for revelation and nourishment; (2) through the practice of mindfulness which invites connection with God’s light and our divine selves; and, (3) through the use of energy psychology techniques which work at the quantum spiritual/emotional level to clear negative energies and limiting beliefs. These practices are based upon exciting and eternal gospel truths, another witness to President Packer’s testimony that “The study of the doctrines of the gospel will improve behavior quicker than a study of behavior will improve behavior.” We believe that the Lord has prepared these tools “for such a time as this,” and that through the process of healing from depression, we can be led to a gratifying “new view” of ourselves, of God, and of the world.[ix]

Resources for Using Energy Psychology and Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT):

• To find discover the latest research and find qualified practitioners, you can visit the following professional organizations: Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology (ACEP) www.energypsych.org and the Association for the Advancement of Meridican Energy Techniques (AAMET) www.aamet.org
• A powerful resource written by an LDS professional which uses a Christ-centered approach along with energy psychology is Two Weeks to Health and Well Being by Melvin Fish, Ph.D. This book is available at www.drmfish.com
• Another self-help site which offers EFT for a variety of issues, including depression, is For $3.95, you can sign up for a 3 day trial membership and experience video-taped EFT sessions with Carol Tuttle, an LDS Master Energy Therapist.

Click the following links to connect to earlier parts of this series;

Part One    Part Two    Part Three    Part Four

Exploring Options for the Treatment of Depression, Part Five: “Let There Be Light”: Introduction to Light or Energy Based Therapies 

Children of Light

Darla says,

I crave the light. My biggest quest in life has been to know what is real and true. Depression pulls me into darkness and fills my mind with thoughts that are not true, so overcoming depression is central to my well-being. Alma 32:35 offers guidelines: “O then, is not this real? I say unto you, Yea, because it is light; and whatsoever is light, is good, because it is discernible.” This article is all about light, about discerning what is real and true in regard to health in every part of our beings: physical, emotional, and spiritual. Peggy and I invite you to ask the Spirit to confirm which of the ideas presented here might be helpful for your personal growth and progress.

As children of light we have a natural affinity to light and truth, but we are born into a world where ignorance and darkness continually challenge us. Ephesians 5:8 tells us, “For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light.” Light and truth increases as we open our minds to the truths the Lord is willing to teach us.

In days gone by people had no idea that microbes (bacteria, fungi, and viruses) existed. However, once the microscope was invented, a whole new world of microbiology became accepted science, which played a profound role in understanding and controlling disease epidemics. Today, new discoveries in regard to the mind, spirit, and emotions are making inroads on the epidemics of depression, anxiety, and addictions. The marriage of Eastern and Western science has opened up a whole new world of healing tools based upon the concept of “energy,” “life force,” or “light.”

Our purpose in this article is to connect this concept of healing light with the gospel concept found in D&C 50:24: “That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.”

Review

Let’s review a few principles covered previously in this series:

(1) Our spiritual and emotional body is holistically connected to our physical body. To treat any disease, we must consider all aspects of our being. Being able to connect to the emotions held in our body is an essential part of healing depression and related emotional illness.

(2) Within every cell of our bodies, within the very elements that comprise our bodies, is the light of Christ, literally, the "light” (energy) and “life” (life force) of the Creator of the world. The “breath of life discussed by King Benjamin (Mosiah 2:21) which preserves us, and allows us to “live and move” from “day to day” is a life force that surrounds and intelligently communicates with our cells. Consider this explanation by eminent molecular researcher, Candace Pert, PhD, “We know that the immune system, like the central nervous system, has memory and the capacity to learn. Thus, it could be said that intelligence is located not only in the brain but in cells that are distributed throughout the body, and that the traditional separation of mental processes, including emotions, from the body is no longer valid.[i]”

(3) Within each individual is a capacity for self-healing as we learn to access the resources inherent in our mind-body system. Many holistic or complimentary practitioners tell us their job is simply to remove obstacles that may be blocking the body from its natural ability to heal itself. The practice of mindfulness, “be still and know that I am God,” (discussed in Article IV) helps us learn to connect to our deepest spiritual and emotional selves; connect to God’s light, truth, and intelligence; and to connect to the multiple coping resources inherent in our mind and body system.

The Spirit and Emotion Level of Healing

A new concept we want to add is this: Disease, including depression, begins at the quantum level. Quantum is the smallest known quantity, which is vibration or energy. Medical treatment that aims to heal the physical body, deals only with the symptoms. The core of our symptoms exists at the quantum energy level. In energy science we say: “Where the energy goes, the body follows.” It is an eternal principle that things are first created spiritually before they manifest physically (Moses 3:7). When a medical treatment fails to relieve symptoms, it is evidence that the body needs relief at the quantum (spirit and emotion) level. This is especially true for depression.

Darla shares, “Like many people, I’ve had life-long physical challenges compounded by emotional challenges. Maybe it has been a blessing in disguise that I could rarely find answers in conventional medicine, so was compelled (and led) to turn to alternative medicine, including the energy clearing therapies we will be discussing. Early on, before I began to understand the scientific and spiritual basis of these therapies, they seemed strange and required a total leap of faith. But I was desperate enough to try anything that was not invasive or harmful, and soon learned that energy therapies were real and effective, and could be key to improving both my emotional and physical health.”

The bodies of living beings are composed of both physical and spiritual matter. Consider Joseph Smith’s teaching on the nature of our bodies: “There is no such thing as immaterial matter. All spirit is matter, but it is more fine or pure, and can only be discerned by purer eyes; We cannot see it; but when our bodies are purified we shall see that it is all matter” (D&C 131:7-8).

Inherent in our living bodies is spirit matter which is actively at work, yet which cannot be seen. In addition to our own intelligence and spirit, we are infused with the light of Christ. In D&C 84:45 we read, “for the word of the Lord is truth, and whatsoever is truth is light, and whatsoever is light is Spirit, even the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” From the revelations of Joseph Smith we know that the light of Christ is an intelligent, life-giving, pure matter. In other cultures, this life force is known as “chi,” “prana,” or “mana.” (Note the similarity of “mana” and “manna” or “bread of life” which God fed to the Israelites.) In earlier times, life force energy was only understood by cultures or individuals who were blessed with a super-natural ability to sense or even see this finer, purer matter.

Over a period of 5,000 years, Eastern healers developed a meticulously documented understanding of how life-force energy flows in the body. Dr. David Feinstein explains, “Your body is composed of energy pathways and energy centers that are in a dynamic interplay with your cells, organs, moods, and thoughts.”[ii] In modern times, research from pioneering scientists, psychologists, and doctors such as William Tiller, Bruce Lipton, Candace Pert, Fred Gallo, Roger Callahan, David Feinstein, and Dawson Church, all PhDs, along with many, many others, have demonstrated that it is the subtle energy system, fed by a universal intelligence or life force energy that intelligently guides the thousands of marvelous processes accomplished by our cells.

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