Mindfulness resources

There are traditionally trained physicians who believe that mindfulness is a form of neuromodulation and is the least invasive from of deep brain stimulation. Since there is not much profit in this approach, it is not utilized much here in the west. There are many books on the topic of mindfulness. Here are some that have recently been recommended to me:

• Nobel nominee, Vietnamese Buddhist monk, Thich Nhat Hanh.
• Will Johnson also has a great book on the Posture of Meditation.
• www.mindandlife.org
• TNH www.plumvillage.org
• Harvard's Mind Body medicine program, www.mbmi.org
• the growing field of non-invasive neuromodulation: TMS/tDCS
• Harvard’s CNBS (center for noninvasive brain stim)

If you find any of these resources to be helpful, or have already used them, please let me know!

Post by Dr. Howard Schubiner

I wanted to call attention to a comment posted by Dr. Schubiner. Here it is:

"I was referred to this blog by a friend who is interested in my work using Dr. Sarno's concepts. I have treated a young man with very severe spasmodic dystonia, not spasmodic dysphonia I realize, but related, I believe. Anyway, he had incredibly severe and frequently occurring symptoms. I have a 4 week program based on Dr. Sarno's concepts, but utilizing a variety of cutting edge techniques (including mindfulness meditation, and therapeutic writing exercises) to help people overcome syndromes such as this. If you're interested, please visit my web site: www.yourpainisreal.com or my blog: www.yourpainisreal.com/blog
Good luck, everyone.
Howard Schubiner, MDClinical Professor, Wayne State University, Detroit, MIFaculty Internist, Providence Hospital, Southfield, MI
June 11, 2008 5:07 PM"

I don't know Dr. Schubiner, but I applaud any attempts by practitioners of mainstream medicine who are open to alternative perspectives. It appears to me that Dr. Schubiner has integrated Dr. Sarno's approach into his medical practice. Be aware that he charges a fee to enroll in his program. If anyone with SD has or does enroll, please let us know how it went!

What progess are you making?

About a dozen people have contacted me since I posted about SD as a mind-body syndrome on the NSDA support bulletin board and then started this blog. So I was wondering what kind of progress anyone is making? It might be helpful to all of us to share.

And by way of reinforcement, last week, the NY Times had a front page article on the back pain epidemic in the U.S. that begins 'Americans are spending more money than ever to treat spine problems, but their backs are not getting any better' ... 'and that many popular treatments may be ineffective or overused.'

This is exactly as Dr. Sarno describes it in his books. As long as the medical community (and patients) continues to 'compartmentalize' the mind and body in their thinking and treatments, no one is getting better. So let this be a sign of encouragement that at least there is acknowlegement that something is not working here. For those of us who have/had SD, this is kind of like getting to the point where we acknowledge that no matter what we do, our voice is not getting better. Now it's time to break out of 'status quo' thinking and consider the possibility that the mind and body interact as one. When this happens, all sorts of new possibilities for healing will occur!

A new consciousness, a new earth

For those of you saturated with Dr. Sarno and ready to move to another level, I recommend picking up Oprah Winfrey's book club selection, Eckhart Tolle's, 'A New Earth, Awakening to Your Life's Purpose'. This book is not about healing pain per se, but rather about healing your life. Like Sarno, he makes reference to the 'Ego' but Eckhart's concept is that the essence of who we are is not defined by the 'Ego'. Our essence is our 'consciousness'...the observer to who can see the Ego within us at work, as it desparately trys to reinforce and sustain itself at the expense of ourselves and others.

This is some heavy thinking and consciousness 'shifting', so you might also want to sign up for the 10 week online class conducted by Oprah and Eckhart starting March 10. Just go to her website and sign up...then read the book in advance. I am going to be there!

