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Blending spirituality with scientific teaching is a challenge in our evidence-based world. The fear is being viewed as a quack.

As I transition from thinking of myself as a physical therapist, who is only concerned with healing the body through work on the body, to that of a medium for healing, I talk more and more with clients about what I read and listen to regarding spiritual self.

The College of Physiotherapists might be knocking on my door one day to reprimand me for crossing some ethical line. Yet, I can no longer ignore that disease is an internal affair and the healing needs to come from within.

Today, I was speaking with people about a book I have been reading by Anita Moorjani, Dying To Be Me. I have been greatly moved by this woman’s recall of her Near Death Experience (NDE) when she was terminally ill with stage-4 (the worst kind of) cancer. After reading her story, I felt a significant increase in my own inner peace, even during my busiest moments. Before, I would only feel at peace when I was meditating, listening to one of the Hay House messengers, reading A Course in Miracles, kayaking or doing some other outdoor activity. Today, I felt purpose as a messenger of love.

I don’t know how many physical therapists have Louise Hay’s book You Can Heal Your Life in their office as a reference when a client discusses their recent bladder infections, latest blood issues, or persistent, unrelenting pain in the back, neck, hip, or elsewhere. Today, as I discussed the book with one client who is in an emotionally abusive relationship, I felt she might be one step closer to realizing her own self-worth and value, and she is not what other people say she is (stupid, for example).

A hairdresser and I were discussing how we are all messengers of love. People come to her so they can feel outwardly good about themselves, but she gets to listen and guide them to awareness of their inner beauty and self-worth—we all know how much we share with our hairdressers. People come to see me because they have a body part that is in pain and won’t allow them to function to the extent that they would like. I get to help them with the physical well being, while teaching them how to manage for themselves, but I also get to discuss life and guide them towards discovering who they “really, really are” (to quote Robert Holden, Coaching Success course and Authentic Success book), and that they are lovable and worthy.

Blending spirituality with the scientific dogma we are taught in school can be a challenge in our world of evidence-based practice. The fear is of being viewed as a quack.  

However, after reading Anita Moorjani’s book, and also having read Jill Bolte Taylor’s book My Stroke of Insight, where she describes a similar experience of being an essence outside of her physical body, and having a remarkable recovery after her stroke, it is hard to deny the spiritual side to our healing process.

I hoping the knowledge that you can heal your life doesn’t put me out of business before I earn a living through my book sales or speaking engagements! I do hope you understand you must empower yourself to heal yourself, whether this is doing the physical exercises I assign, feeding your body the nutrition it needs, or doing the self-reflection needed to discover why this is happening to you.

If you are a health care practitioner, utilize the therapeutic use of yourself. This takes knowing who you really, really are.