Overview Under stress, your thinking brain doesn’t function well, and performance suffers. In the operating room, it is critical to be connected to every aspect of the case. In surgery, safely making one move at a time, allows a consistent outcome. Skillifully navigating adversity from a safe place, yields a … Read More
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
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
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 quit my surgical spine practice in 2019 because I was seeing so much surgery performed on normally aging spines. They were causing severe damage to people’s spines and destroying their lives. Frequently, the impact was catastrophic. At the same time, I was witnessing hundreds of patients having their pain … Read More
For many years, I thought that for many patients there was a point of no return because the sheer magnitude of both physical and emotional trauma. I particularly felt this way with people who had undergone many failed surgeries. I was wrong and continue to hear stories of healing in … Read More
Overview Our conscious brain interprets our internal bodily sensations. Since we are geared to survive, most of our time is spent in survival physiology. In this state, blood flow shifts away from our highest thinking brain, and we react more than we think. This scenario is the basis of most … Read More
I am excited about my recent insights that have emerged from writing my new book on RUTs. It will be released in June 2026. The title is Calm Your Body Heal Your Mind: Transcend Pain, Anxiety, Anger, and Repetitive Unwanted Thoughts. I have seen some remarkable turnarounds that I never would have … Read More
Overview Your survival reactions are meant to be deeply unpleasant, since they are protective danger signals. You have absolutely no control over them. Resisting strengthens them and fires up unwanted thoughts. As you train your brain to be less reactive to these unpleasant sensations, they will lessen. Creating “space” allows … Read More
Our medical and political system has failed. Employers have abused workers as long as there have been employers and workers. The intent of worker’s comp’s no-fault system was to both provide excellent medical care as well as improve worker safety. Although workplace safety has dramatically improved since the early 1900’s, … Read More