From my perspective, here is what Eckhart's ideas has to do with SD...once again, it is about what we focus on (the constant internal dialogue) and how this impacts our emotions and our bodies. There was a time when I identified myself as a person with SD. This 'SD identity' defined who I was, how I interacted with people, decisions I made, etc. Every time my internal dialoge reinforced this SD identity, it reverberated throughout my body and 'like a ripple of water' throughout the universe. This self perpetuating story about who I am is generated by the Ego. But I am not my Ego. I am my consciousness and am aware of the Ego and what is going on.

OK...after re-reading this post I think it best to leave it for now and simply encourage you to read his book. He does a much better job explaining his concepts than I can. But I will post any insights I gain as I continue reading and attend the online class.

Recently in the news

Now that I view things through the lens of the 'mindbody' connection, I can see the futility of our current health care approach. For example, have you noticed the new ad for a drug to manage Fibromyalgia? Like 'Restless Leg Syndrome' (RLS) we have a condition that is of 'unknown' origin and cause where all of the research focuses on how to alleviate the symptoms. And as with most drugs, there is the heavy price of 'side effects'. One of the side effects for the RLS drug is 'having thoughts of gambling'. Jon Stewart on 'The Daily Show' joked that maybe it would be better to have a drug that cures gambling with the side effect of restless legs!

The medical establishment (and our general culture) is so biased away from any consideration of mind-body connection. And when people do talk about the possibility of a mind-body connection, they tend to 'simplify' it to mean 'mind over matter' or the idea that you can 'think' or 'rationalize' your way out of an illness. It is not quite that simple.

Sarno's treatment for these conditions is education. According to him, knowledge of how the mindbody interacts to create these symptoms is the cure. But as I have said before, it is not quite that simple. It is not enough to 'know' intellectually. You have to really accept his premise. For me, this took about 6 weeks or so for it to become so engrained that I no longer 'defaulted' to the 'old' way of thinking. And one of the things I continue to guard against is the temptation to obsess about my physical conditions. When I start to pay attention to my voice quality, I ask myself 'What would I be doing right now if I wasn't concerned about my voice?' And then I go do that!

How to experience the mindbody as integrated

In Sarno's latest book, The Divided Mind, he includes stories from some of his pyschotherapists. In one story, the therapist is seeking to help the patient experience the mindbody as integrated. This seems so elusive to me...so I have been pondering it in the hope of making progress along these lines. One thing this therapist listens for from his patients are defenses that protect the patient from feeling uncomfortable, painful emotions. Here are examples of some of those defenses:

1. After describing a painful event or emotion, the person chuckles as if to brush it off.
2. When describing painful events or emotions, the person uses buffer words or phrases (probably, maybe, sort of, etc.).
3. And again, when describing painful events or emotions, reverting to the third person. ('One would feel angry when such a thing happens')

First of all, I know that I have done and continue to do all three. Many times I put a humorous twist to emotionally wrenching stories. And I know I am full of buffer words. But here is what the therapist says he does when he hears such a defense. He gently stops the person and points it out...and allows the person to fully feel whatever emotion s/he was describing in the moment. It is at this moment, when the defenses are down and the person can feel fully that there is the possiblity of mindbody integration.

So I have started paying attention to my defenses and buffers. I started by rereading my journal and circling all of the buffer words. I also pay attention to my 'self talk'. I'm not perfect, but this is start in the right direction.

Where to find Sarno books/DVD

The website with Dr. Sarno's books and DVD can be found at: www.healingbackpain.com

Here are the books to read:

1. Healing Back Pain – The Mind-Body Connection

2. The Mindbody Prescription (I believe Sarno specifically mentions SD as an 'equivalent' in this book)

3. A more recent book, The Divided Mind is good too, but it is written for medical practitioners. I found it to be a good 'reinforcement'.

I suggest reading The Mindbody Prescription first and if it resonates for you, read one or both of his other books plus view the video. You don't have to read more than one book, but I found it helpful as a way to reinforce his concepts.

You can also order his books at Amazon.com, but the DVD is only available at his site. The DVD includes a workbook which you might find helpful too. Also note that you can get his lecture in VHS format for much less than the DVD.