Mana for the Doctor's Soul

People with high blood pressure (hypertension) often struggle with medications, side effects, and stress. Wouldn't it be wonderful if there were something people could do to help themselves with this, besides take pills? There is. In fact, there are many ways. For instance, stress reduction programs such as meditation have a growing research base documenting improvements in both hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Rainforth et al recently published a review and meta-analysis of this work * In this review, transcendental meditation showed particularly positive results. Additionally, Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction has more than 2 decades of research in stress-related illness. People take an 8-week course to learn to appreciate and modulate their inner responses, relating directly to whatever is happening in their lives. The same skills can help people with hypertension, chronic pain, anxiety, angina, bowel complaints, psoriasis, and many other conditions. Self-Identity thro...

Many people wonder how ho'oponopono or other spiritual practices could help them with conditions such as hypertension , depression, and even hearing loss. The September 2007 issue of Ethnicity and Disease published a study showing that adding classes in ho'oponopono helped hypertensive people improve their blood pressure more effectively than medications alone. It was a relatively small "pilot" study, but is a beginning in exploring what people might be able to accomplish through such processes. Others' experiences with ho'oponopono and their health situations fascinate and inspire me. Jimmy Piver, one of my friends in North Carolina, has written about his own challenges with hearing loss in his blog " Ho'oponopono for Today ". The post is titled: Why Hearing Loss and Deafness were Blessings: Or Why My Hearing Went South . He shares wisdom about mind-body interactions, how he feels these apply to him . . . and how ho'oponopono has helped him...