LIGHT IS A VITAL FORM of healing energy that many of us take for granted. Growing up in Norway, I became conscious of the impact of light on my health and well-being at a young age. Even though the population in Norway is very health conscious and fortunate to live in a beautiful and prosperous country, our per capita rates of depression and suicide are some of the highest in the world. This is to a large degree attributed to symptoms associated with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). One part of my personal healing journey was moving in 1984 to America, where I have studied and experienced many forms of healing therapies, including innovative work with light and color therapy.
With a professional background as a writer and communication consultant, I was moved to begin research about how it is that colors communicate light energy; I set out to develop a draft for a book on the subject of the human connection to color and light. Ten years have passed since then, because, as light (and life) goes, there were multiple perplexing and mysterious dimensions to explore. Little did I know that my work would lead to a quest that has taken me to the front edge of quantum physics research and the mind-body connection.
In 2011, I began to formulate Alpha Element Theory (AET) based on the physiological connections we have to color and light energy. In the fall of 2012, my research led me to posit a hypothesis with regards to how our four levels of energy (physical, emotional, mental and spiritual) relate to light energy in our bodies, specifically the circadian rhythms — the body’s 24 hour “clock.” The rhythmic expression of this clock is fueled by light and regulated by the hormone melatonin; the circadian clock gene itself is situated in the anterior hypothalamus in the brain. This clock gene is a key member in our biological memory, adding a quantum aspect to the molecular machinery of our bioenergy and genetic expression.
The significant impact the circadian rhythms have on our health and well-being cannot be overstated. The World Health Organization has declared shift work a health hazard and scientific evidence has correlated shift work with the development of breast cancer. The Center for Chronobiology at the University of San Diego, which is dedicated to studying the circadian rhythms, has noted that research indicates a strong link between the efficacy of cancer treatments and the circadian rhythms. This means that the specific time of day that remedies, medications, chemotherapy and cancer treatments are taken is of critical importance, impacting dosage as well as the effectiveness of such treatments. The bio-energetic, mind-body connection that human beings have to light may explain the healing impact of color and art. Psychologist Carl Gustav Jung believed that important processes were involved in the art of making and coloring mandalas and used this as a therapeutic method in both his personal life and with his patients.
Our bodies are rhythmic natural wonders, and our organs are all synchronized to the symphony of the circadian clockwork. Scientists believe there are the four primary clock molecules in our body located in the liver, kidneys, heart and brain. At the Alpha Element Institute, we believe that the oscillations of these molecules may constitute an internal architecture of vibrations, creating a framework for an energetic signature and a communication system of light energy in the body.
As a result of the significant impact of light energy on health and healing, I enrolled in the Master’s Program of Holistic Health Studies at St. Catherine University; I am currently working on my master’s thesis on the link that the principles of quantum physics may provide between Western medicine and alternative healing therapies. I also teach courses on light energy and health and healing in the continuing education program at Normandale Community College’s Integrative Health Education Center.
The relationship between light, colors and the bodymind is profound. As human beings, we relate to light and colors on instinctive, emotional and intellectual, as well as spiritual levels. Light is a teacher, both in our relationship with ourselves, our environment and our connection with each other. Light and colors provide a link to our consciousness of the external world, as well as our inner realms.
My personal healing journey has been shaped by this passion and fascination for colors and light; it has fueled my professional quest for understanding and inspired my life’s work to be a catalyst for positive personal transformation and social change. It is with humility and gratitude that I continue on this healing journey, which is enlightened daily by my friends, family, students, colleagues and clients. The book about our connection to the alpha elements is set to be published in the first quarter of 2014.