Some children, while undergoing conventional treatments for cancer, are taught to use visualization and imagine the tumor being destroyed by a superhero or other animated character able and strong, with the ability to conquer formidable enemies. At first, you might think this a way to busy the young mind as a distraction from the grueling ordeal of cancer treatments.

In The Psychosomatic Network: Foundations of Mind-Body Medicine, by Candace B. Pert, PhD, Henry E. Dreher, and Michael R. Ruff, PhD, the three authors set out to make a case, based on research, for the real probability that the mind and body are inextricably linked, with emotions being the bridge between the mind and body. The report asserts the human organism is a psychosomatic network, of dynamic mind-body unity. The report seeks to demonstrate that mind-body interventions, which facilitate emotional expression, can result in physiological healing. I am not suggesting that anyone can simply think themselves well, but I am suggesting, that to ignore the power of the mind-body connection, is ignoring a valuable modality for healing.