Bridging the Divide *
Oprah talks about it. Anderson Cooper investigates it. The Texas Medical Center researches it. It is a new sensation in America. What is it? Mind-body medicine also referred to as holistic, natural, alternative, or complementary medicine.
Regardless of what it is called, a growing number of people have come to embrace it conceptually and have gained health benefits in practicing it. Philosophically, it is grounded in the belief that our physical well-being is directly connected with our minds. By releasing
emotional and mental toxins, we are able to restore our physical balance. The idea of treating body and mind together provides answers to some health conditions for which the cure has eluded traditional medicine. It may turn out to be the next best thing in medical practice. We have heard of the miraculous results that mind-body medicine has been able to achieve and it has inspired us to explore the subject in greater detail. But what are good and credible sources from which we may learn? Following are three books I recommend that were written by leading doctors in mind-body medicine. I hope that they will contribute towards a firm conceptual foundation for your holistic well being.
Healing from the Heart – Mehmet C. Oz, M.D.
Dr. Oz is vice-chair and professor of surgery at Columbia University. He directs the Cardiovascular Institute and Complementary Medicine Program at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Further, he is the health expert on The Oprah Winfrey Show and chief medical consultant to Discovery Communications. Although Dr. Oz is known for his recent best-seller You: The Owner’s Manual, a book he wrote earlier, Healing from the Heart, describes what he observed when his patients were treated with traditional cardiac care combined with energy healing, hypnosis, yoga, aromatherapy, music therapy, acupuncture, and visual imagery. The accounts of their mind-body healing are vividly described and strongly support his position that the relationship between traditional and alternative medicine should be complementary and not mutually exclusive.
Many Lives, Many Masters – Brian L. Weiss, M.D.
Dr. Weiss received his medical degree from Yale University, completed his internship at New York University’s Bellevue Medical Center, and went on to become the chief resident at Yale University Medical School’s Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Weiss is currently chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami and a clinical associate professor at the University of Miami School of Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry. In his book, Dr. Weiss innovatively brought psychiatry and metaphysics together based on his patients’ cases. Despite the controversy surrounding past-life therapy within psychiatric circles and Dr. Weiss’ own uncertainty about spiritual existence, he was startled when one of his patients recounted stories of 86 past lives during hypnosis. This realization helped Dr. Weiss treat her anxiety, depression and phobias. While it is understandable to hold skeptical views when entertaining the idea of the spiritual connections introduced in the book, you will be intrigued to consider the possibility of reaching “space between lives.”
The Web That Has No Weaver: Understanding Chinese Medicine – Ted J. Kaptchuk, O.M.D.
Dr. Kaptchuk received his Doctor of Oriental Medicine in Macau, China in 1975, and has been instrumental in migrating eastern medicine philosophy to the United States. He is an assistant professor of Medicine and director of the Asian Medicine and Healing Program at Harvard medical school. If you only have time to read one book on Chinese medicine, this is the one. This book scientifically blends ancient Chinese medicine with modern Western medicine. You can find the answers from A-Z of Chinese medicine that include such matters as energy, spirit, the five elements, yin and yang, acupuncture and herbology. Through the lens of Western culture, Dr. Kaptchuk provides a comprehensive guide on the theories and practices of Chinese medicine that focus on the mind-body connection.
*This article was first published in Yellow Magazine November 2008 issue.
Regardless of what it is called, a growing number of people have come to embrace it conceptually and have gained health benefits in practicing it. Philosophically, it is grounded in the belief that our physical well-being is directly connected with our minds. By releasing
emotional and mental toxins, we are able to restore our physical balance. The idea of treating body and mind together provides answers to some health conditions for which the cure has eluded traditional medicine. It may turn out to be the next best thing in medical practice. We have heard of the miraculous results that mind-body medicine has been able to achieve and it has inspired us to explore the subject in greater detail. But what are good and credible sources from which we may learn? Following are three books I recommend that were written by leading doctors in mind-body medicine. I hope that they will contribute towards a firm conceptual foundation for your holistic well being.
Healing from the Heart – Mehmet C. Oz, M.D.
Dr. Oz is vice-chair and professor of surgery at Columbia University. He directs the Cardiovascular Institute and Complementary Medicine Program at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Further, he is the health expert on The Oprah Winfrey Show and chief medical consultant to Discovery Communications. Although Dr. Oz is known for his recent best-seller You: The Owner’s Manual, a book he wrote earlier, Healing from the Heart, describes what he observed when his patients were treated with traditional cardiac care combined with energy healing, hypnosis, yoga, aromatherapy, music therapy, acupuncture, and visual imagery. The accounts of their mind-body healing are vividly described and strongly support his position that the relationship between traditional and alternative medicine should be complementary and not mutually exclusive.
Many Lives, Many Masters – Brian L. Weiss, M.D.
Dr. Weiss received his medical degree from Yale University, completed his internship at New York University’s Bellevue Medical Center, and went on to become the chief resident at Yale University Medical School’s Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Weiss is currently chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami and a clinical associate professor at the University of Miami School of Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry. In his book, Dr. Weiss innovatively brought psychiatry and metaphysics together based on his patients’ cases. Despite the controversy surrounding past-life therapy within psychiatric circles and Dr. Weiss’ own uncertainty about spiritual existence, he was startled when one of his patients recounted stories of 86 past lives during hypnosis. This realization helped Dr. Weiss treat her anxiety, depression and phobias. While it is understandable to hold skeptical views when entertaining the idea of the spiritual connections introduced in the book, you will be intrigued to consider the possibility of reaching “space between lives.”
The Web That Has No Weaver: Understanding Chinese Medicine – Ted J. Kaptchuk, O.M.D.
Dr. Kaptchuk received his Doctor of Oriental Medicine in Macau, China in 1975, and has been instrumental in migrating eastern medicine philosophy to the United States. He is an assistant professor of Medicine and director of the Asian Medicine and Healing Program at Harvard medical school. If you only have time to read one book on Chinese medicine, this is the one. This book scientifically blends ancient Chinese medicine with modern Western medicine. You can find the answers from A-Z of Chinese medicine that include such matters as energy, spirit, the five elements, yin and yang, acupuncture and herbology. Through the lens of Western culture, Dr. Kaptchuk provides a comprehensive guide on the theories and practices of Chinese medicine that focus on the mind-body connection.
*This article was first published in Yellow Magazine November 2008 issue.
Labels: Brian Weiss, Chinese Medicine, Dr. Oz, holistic healing, Mind body medicine, Ted J. Kaptchuk
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