From Petri Dish to Personal Power: What Cells Can Teach Us About Belief, Biology and Change

You’ve probably been told that your genes are your destiny. That if something runs in your family—cancer, anxiety, burnout—you just have to wait for it to show up (and honestly, even writing that makes me frustrated—the whole ‘there’s nothing you can do’ narrative is so disempowering).

But what if that story isn’t true? What if your biology is listening to something far more powerful than your DNA?

That’s exactly what Dr Bruce Lipton discovered.

A cell biologist and author of The Biology of Belief, Bruce made a simple yet revolutionary observation: when he placed genetically identical stem cells into different environments, they developed into completely different cell types—muscle, bone, and fat.

Same DNA. Different outcomes. What changed? The environment.

From there, a new truth emerged—one that changed everything:

Your perception creates your biology.

• Think love? Your brain releases dopamine, oxytocin, vasopressin, and growth hormone—chemicals that nurture, repair, and energise.

• Think fear? Stress hormones like cortisol flood your system, sending your body into survival mode.

See, your body doesn't know if the threat is real or imagined. It responds to perception.

Bruce realised something radical: it’s not your genes that decide your fate—it’s the signals they receive from the environment around them. And for humans, our inner environment (our beliefs, thoughts, and stress levels) matter just as much as the physical one.

Bruce calls us “skin-covered Petri dishes.” The fluid inside? Our blood. And the chemist in charge? The brain—responding to whatever thoughts and images we hold in mind.

It’s biology meeting belief.

Most of us were never taught this. We were raised to believe our biology is fixed. That our subconscious is just… there. (I mean, I don’t specifically remember being taught anything about it. It felt hidden, unspoken—maybe even a bit mysterious or scary. These days though, I’ve tipped the scale completely. The subconscious now feels familiar, inviting, and full of opportunities. But back to the article…)

Here’s the kicker: the subconscious runs 95% of your life. And most of it was programmed before you were seven. Not by you, but by family dynamics, cultural expectations and repeated emotional experiences.

If you find yourself stuck in patterns—chronic stress, burnout, anxiety, emotional eating—there’s a very good chance your biology is simply following an old, outdated script.

This is not your fault. But it is something you can shift.

This is where the science of epigenetics comes in. It shows us that we are not victims of our genes—we are participants. Our environment, our thoughts, and our beliefs influence how our genes express.

According to Dr. Lipton, "less than 10% cancer has any hereditary linage of all. The other 90% or more of cancer is a direct response to the environment and the perception of the individual in that environment."

So the next time your inner critic pipes up with “this is just who I am,” or “this runs in the family,” you can pause. Take a breath. And remember—there’s another way.

Your subconscious mind holds the blueprint.

Your body responds to the message.

And you? You have the power to change both.

This is what I guide my clients through. Whether it’s emotional burnout, addictions, or those deeply rooted patterns of self-sabotage—your mind and body are in constant conversation. The key is learning how to change the tone. How to update the message.

Because healing isn’t just physical. It’s cellular. It’s subconscious. It’s possible.