I just finished reading Dr. James Gordon (MD)’s phenomenal new book The Transformation- Discovering Wholeness and Healing After Trauma. He is a Harvard-educated psychiatrist along with many other lofty titles (that I won’t get into right now- you can read about him when you read this book!) and it is clear that this is his passion that he is deeply committed to. This feels like a window into his life’s work- what an honor to be a witness of this and be along for the journey! At the time I crossed paths with him, he was the lead founder and director of the professional training program in Mind/Body/Medicine which was affiliated with the Mind/Body/Medicine institute out of Washington, D.C.. Reading this book, in fact, brings back a flood of memories to me, from the year 2006, when I did the professional training program in Mind/Body/Medicine in Berkeley, California.
That was such a gift to me and I will be forever grateful for that training which helps me in my own life consistently and helps my patients to this day (even though I did the training in 2006) in the way it has influenced my career. Reading this book is like going through that intensive training program again (which was like therapy for me at that time!) in a good way. At that time in my own life, I was diagnosed with MS in 2003 and at that time I had not really talked about what that was like. That training was just as much a benefit to me because it opened me up in such a beautifully profound way and allowed me to be vulnerable and feel safe to be vulnerable. Plus the training was so spot on; we were learning so much in every minute of the day. And I have since used the training to create a mind/body/medicine clinic for people that have MS in Calgary. I have been in stable remission and live in balance with MS in Calgary. But I digress, so back to the book!
This book offers detailed instructions on the key training points of that intensive program laced with personal stories that offer a glimpse into the soul of this type of medicine. I love learning these techniques all over again! It is so fitting at this time when personal empowerment is really front and center in the world and the reality is that you can play a massive role in your own journey of healing. This book is a guide book for anyone that has been through any type of trauma whether it be physical or psychological or anything in between. This book is about HEALING. James Gordon, MD is your worthy, yet humble, ambassador that leads you by the hand and won’t desert you for a minute in this beautiful life changing book. His stories of dealing with trauma victims all over the world in every pocket of the globe make the book feel deeply personal and yet with all his education and titles galore, what captures me is how clearly his heart is in every page. This is a gifted man who has a heart to change lives and the experience of working with trauma so deep, so wide, so varied that you know, with utmost confidence that you can trust him to lead you down any dark corridor, you must traverse, in order to fine your own inner light again. You will learn a lot by reading this book. There so many personal stories here, that move the reader to tears, by bearing witness. He is so real and free of ego. Genuine is the word that comes to mind.
You will learn techniques like Soft Belly, using art therapy, in the form of using drawing to access the right brain’s intuitive wisdom, and physical tools like shaking and dancing as ways to connect and access emotional expression and process trauma. These techniques really free you up to be yourself as authentically as is possible and also bring up to your awareness whatever needs to be unearthed for your own conscious process in the higher goal of healing trauma. The powerful medium of music is used to facilitate healing along with meditation, guided imagery, breathwork, dialogue-ing with an illness to access your right brain wisdom, biofeedback therapy and many other effective proven techniques to work with trauma. It is all detailed in this book. I read it once and I will go out and buy myself a copy because it is a great reference text on Mind/Body/Medicine which is the new frontier of healing. Thank you James Gordon for such a profound book, Namaste’…