Healing.

What follow arose from the perspective I held thirty-five years ago when these notes were used for presentations and discussions that occurred at the time.

The universe can be conceptualized as a creative event which expresses itself in an infinite variety of ways including that of the person-in-the-world; in this wonderous act, one sees the creation of a sentinent, finite being existing in relation to a material and psychological environment. In health, the person physically grows and maintains himself by incorporating matter into himself and fighting off the various dangers which threaten his bodily integrity. The person exists as a dynamic physical structure which perpetuates itself as part of a larger material universe. Psychologically the situation is very much similar except that, in this case, the universe is one of meanings and feelings. Both physically and mentally the person is generated into existence as an interactive process of interrelated “internal” and “external” structure.

Sickness, as a manifestation of a creative universe, can be understood as a state in which the person cannot readily meet the challenge of a given situation and is called upon to muster extraordinary measures in order to maintain his continued existence. Physically, one may, for example, be unwell because malnourishment results in the depletion of one’s own substance. One may alternately, be unwell because one has contracted a viral infection; it wreaks havoc by co-opting normal cellular processes and directing them to replicate virus particles. In either case, the person feels sick in some way; the abnormal sensations draw his attention to aspects of himself-in-the-world that would otherwise have been overlooked but now become important. The body’s dynamic structure includes, not only such reactions as hunger and the mobilization of immunological systems, but also the cognitive cerebral functions which direct us to finding cures and preventative methods. Usually when one says that one is sick, one means that one is conscious of an unpleasant sensation which indicates that something has gone wrong with one’s normal functioning. At this point, a higher order of cerebral functioning is required to address the problem. The challenge facing the psychophysiological structure of the person is superior to the unconscious processes that would normally handle difficulties; more of person’s totality is involved as the intellect is recruited in the finding of a solution. All human activity can be viewed, in a somewhat negative sense, as a way of dealing with illness. Eating, having a dwelling, cleaning and dressing oneself, relating to others, working, and playing are, in addition to being expressions or manifestations of oneself, ways of preventing sickness; the person is brought into existence through such behaviours and without them leaves himself open to disease in some form.

One firstly avoids illness by means of a harmonious relationship with ones environment. However, human structure is so delicately tuned and the fates so unpredictable that regardless of the precautions that one may take, there remains an everpresent possibility of sickness. Given that one is limited in creating a healthy body and environment, the prevention of illness therefore also includes the early detection and treatment of illness; most cancers, if caught and treated early will have a much better prognosis. These illnesses that are screened for by physicians, are those that overwhelm the body’s unconscious mechanisms; once such an illness is suspected or detected, the person acts, utilizing a societal network of healing specialists, to discover and treat the source of his malaise. When the illness is untreatable in other ways, healing at this point involves a coming to terms with that which is unavoidable. Healing here involves grieving the loss and the development of peace and acceptance. All this activity is part of the person’s self-affirming creative will to joyful existence.

Sickness involves the person as a totality: physically, psychologically, and spiritually. It follows then, that healing would include three types of intervention. There are individuals within society who are specialized to provide care in each of these areas. The roles would inevitably overlap but each field of healing would have its particular vantage point and approach to the ill person. The task in healing is ultimately to assist in bringing about a new sense of wholeness of the person within the world. In itself, this might be described as a priestly function: the aim here is to reconcile the person to the reality of human existence and the ultimate Ground of that existence. The healing that brings the ill person back to physical health is that done by the physician. The psychiatrist provides a third type of healing which assists the patient with his psychological problems: his conflicts, his irrational fears, his maladaptive patterns, and so on. Though listed last, in modern society, the medical branch of psychiatry may be the professional specialty most likely to be called upon to take on all three roles.

Spiritual healing may take a number of forms within the practice of medicine. Part of the physician’s role, for example, is to minister to the ill: to share with them their misery, console, and help them come to terms with our common human fate. Even where there is physical and psychological health, spiritual needs are necessary parts of life and have to be addressed in some fashion; with the decline in the influence of the Church, many otherwise stable individuals are turning to psychiatrists and other representatives of modern knowledge, with their existential problems. In treating the more characterologically disturbed, it is also possible to reframe their difficulties in spiritual terms; what transpires in the reliquishing of infantile wishes can be understood as a rebirth, a reaffirmation of the individual’s commitment and love of life. Within the psychotherapeutic relationship, there exists the possibility of assisting the patient in radically transforming his life. The therapist is not computer programmer or mechanic of human machines; within the therapeutic encounter, there is the possibility of doing more than simply attempting to correct the patient’s thinking and behaviour. Psychotherapy facilitates the natural healing processes by involving the person in a process of self-examination within the context of a supportive, accepting, though often frustrating relationship. The person is ultimately released from his suffering as the joys and sorrows of his existence are allowed to rise to the surface and with the emergence of an attitude of thankful acceptance which sees him, the past and its experiences as a part of one divine miracle.

Thoughts and Considerations