Happy Thoughts Make Happy Molecules

It was October of 1990 and I was suffering from a severe relapse of Epstein-Barr virus and the accompanying exhaustion and depression. My ex-husband, George Hamilton, suggested I visit Dr. Deepak Chopra at the Maharishi Ayuveda Healing Center in Lancaster, Massachusetts. I didn’t want to leave my kids. I didn’t want to go at all but I forced myself to get on the plane. I was desperate for something that would help me.

When I met Dr. Chopra, I was taken by surprise at the first question he asked me after we said hello.

“Are you happy?” he asked.
“Well, no, not really,” I answered, thinking that I probably wouldn’t be here if I was happy. “This hasn’t been the happiest period of my life, that’s for sure.” I went on to list all the things that were wrong in my life with my health and the recent Epstein-Barr diagnosis at the top.
He looked at me and smiled his lovely, kind smile. I waited for him to give me the secret to a happy, healthy life.
“Alana, do you know how to meditate?” he asked.
“Well, I tried transcendental meditation in the ‘70s but I didn’t stick to it,” I answered.
“I’d like you to try it again. Do you remember the mantra you were given?”
“Sort of,” I said. “But that was so long ago. I’d prefer it if you gave me a new one.” He smiled his gentle smile. “Fine,” he said. “Then, I’d like you to go into silence for two days. Don’t speak to anyone and start meditating twenty minutes twice a day. I’ll give you your mantra now and we can meditate together if you like. Then I’ll see you after your two days of silence.”
“But what about my Epstein-Barr”? Surely, he must have some magical treatment plan for a miracle healing.
“Just begin meditating, Alana.” He added, “Happy thoughts make happy molecules.”
I’ll never forget that. I couldn’t believe I’d come all the way to Lancaster, Massachusetts, for the famous Dr. Chopra to tell me, “Happy thoughts make happy molecules.”

It took some time for me to fully understand it. So simple, yet so magically true. For the rest of the stay, I devoured his books and watched his tapes and tried to take it in. I read an interview where he talked about the relationship of the mind and emotions on the body. One of his comments stood out to me: “A sad person has a sad heart, a sad immune system, sad skin – everything is sad.” I wondered if that was why my own immune system had been so lowered – because of the deep inner sadness I’d carried around for so long and only recently gotten in touch with. I wasn’t sure how to change it, but hopefully I’d learn that here.

“Happy thoughts make happy molecules” started to make more sense to me. In the simplest terms, our thoughts and feelings create our physiology and we have a choice as to how we think and feel. That’s where I got tripped up. I wasn’t sure how to change the way I thought and felt, how to choose happiness, but I was willing to learn. I’d start by trying this meditation thing.
He also said on one of his tapes, “Love is the strongest of all the happiness factors.” But wasn’t that my problem? Wasn’t I desperately trying to find love so I would be happy? It hit me that I was only counting love if it came from a relationship with a man and not placing enough importance on the love I already had in my life, the love of my children and my friends. Perhaps I needed to appreciate that love more instead of constantly searching for it somewhere else.
I went into the two days of silence and attempted my meditation. I’d never gone without speaking in my life and it was the most amazing experience. I felt an incredible peace come over me; a feeling I’d never experienced before.

Meditation was another story. It was almost impossible for me to still my racing thoughts for twenty minutes. Finally, Deepak (we were on first name basis by now) suggested that I start out with ten minutes and work my way up. I still meditate today, although I have to say it’s not always so easy for me. An interesting benefit, besides creating more harmony in your body and making you healthier, is that studies have shown that people who meditate regularly age much more slowly than people who don’t. That was another reason for me to pursue it!
Dr. Chopra told me that I was “wound very tightly and needed to learn to let go.” I realized that he was right. I’d been so vigilant all my life, never “letting go” for an instant; it was no wonder I had this deep fatigue.

I was supposed to stay at the clinic for a week but I got a terrible cold and bronchitis. Getting sick threw me into a tailspin. How on earth could I get sick when I’m at a clinic that’s supposed to help me get well? The doctors there said it was from all the toxins releasing. I was so ill. It sure didn’t seem to me that it was just toxins; I had no choice but to stay.
I panicked at the thought of being stuck there an additional week. I had already read the only book I’d brought and there was no television. What would I do? I was terrified at the prospect of just being alone with myself. It ended up being a blessing in disguise. I wrote and spent time in introspection, which I never would have done otherwise. I realized that I never stopped “doing” on some kind of self-imposed schedule. Even when I was too tired to actively do much, my mind would still be whirling or I’d be on the telephone taking care of business. Maybe that was why my body broke down – to force me to slow down and be with myself.

Deepak said in one of his books, “A peaceful mind is all you need.” I started to learn the value of being peaceful. I walked the grounds and took in the beauty of the autumn countryside. I read more from Deepak’s books in the library. I began to like feeling peaceful. I couldn’t always attain that feeling but it was a goal to work toward.

I can’t say I left the healing center a completely changed person but I learned much of value there and techniques that set me on another level of my spiritual growth. I’ll be eternally grateful to my dear friend, Deepak, for playing such an important part in my spiritual journey.