What It Really Means When It's "Not just physical"

If you've been on a holistic healing journey, at some point or another I bet you've heard a healer, practitioner, coach or mentor tell you that your physical pain or symptoms are "not just physical".

Now let's get real here--if there is even the smallest part of you that has ever felt invalidated by that statement, I completely understand why.

I mean, I don't know exactly what you have gone through trying to manage your pain and discomfort, but I can imagine why it wouldn't feel good to have someone say that to you, after the very real suffering that you have been through.

To have someone say that it's "not just physical" can sometimes feel like a slap in the face--almost like your experiences, thoughts, and feelings don't matter.

Even if a big part of you knows that your pain is not just physical, hearing that statement when you're in real pain and already doing what you can, can be really triggering for some.

In the moment you might have thought, "well it's nice to get into the emotions and thoughts part of it, but I am in pain here and I need to get this taken care of!!".

If this is you, no matter what the "root cause", I want you to know that your pain is real, valid and your physical body deserves attentive care.

I can only speak for myself, but I intend the phrase "not just physical" as a good thing--it means that even when there are no answers to be found through the physical-based approaches, the answer IS there on the subtle energetic planes.

To explain this simply, one of my teachers said that Einstein's equation (E=mc^2) actually means that energy precedes matter. That means that everything that is already physical also exists energetically, too.

So in terms of your body, whatever physical pain or symptoms that are manifested ARE real. They ARE physical.

And, it is because they are physical that they are ALSO at the same time existing energetically in intangible forms (namely emotions, thoughts, and in your energy body at large).

It is not a case of either, or. Your chronic unresolving pain is not either physical OR emotional or spiritual/energetic. Your pain is very likely physical AND emotional/mental/spiritual/energetic.

To me, the fact that your pain is felt and is present in the here and now means that it's even more real, because it means that same pain exists on multiple planes, and in different expressions of itself-- through emotions, beliefs, and energetic holding patterns.

When you can see that there is no separation between all the different parts of you, you can appreciate that pain that is "not just physical" is a huge gift, and opens up near infinite possibilities for healing.

And, I'll add that it's true that holistic care can be a luxury, depending on where you are in your personal process. You won't always have the time, energy or ability to cope with the pain that you're in to delve into the deeper causes.

While on the other hand, I have also facilitated many healings where the opposite was true--in the moment of need, the physical pain was spontaneously released through non-physical approaches.

All in all, healers are people too, who can also get caught up in their own desire to prove the unseen. I know because I was there once in the beginning of my career.

And as I've learned to really step back and become the guide rather than the "doer" of healing, I've come into a deep appreciation for all expressions of the body--physical, emotional, mental, energetic and spiritual.

They are all equally important in the picture of multidimensional wellness.