Overview Repetitive Unwanted Thoughts (RUTs) are a source of much misery. The harder you fight them, the stronger they become. Learn four aspects of solving them, and go on to thrive. RUTs are solvable by allowing your body to heal. I did not quit practicing spine surgery to manage chronic … Read More
Abraham Maslow Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) was a brilliant professor of psychology. He founded a branch of psychology known as “Humanistic Psychology,” which focuses more on psychological virtues or excellences rather than on psychological disorders. Maslow is best known for his conceptualization of “man’s hierarchy of needs.” This hierarchy is … Read More
Overview There is a clear link between being out of work and poor mental health. Modern medicine routinely fails to consider social factors when treating patients. Taking someone off work has considerable consequences. Addressing social factors must become a high priority–soon! In 2012, NBC News reported a haunting wave of … Read More
Overview In the Dynamic Healing model of illness, healing happens as you create safety physiology. Music is a well-documented way of accomplishing this state. It moves your brain away from pain circuits and towards the life you desire. Make it part of your daily healing journey. An often-overlooked truth … Read More
Humanity Won’t Survive Without Engaging its Thinking Brain No Action in a Reaction The Human Survival Paradox Consider a time long ago when survival required outrunning predators or gathering enough food to last through the day. For our early ancestors, every rustle in the grass could signal a threat, and … Read More
KEY POINTS Our survival reactions and ongoing negative programming cause us to feel guilty and inadequate. The ego is dependent on others’ opinions, so it is incredibly fragile. We create our own “stories” about ourselves to feel better – it can’t and doesn’t work. As ego becomes more set in … Read More
Objectives Thoughts interpret our physiology and are driven by it. Stress physiology creates unpleasant thoughts. Modern self-help processess are ineffective because thoughts cannot be controlled or reasoned with. By calming down and nurturing safety physiology, your body heals on its own. Quit fighting your thoughts, and nurture joy. Like … Read More
This is a followup letter from a woman who emailed me about four years ago. I had never met her and she shared a this remarkable story of recovery. Stories like this have lead me to believe that essentially anyone can learn to rewire their brain around any pain circuits … Read More
I received this story in response to a request on my website to patients who had undergone failed spine surgery. When Surgery Makes Pain Worse My fusion surgery (L5/S1) was going to be scheduled in the fall of 2015 after two prior laminectomies had eventually lost their effectiveness. My surgery … Read More
I’m sharing a story submitted through my website about an unsuccessful spine surgery, which is, sadly, all too common. This issue even has a name: “failed back surgery syndrome” (FBSS). Most of these surgeries start with operating on normally aging spines that don’t actually cause pain. The data shows this … Read More