I was away and missed Lauren Fleishman's article "The Great Back Debate" in Newsweek 26 April 2004. Thanks to Kinesiologist, Penny Davey from Bermuda who sent me the URL http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3037964/. The last three or four paragraphs on page three of the Newsweek article are very relevant to Kinesiologists. Fleishmann states that Dr. John Sarno, an attending physician at NYU Medical Center's Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine, believes that almost all back pain is rooted in bottled-up emotions. Sarno says repressed rage (eg. over your parents' divorce, sexual abuse or trouble at work) can stress the body, leading to mild oxygen deprivation, which he says will eventually manifest itself as muscle spasm, nerve dysfunction, numbness and pain. Recovery begins with recognizing the connection between mind and body. Fleishmann points out that Dr. Sarno has published no academic research on his theory and can offer little scientific proof that he's right. But his satisfied patients, who he says number in the thousands, swear by his methods and treat him like some kind of lumbar messiah. You would almost think it was a Kinesiologist being quoted. We too have only anecdotal evidence for our methods. It is exciting to hear an eminent physician speaking like a Kinesiologist. We all know that there is an emotion underlying every outage we find. Read Dr Sarno’s book "Healing Back Pain" (183 pp) and continue to offer help to people who have been told, “You will have to learn to live with it” Even simple kinesiology techniques work. One student in my BKP classes (Basic Kinesiology Practice) came with a long history of back pain not helped by surgery. She experienced increased movement and pain relief with simple techniques. She will vouch that exploring the emotions is not an ‘easy peasy’ process but is very worthwhile. Today, she runs a kinesiology clinic! Remember always that undiagnosed back pain is not the territory of Kinesiologists. Two of the many conditions causing back pain include, undiagnosed prostate or breast cancer (with secondaries in the spine) so play safe and make sure the person has been properly investigated before commencing. Kinesiologists can certainly help ease the people who have been told, “There’s nothing more than we can do”. Even the techniques in the simple one-day workshop, Stress Release made Easy can help relieve emotional stress locked into a sore back. Dr. Sarno can only see a limited number of people. Kinesiologists, do your bit and help those near you. Dr. Bruce A J Dewe MD NZRK 24 April 2004 | 
