The Art of Contrariness, Acupuncture and Living
Sara Calabro writes an acupuncture blog called AcuTake. Her background in journalism helped her found a site that is written by a variety of people on the subject of acupuncture and health. Recently she has written a book called Acupuncture Matters. Calabro says, “Acupuncture Matters looks at how acupuncture lessons can potentially improve how we approach everything from urban planning to personal finance to relationships.”
Check it out.
As an overweight person I just want to thank Gary Taubes for his stunning little book Why We Get Fat and What to do About It. I enjoyed his other book, Good Calories, Bad Calories but it was long and ponderous in its information. This little book says something that is very important and looking at the Amazon reviews seems to be something many people don’t get. I am not fat because I eat too much. If you looked at my life long caloric intake pound per pound it is probably less than someone of my weight but perhaps greater height who didn’t worry about being fat. According to studies Taubes” cites, the could be why I have so much fatigue. I eat too much because I tend to be fat.
I do feel better eating a protein heavy diet. I was fascinated that in the back of the book one diet he recommends (although not the only diet) he talks about adding in broth! As a traditional foods person I was ecstatic! Now there is yet another reason to drink my broth!
I recommend reading the book even if you tend to think in terms of a vegetarian diet for yourself that you read this book. No one diet works for everyone. My Spleen qi deficient, yang deficient, damp body prefers a diet heavy in proteins (grass-fed beef and pastured chickens and eggs). I have friends who tend towards heat and yin deficiency and they do far better on a vegetarian and mostly vegetarian diet. Food is about energy which balances what goes on in our body. I suspect has I eaten differently throughout my life I would have different food needs and a different diet might be most appropriate.
One of the most important thing in the book from my point of view was the pronouncement that fat people are not fat because they lack will power or there is something wrong with them psychologically. What Taubes says is that being fat is a symptom of something else and doctors need to look at that.
I’m frustrated. I read a lot. I read a lot of books about health. As someone interested in chronic conditions, not only as a practitioner but as a friend to someone who deals with a chronic condition, I read a lot of those books. Chronic pain is a big one. I saw The Pain Chronicles: Cures, Myths, Mysteries, Prayers, Diaries, Brain Scans, Healing, and the Science of Suffering
The author writes about how hard and difficult it is to be so afflicted. Yes, it is hard. This part is true. The frustrating part is they learn nothing. Nothing changes. It is as difficult on the last page as on the first. I may have, in this book, learned a bit about the western science behind pain. I have learned nothing in terms of helping my patients cope. I have learned nothing that gives me any more empathy than looking someone in the face who struggles daily. I have nothing new to offer them.
The downfall I see in so many of these personal journeys is that the author continues to hold out hope for their old self. Nothing will heal them except to get their old self back, no matter how many years pass. Acupuncture is never mentioned in this book except to say it didn’t work. We hear nothing of the practitioner. Although given that she says she doesn’t believe in alternative medicine, I shouldn’t be surprised. For the author any emotional stuff that goes on is FROM the pain, not concurrent with it. As an acupuncturist, of course we know that certain types of imbalances create certain emotional predispositions. Certainly as that imbalance gets worse the emotional part also worsens. However, is it BECAUSE of the pain or concurrent as part of the general imbalance?
The author and others like her continue to write as if there is no question but that they must suffer. Telling them otherwise is to keep them from listening. While I appreciate that pain and sickness seem to require suffering, both may be uncomfortable but it is our reaction to it, the refusal to give up that old self, that causes suffering.
That’s what is so hard. To really heal from whatever our wounds we often must give up that cherished self. For some people it may mean healing from a physical illness. For others from an unhappy life. Each of us has our wounds that require we grow and change. It is only by trying to remain the same that we suffer. That’s what I find sad about these books. When the author doesn’t get that they need to change–and yes those kinds of changes are a struggle. They are hard. They are momentous but only through those changes can we realize that maybe we don’t have to suffer.
