"IS THERE NO BALM IN GILEAD; is there no physician there? why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered?" (Jer. 8:22).This question resonated deeply for me a few years ago when I found myself on a journey from which I sometimes thought I would never return. What is it that would move an otherwise ardent follower of Christian Science since childhood to walk through the portals of the medical and pharmaceutical world in hopes of getting help?
In the summer of 2001, our younger daughter took me to an outpatient clinic in Connecticut. The physical symptoms had gotten the best of me: For four years I had experienced an outer and inner shakiness, and more recently considerable weight loss and other disturbing symptoms. Those in my family who weren't Christian Scientists were beside themselves with worry. I found myself less and less able to concentrate on daily chores and commitments, and began to doubt the efficacy of my prayers.
A team of physicians examined me and concurred that I had serious thyroid and heart dysfuntions. I was admitted to a nearby hospital, where medicine was given to calm my body. When the team left I requested a phone to call a Christian Science practitioner, as I intuitively knew it was my thinking that was in need of calming. The practitioner said that she could not ethically give me Christian Science treatment since I was under medical treatment, but she agreed to embrace me in loving prayer that night.
