Return to Wholeness

January 11, 1999
Simon, a neurologist by training and director of the Chopra Center for Well Being, invites cancer patients to acknowledge the unity of their physical, emotional and spiritual selves in order to become more active, effective participants in their own healing. Simon begins with a refreshingly accessible discussion of the mechanics of cancer, then reviews a spectrum of healing techniques including enhanced nutrition, visualization, medication, journal writing and expressive movement. While the book's message can be applied to all forms of the disease, the mind-body relationship in breast, prostate and colon cancer is discussed in detail; one useful chapter helps readers sensibly assess experimental treatments. Though Simon cites the Indian tradition of Ayurveda as inspiration for his holistic approach, the book is devoid of jargon or agenda and is supportive of Western treatment as well as less drastic interventions. The author's reasonable, calmly intelligent voice is the book's great strength--with his compassion for the confusion as well as the pain cancer causes, and his humility in the face of the mysteries of illness and health, Simon sounds like the family doctor most of us would love to have. While the book may be too general for readers already familiar with holistic approaches and offers little new information, it provides an excellent overview for those pushed by cancer's crisis to consider new alternatives in healing.