BOOK REVIEWS
by John Calabrese

The Cure Within: A History of Mind-Body Medicine
by Anne Harrington
W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
www.wwnorton.com
Brilliantly combining scientific and cultural references, professor Harrington weaves a captivating history that reads more like a hard-to-put-down mystery novel. One of the most fascinating chapters, “Broken by Modern Life,” explicitly details the many ways that stress plays out in the mind and body, often without our conscious realization. Harrington’s descriptions of experiments, researchers and their findings over the centuries further–and unarguably– expands the connection between the mental/spiritual and the physical.

Mind-body medicine has come a long way towards acceptance since the idea first appeared in western literature several decades ago; having a Harvard professor provide further validation only insures its growing place in mainstream healthcare.

Labor of Love: A Midwife’s Memoir
by Cara Muhlhahn, CNM
Kaplan Publishing, Inc.
www.kaplanpublishing.com
For millennia, midwives–in one form or another–assisted women in giving birth. Cara Muhlhahn, a Certified Nurse Midwife, has spent decades devoted to welcoming life. While the book might technically be a memoir, it also provides a stunning inside look at the hectic and emotional life of a midwife, along with the woman and babies they assist. In describing her decision to leave the “C.Y.A. medicine” of hospitals and birthing centers, Muhlhahn states “A woman doesn’t learn from this experience that her body is an amazing vessel of creation that can do things she never dreamed.”

The author therefore does what she set out to do, clearly showing the added risks she feels are inherent in hospital births, and how disempowering the process is to the natural instincts of a woman. Even if you’re convinced that giving birth in a hospital is the only way to go, Muhlhahn’s detailed, insightful descriptions of that process are important to know, while her arguments for homebirth are strong and convincing– and very much worth a look.

Natural Cures “They” Don’t Want You To Know About
by Kevin Trudeau
Alliance Publishing Group, Inc.
www.naturalcures.com
Kevin Trudeau has scored a milestone with Natural Cures, an expansive directory to good health, replete with specific ideas and resources about preventing and curing various diseases. Recounting his own experiences with a major heart condition, from the confusing maze of western medicine to a simple cure found overseas, Trudeau was shocked to learn how many natural treatments are not approved by the FDA, and set out to understand why. “The bottom line is this: the healthcare industry has no incentive for curing disease,” says Trudeau, because if they did, “they would all be out of business.”

Weak points: A considerable number of “facts” and statistics are not backed up; as such, there is no cited bibliography. He does not recommend any vitamins, while many others do, including Gary Null, Ph.D. Trudeau blindly advises people to “Stay away from psychiatrists and psychologists (for some odd reason lumping them together),” then says “Do dianetics/scientology” instead, while considering mental illness a “myth.” In sum total, however, Natural Cures outlines a healthier way to live, and is therefore a winner.

Possible Futures: Creative Thinking for the Speed of Life
by Jude Treder-Wolff
Lifestage Publications
www.lifestage.org
Possible Futures is about the possibilities we all inherently possess. Treder-Wolff, an experienced social worker and performer, has written a 156 page manual for using your mind in the service of your dreams. Self-awareness and its relationship to the creative process are central themes, as the author weaves together a tapestry of hope for anyone who is dissatisfied with the condition of their personal reality.
Well-cited with references, the book is a compact and efficient guide for those looking to take more responsibility for the quality of their thinking–and thus their lives–amid the turbulence of an uncertain world. The writing style is absorbing, imbued with a fascinating range of related ideas and compelling points, such as “Making the unconscious conscious, even with the dark and difficult emotions we are faced with through the process, increases our comfort level with power…” Treder-Wolff has scored a considerable career high, providing a voluminous amount of wisdom in such an accessible package.

John Calabrese is the Editor-at-Large at Creations Magazine and has a private counseling practice in Huntington, NY.