[.ca] The Creation of Health: The Emotional, Psychological, ... (ISBN 0609803239)

From Amazon.com:
Who can help asking "Why?" when they develop a disease? According to theologian and "medical intuitive" Caroline Myss, Ph.D., and co-worker C. Norman Shealy, M.D., who is a physician, neurosurgeon, and expert on pain and stress management, the answer goes further than a medical explanation. The Creation of Health explores the emotional, physical, and spiritual patterns that form health and the stresses that can cause disease. Myss identifies eight dysfunctional patterns that lead to illness. Being aware that "negative attitudes create negative responses within the physical body" allows you to make changes toward health after identifying your emotional, psychological, and spiritual stresses. The most interesting chapters discuss specific diseases in terms of lifestyle factors, stress, and psychological patterns and energy factors, with case studies. A heart attack, for example, is "an explosion of energy attempting to break down an emotional barrier ... caused by warehousing fears and anger," says Myss. The authors alternate, rather than co-write, chapters and topics, so you know whose perspective you're reading. The theoretical sections are not easy reading, but the insights you can apply to your own health make the work immensely worthwhile. --Joan Price

Interesting? Yes. Believable? Maybe.:
While Myss and Shealy's book is interesting and thought provoking in that it introduces novel information regarding the mind-body connection, it lacks the scientific support that would make it entirely believable. Though the book's credibility is enhanced by the fact that Shealy is a medical doctor, there are far too many statements throughout that leave the reader wondering where the information came from and if it is backed by any research studies. Many valid points and theories are presented, however, they tend to be mixed in with very subjective and unsupported material. I would suggest that this book be used as a basic guideline for the current discourse about the connection between emotional, spiritual, and physical health, but that any information be further researched by consulting scholarly works in order to ensure its legitimacy.

Hmmm...:
I was skeptical of this book at first but immediately was drawn into the teachings from two differently disciplined people with one theory. What makes the book seem more credible to me was that Shealy is a medical doctor interested in holistic teaching, while Myss studied spirituality and holistic teaching and applies it to the medical field. More than anything, I saw this book as a great stepping stone to where the medical sciences are bound to go in the coming of our "New" age.I think eventually this book and the ideas presented in it need to be taken (and will be taken)into serious consideration by the medical field, as the examples used were believable and things I have seen myself. The only reason I was short on the stars is because the amount of errors in this edition drove me batty. Sorry, but I prefer not to have to stumble upon typos by a publication while reading!

"Holistic" is Not a Technique:
Myss and Shealy make clear that we are at a turning point in the diagnosis and understanding of disease. The trend in medicine to examine the influences of stress has retintroduced us to the knowledge that emotional tension is disruptive to the physical body. "...this recognition that human emotions do indeed affect physical health," they write, "has brought the traditional medical world face to face with the fundamental principle of holistic health: The majority of physical illnesses result from an overload of emotional, psychological and spiritual crises." They outline eight dysfunctional stress patterns: - Unresolved or deeply consuming emotional, psychological, or spiritual stress. - Negative (and disempowering) belief patterns. - Inability to give and/or receive love. - Lack of humor/inability to distinguish serious concerns from life's lesser issues. - Failure to exercise the power of choice in the matters of one's own life. - Lack of attention to the needs of the physical body. - Absence or loss of meaning in one's life. - Inability to face life's challenges and to acknowledge and change what is not working. The term "Holistic" refers to a way of approaching healing that incorporates a variety of therapies including traditional medicine. "Metaphorically speaking, traditional medicine represents the 'mind' of health care and the holistic approach represents the 'heart' of health care." This book is an important guideline for approaching the heart of health care -- a useful frame of reference to examine how our lives contribute to illness or wholeness, particularly those who have already become ill, their families, and their caregivers.

WHERE CAN I FIND....?????:
I too am looking for the tape for this book........

A must for your bookshelf if your in the healing arts.:
Im my small wellness center, I've sold more of this book than any other. The author gives a very precise and easy to understand discription of the chakra system, in real words than anyone can relate to and see thier own issues in. As a reference book, its fantastic. You can look up the energetic causes of most of the diseases you'll ever hear about, and Carolines sage advice on prevention. Dr. Shealy adds the eliment of the Scientific credibility to Caroline intuitive diagnoses. My copy is dog eared, highlighted and worn. It is one of my Velveteen Rabits. Bravo to the authors. :-)