Heal Yourself: Mind Body Spirit

Marcia Kamph, DC, MS
Robert D. Reed Publishers (2005)
ISBN 1931741476
Reviewed by Susan Pettrone for Reader Views (12/06)

The premise of this book is a simple one. If you take to heart the advice within its pages and apply the techniques described to your body and your life, you will not only be a healthier individual but a happier one as well.

This is such a simple sentence, but one that packs a lot of promise into its structure. And so it is with this book as well. Within its 122 pages (including Bibliography and index); this book puts into simple language the difficult task of making ones life a healthier one. Broken into four sections, “Heal Yourself: Mind Body Spirit,” the reader is taken through the various problems that plague the average person and in turn is given advice from Chiropractor/author Marcia Kamph on how to simplify ones life and become a better person for it.

Section one gets off to a great start, mentioning the ‘mind body emotion connection’ and how all three of these areas affect each of us in different ways. It also explains through examples and easy to understand language, how a problem in any one of these sections can affect the whole body and throw the whole of a person into turmoil. One chapter of special interest is that of Chapter 4, which address’ the ‘spine, spinal nerves and symptoms’ and how they work to keep our bodies in check, as well as how when one of these 3 areas is ‘out of alignment’ the whole of the body suffers. This was interesting to this reviewer in that I have had experience in this area with migraines and have discovered that when my spine is out of alignment, the headaches are more severe and actually longer lasting than when I make a point of keeping my body aligned. The author does a wonderful job in this chapter explaining the spine and its part in the wellness of the body and in my opinion; this is by far one of the best chapters in the book.

That said I must also be honest when I say that although I agree with the author when she maintains a healthier diet can help alleviate a number of negative situations with our bodies, I have a problem with her in that the diet described within the pages of this book seems to be a difficult one to maintain. Though the author is very thorough in her description of why each item is important, I have a hard time believing that the average reader will have the time or the resources available to maintain the diet suggested. The section on ‘food combining’ and ‘pulse test’ while interesting, are also questionable as to whether many readers will be dedicated enough to follow through on the advice within at least after the first few days.

All in all, this is an interesting book. It covers a myriad of problems and offers solutions which vary in their applications and difficulty level to achieve. Although I may not agree with all the stringent rules and suggestions within its pages in regards to diet, I still find this book to be a worthwhile read for the common sense and eye opening information about the body presented by the author. I would suggest that the reader determine what his/her needs are and whether he/she is open to new information, ideas and applications before purchasing “Heal Yourself: Mind Body Spirit..” If the reader is willing to make significant changes, then by all means purchase this book and dive into its pages. It holds many new ideas, insights and suggestions and given a chance, can educate the reader and show the path to new ways of becoming a happier healthier person….perhaps sooner than you ever imagined.

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