The 5-Minute Mind Hack to Shift Your Health and Life

Mind Body Rewire
Jun 2
4 min read

By Jenny Peterson

I want to clear up one of the most misunderstood concepts in healing and manifestation: visualization. Maybe you’ve tried vision boards or positive affirmations and thought, “Why isn’t this working for me?”

If that sounds familiar, keep reading — because it’s not about fluffy mindset tricks. It’s about your brain’s built-in GPS system: the Reticular Activating System (RAS).

When you understand how it works, you'll realize you can use it to shift your mindset, accelerate healing, and attract the life you actually want.

The Science of Visualization and the RAS

Did you know your brain has a filtering system that controls what you notice and focus on?

It’s called the Reticular Activating System (RAS) — a small but powerful bundle of nerves in your brainstem. It acts as the gatekeeper between your subconscious and conscious mind.

Think of your RAS like a GPS. You set the destination — and it finds ways to get you there. Focus on fear? It will find more fear. Focus on healing? It will find more signs of healing.

Here’s how it showed up in my own life:

When I was sick, my RAS was laser-focused on fear. Every morning, my brain would scan my body:

“What hurts today?”
“What symptom is still here?”

And guess what? I always found something. Every. Single. Time.

But once I shifted my question to, “What feels good today?” — things began to change. I noticed little signs of improvement: calm breath, the ability to sit longer, subtle ease. These tiny wins became proof that healing was happening.

Reflective question: What’s the first thing you focus on when you wake up? Is it symptoms? Fear? Pain? What if you asked instead, “What feels good today?” What signs of healing might you notice?

Real-Life Examples of RAS in Action

You’ve probably seen your RAS in action without realizing it:

You buy a new car, and suddenly everyone is driving it.
You find out you're pregnant, and now it seems like every woman you see is pregnant too.
You're in a noisy room, but when someone says your name — you immediately hear it.

That’s your RAS. It’s always scanning for what’s important to you — and it finds more of it.

How to Program Your RAS for Healing

Here’s the good news — you get to choose what your RAS focuses on. Your thoughts and feelings act like commands.

Say “I’m always sick,” and your RAS will look for proof.
Think “I’ll never heal,” and your RAS will deliver more evidence of that.
Focus on fear, and your RAS will filter the world through a fearful lens.

What if instead, you focused on:

Freedom
Confidence
Energy
Trust in your body

With our clients, we use “Messages of Safety” to help redirect their focus. One of the most powerful tools on that list? Visualization.

But not the kind of visualization that keeps your attention on your body. We want your focus on your future — on the life you want to live.

When I visualized during my healing, I saw myself:

Driving again
Laughing and playing with my son
Eating freely at restaurants
Feeling strong and happy
Teaching on Zoom

All of those things came true — and they started as mental images.

Why Vision Boards Alone Don’t Work

Vision boards are fun. They’re popular. But by themselves, they’re not enough.

Your RAS needs:

Emotion
Repetition
Full sensory engagement

Just looking at a vision board and thinking “Someday...” keeps your goal in the future. That won’t rewire your brain. You have to feel it, smell it, hear it, and live it in your mind as if it’s already here.

How to Start Visualizing to Heal

Visualization is simple — but it requires consistency. You won’t reprogram your brain with one session. This isn’t about instant gratification. It’s about showing up, daily, for your future self.

Here’s how to begin:

Step-by-step Visualization Practice

Make a list of things you want to do or feel. (e.g., hike, travel, eat freely, move confidently)
Describe how those things would make you feel. (e.g., calm, happy, free, confident)
Write a visualization script. Imagine yourself living those experiences. Add detail. Include sights, sounds, smells, and — most importantly — the emotions.
Record your script using your voice. Your own voice has massive power over your subconscious. Play it every morning and every night.
Redirect throughout the day. When fear or symptom focus creeps in, press play in your mind. Replay the movie of your desired life.

Discipline is what makes this work. Everyone visualizes. Most just do it in the wrong direction — imagining worst-case scenarios. But that can be reversed.

Reflective question: How often do you allow yourself to imagine your ideal outcome? How can you make visualization part of your daily healing practice?

You don’t need to know the “how.” If you’re obsessing over how it will happen, you’re trying to control the outcome. Your RAS will figure out the how. Your job is to set the destination — and feel it as if it’s already done.

Final Thoughts: Be the Rebellious Healer

Let’s recap:

Your RAS is your brain’s GPS.
You program it with focus, repetition, and emotion.
You don’t need a perfect plan. You just need to start.

Don’t overthink this. ✅ Make your list. ✅ Write your script. ✅ Visualize it daily — no excuses.

Be the rebellious healer who chooses trust over fear, action over excuses, and healing over hopelessness.

Jenny Peterson is a Chronic Illness Expert and the Founder of MBR (Mind Body Rewire). She helps those struggling with multiple chronic symptoms reclaim their health and freedom—without diets, detoxes, or pills.

For 10 years, Jenny worked as a holistic practitioner, relying on supplements, diet, and detox protocols to support healing. But when she faced her own chronic health struggles, those methods failed her.

Determined to find a real solution, she turned to mind-body healing. Using the very techniques she now teaches, Jenny fully resolved Lyme disease, digestive issues, panic attacks, skin conditions, cystitis, and more. Her own transformation ignited a mission: to help others break free from chronic symptoms and take back control of their health.

Ready to say good-bye to symptoms and hello to freedom? START HERE