My first year of medical school had a required course called Naturopathic Philosophy. Multiple professors giving their perspectives on being a Naturopathic Doctor (ND) taught the class. An important question in ND practice is one’s philosophy about how healing occurs. In one of the classes, the discussion of how to heal came up. Early in the course, there was one professor I was immediately drawn to. He was a Naturopathic Doctor and not an acupuncturist, but he spoke in terms of how organ systems interacted much like in Chinese Medicine.

As a quick side note, I am mildly trained in Chinese Medicine. I don’t use acupuncture in my practice but understand some of the principles. Classical Chinese Medicine (CCM) works within the context of five-element theory that believes that different organ systems interact in the body in ways that can create imbalances. A symptom might show up in the heart but that may not be where the problem originates. Western medicine has some of this concept in it as well. For example, high blood pressure may have less to do with the heart and more to do with water retention because of kidney troubles. Generally though, Western Medicine attempts to gain symptom relief within the context of the biochemistry and pathology.

The speaker that day, Dr. Dickson Thom, discussed a six-element theory based on Anthroposophical Medicine and the work of Rudolf Steiner. The five-pointed star of CCM became a six-pointed star of two interlaced triangles in Dr. Thom’s model. The bottom triangle consisted of kidney/adrenal, digestion, and lung. (See diagram 1). These organ systems are about assimilation and elimination. If there is an imbalance in one, symptoms may appear in another. For example, people with liver congestion may present with allergies. A Western Medical approach would be to give anti-histamines, resolving the symptom but not necessarily the underlying problem.

Understanding the interactions of organ systems gives a better indication of how to treat disease. It also creates great complexity even for practitioners. Seeing the interconnections between body parts is requisite to effective medicine. The goal in Chinese Medicine and Naturopathy is balance of physiology.

What isn’t on the diagram is the interaction between the physical body and the mental/emotional and spiritual components of human existence. Much has been written about these topics, and Anthroposophical medicine discusses the interaction of the mental and spiritual with the body. That day we touched on the subject when Dr. Thom stated that it takes years for people to regain health. I questioned that assumption and spoke to him at a break. I said to him, “people can heal spontaneously.” He said, “that’s true, but they don’t.”

Dr. Thom and I have continued this discussion many times over the last 15 years, honing our arguments and discussing cases that illustrate our perspective views. We shared cases where people improved in ways that neither of us expected. I had a case several years ago of a patient who, in the process of doing neurofeedback, had an opening of his heart that couldn’t be explained by the treatment. His other physical symptoms disappeared at the same time. The headaches, anxiety, insomnia, and muscle aches were gone. The neurofeedback treatment could explain some of this, including the relief of headaches, anxiety and insomnia, but not necessarily the good feeling and the muscle aches. His grief and broken heart over his divorce also lifted. What happened?

Dr. Thom and I discussed several patients with cancer that, medically speaking, should be dead but somehow healed and went into remission. There are no answers only questions. The purpose of this blog is to explore these questions. “How do people heal?” is one question, but other questions abound such as, “What is the connection between heart and brain?” “Where does mind reside?” and “How does one mend a broken heart?” It is my purpose to explore these questions, not so much to provide an answer as to ask the question.

I have had some serious writer’s block for some time with this blog. My issues started when I decided to change the brain book into a heart/brain book. The Power of the Heart appealed to me. It’s not like I was planning to write a book on the brain. My first book, Feel Well, Play Well: Amazing Golf through Whole Health was a bit of an accident. What I mean by that is that I hadn’t intended to write a book. I wanted to provide a handout of exercises to my many patients who golfed and injured themselves every summer doing so. I figured it would be a small 20-page booklet with pictures of how to do stretches before and after playing a round to prevent the most common injuries. Two hundred pages later I had 6 chapters, around 50 exercises, and other healthcare tips that helps improve not just one’s golf game, but also one’s health.

I haven’t marketed that book very well. It’s not that I’m not proud of it. It was quite the accomplishment. I wrote it in six weeks. The book poured out of me. The editing took longer, a lot longer. But it has received good reviews and my patients have loved it. My passion though is bigger than golf. Bigger than sports medicine. Bigger than not getting injured.

The brain book started in much the same way. I wasn’t planning on writing a book about the brain. I was writing a 2,000-word article about the brain and reasons that mental emotional issues arise from physiologic and social perspectives. It was to be an educational piece for the clinic’s website. The ten-page article became one hundred pages. I realized I had another book.

The trouble is that my work is bigger than just the brain. I have done neurofeedback for almost 10 years now and combine it with other natural modalities including helping the body be better at eliminating toxins, reducing inflammation, balancing nutrients in the body, and helping digestive problems. I work with a variety of ailments including neurological conditions such as MS and Parkinson’s but also mental/emotional problems including anxiety, depression, Reactive Attachment Disorder, OCD, ADD/ADHD, and autism. What has struck me in all these years is how some people have a change of heart more than a change in brain function.

I am starting to learn more about how the heart influences the brain, how imbalances in the body affect both, how trauma can be stored affecting one’s ability to enjoy life. My passion is about helping people heal. Heal in mind, heal in brain, heal in body, heal in heart, heal in spirit. Every deserves perfect health and what has occurred to me is that when we reach a tipping point of balanced people in our society, our society will become a more just, balanced, and healthy place to live. Thus far, I have helped heal one person at a time. Now I want to bring this knowledge to more people. I want to empower you, the reader to take charge of your health. I want to show you the connections I’ve learned about so that you can balance your body, achieve optimal health, and have more joy in your life.

How do we achieve this? What allows one person to become anxious or depressed in the face of underwhelming circumstances while another person walks through life with grace and happiness when their entire world is seemingly falling apart? Why does a particular biochemical imbalance lead to one diagnosis such as schizophrenia in one person and depression in another? Why do two people facing the same disaster have completely different responses to that event?  These are the questions that interest me. The answers though, don’t lie exclusively in modern science but in the depths of spirit and philosophy.