I covered the First International Interdisciplinary Conference on The Science of Whole Person Healing last spring where members of the scientific and professional health-care community convened, and the common denominator was a quest to end suffering. See "United in a quest to end suffering (through a change of thought)," Journal, June 2003, pp. 42–43 . It reminded me that the search for wholeness is waged not only by those in pursuit of healing, but also by those who have dedicated their lives to healing others. Both groups, practitioners and patients, seek success.
But discouragement can set in. While for some people healing is quick, for others it can be slow. For others still, it seems out of reach. If the healing quest is a spiritual journey, it sometimes runs on the fuel of hope, courage, and staying power.
"We all deal with these issues, and perseverance is essential to healing," said Dr. Wayne B. Jonas, director of the Samueli Institute for Information Biology, when I asked him recently how he deals with delay and frustration in his practice, and how important a patient's mental outlook is. "Every doctor knows someone who died after they 'gave up' trying," said Dr. Jonas. He is a leader in placebo research and presented data at last spring's conference on the placebo effect in surgery. This involves telling patients that surgery will be performed, but then not performing it when in the operating room. And the patients don't know that it hasn't been performed. Dr. Jonas reported that results are conclusive that "sham surgery is as effective or more effective than real surgery."