I want to say that I am not saying anyone who has a chronic illness or pain must do this. It’s an incredibly difficult thing to do. No wonder people write books like this. However, if you do write a book and it is personal, please learn something first. Make your suffering different towards the end. Offer others who suffer what you suffered some hope. Give me a reason to read your book when I can hear your suffering
The books quite honestly fail when authors can’t make that leap. If you want to write about the Western thoughts on chronic pain, do so. Don’t add in your own search when you find nothing.
When I was thinking about burn out and acupuncturists, I started asking around about what different people thought. I was referred to Dan Clements who wrote The Practitioner’s Journey: The Path to Success for Alternative, Holistic and Integrative Health Professionals
Asking for a quote quickly, Dan sent me a copy of the e-book at no charge, so I read through the entire book. I’m not a big ebook fan (unless I can download it to my Kindle–my computer desk and chair just aren’t that comfortable!) but this was worth the read and I can’t argue with the price. I will argue with Dan about making sure the next book that he’s working on gets into Kindle format though.
I think any practitioner who needs a bit of insight into the business side of their practice needs to read this book. It’s reader friendly and Dan and Tara clearly speak the language of alternative care practitioners. The journey described is literally a journey and Dan uses the journey metaphor as you move through the book to describe various phases of being a practitioner and business person. It’s very helpful for any practitioner who has struggled with success and what might need to happen next in their practice. The information is practical and informative as well as easily readable.
Most practitioners can get useful information out of this book. If there aren’t any current problems in the practice, then it’s a good reference to have the next time you find yourself worrying because there are more holes in the schedule than you’d like. Check it out. You’ll be glad you did. Also, consider heading over to The Practitioner’s Journey blog and subscribing. It’s not updated as often as I’d like but the information there is very useful.
Caroline Myss’ new book Defy Gravity: Healing Beyond the Bounds of Reason
is more of a promise than a delivery.
Generally I like the ideas that Myss sets forth in her books and this book is no exception. The information is thought provoking and worth thinking about. Myss’ premise is that we are not in total control and healing comes through grace. Because of that we really can’t DO anything but pray for grace. She then goes on to talk through the various chakras about healing and issues that come up in each. There is the suggestion that there might be some way to work through the specific issues related to each section, but there is no delivery. I found that disappointing.
There are great quotes and nuggets of wisdom here. Unfortunately it didn’t seem quite as pulled together as some of her other work. For those who love Caroline Myss this is worth reading. For the rest, if you find yourself in need of a read and it’s around, check it out, but don’t expect it to offer a roadmap to healing.
Recently I read a book called, My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist’s Personal Journey
She observes that after having been through this experience she looks at people with abilities different from the norm as having different abilities–not disabilities. The author talks about her perceptions as being very different at this time. I was fascinated by the left brain right brain ideas that she brings. The right brain is the brain that doesn’t have so much chatter–that belongs to the left brain. Consider that during meditation we are always working to quiet our chatter–maybe that’s because we are working towards working our brains equally.
Anyone who knows someone who has had a stroke or any health care provider or stroke survivor should really take a look at this book. It’s a marvelous perspective that we don’t always get to see.
In searching for an answer to why do we think that sickness is wrong, I came across Deepak Chopra’s book, Quantum Healing. I’m familiar with Chopra’s work and have probably read this book long ago. However, reading it with fresh eyes, I need to recommend it to others because of a couple of important conclusions.
On issue that I had with his Perfect Health book is that health is available to us all. He makes it sound so easy. But in Quantum Healing, Chopra points out that health and illness are very complicated issues. It’s not just about the patient. It is about the environment. It can also be about karma. Chopra brings a very important detail about karma into the discussion. Karma isn’t a personal thing, as having something be personal is all about the ego. Therefore, it is not my karma or your karma, but simply karma. That means that any of us may choose or be chosen to balance help balance the karmic scales whenever there is something evil that has been done. This means that we don’t necessarily pay exactly for our sins but we pay for the collective.
Within this book there is a lot of good information and lots of things to consider. It may be a bit difficult for those without a medical background. Most of Chopra’s work is very accessible to anyone but there are parts in here where he attempts to explain some complicated ideas. Overall he does a fine job but impatient readers may get lost.
What’s Bonnie Creating?