Learning About Soul Medicine

Soon after I started using hypnosis to help the patients in my pediatric pulmonology practice, I went to a lecture by a well-known professor about hypnosis for patients with pulmonary disorders. After the lecture, I went to ask him how I might approach a patient with a particular problem. The professor looked at me briefly and confessed that he had never used hypnotherapy with his patients. He said he just talked about it.

Thankfully, I had started to see my patients improve with hypnosis, otherwise I might have concluded that this form of therapy must not really work, since the professor hadn’t even used it on his own.

Thus, when patients ask if I use hypnosis to help myself, I think it is very helpful when I tell them that I have personally benefitted from this mental health tool. If I did not use hypnosis, they might doubt its efficacy, just as I would have doubted the professor’s viewpoint.

I tell my patients that I often use hypnosis to help myself fall asleep, to numb my mouth when I am at the dentist, to calm myself in stressful situations, and to interact with my subconscious.

The Subconscious

I explain that I greatly value insights I have gained from my subconscious. For example, during sessions with patients, I will sometimes ask for input from my subconscious regarding how I might best help a patient.

I have relied on my subconscious to solve problems for me in my sleep, and then in the mornings I appreciate the new ideas that come up in my conscious mind. Often, it is not immediately obvious how the new idea came to be, and it’s fun to experience the “aha!” moments when I figure it out.

For example, in writing this post I had intended to start off by stating that patients sometimes ask if I use hypnosis. I was thinking about how I might proceed from that start, and then dozed off briefly. Immediately after my nap, I remembered the professor’s hypnosis lecture. After a bit of mental tinkering, I figured out why my subconscious had reminded me of this event from more than 20 years ago, and wrote the introductory three paragraphs of this post.

Source: Benjavisa Ruangvaree Art/Shutterstock

A Spiritual Perspective

In earlier posts this year I have discussed how attaining a spiritual perspective has been helpful for many of my patients. Thus, sometimes, I also share some of my spiritual thoughts with my patients. I explain that ideas from my subconscious have helped enhance my spiritual understanding.

For example, I have talked to my patients about how I learned to think differently about my vocation after I worked for several years as a pediatric pulmonologist. When the Torah is read in its original Hebrew, the connection between breath and soul is quite clear as neshama (soul) has the same Hebrew root as neshima (breath). Therefore, for years I had told my colleagues that as a pulmonologist I considered myself to be a soul doctor.

It was later in my career that I became more aware of hypnosis and how I could help people to transform lives through its use. From a spiritual perspective, I realized that I had moved away from “doctoring” people, and even from being a “physician” whose main focus is in treating the physical body. I felt that my practice encompassed dealing with both mind and body, and was better represented by the Hebrew word for doctor, which is rofeh. Translated literally, this word means “healer,” which is how I sometimes think of myself now.

Given my growing interest in the soul, when I had the opportunity to present a talk at my synagogue, I focused on the Jewish perspective regarding souls. From my readings, I learned that the Rabbis of the Talmud believed that the soul had five dimensions: The physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and a connection to God.

According to the Rabbis, in the first two chapters of the book of Genesis the soul is mentioned in four different ways: When God’s spirit (ruach) floats over the face of the deep before the beginning of creation, this can be characterized as the emotional dimension of the soul. When God breathes life (neshama) into the first man, Adam, this can be characterized as the mental dimension. Adam then becomes a living being (nefesh chaya), which can be characterized as the physical and spiritual dimensions.

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In addition to the aforementioned connection of soul and breath (neshama/neshima), the connection of soul and air is further emphasized in the Hebrew language given that ruach can be translated as both spirit and wind.

The association between breath, spirit, and life is found in many other sources. In the New Testament, the Greek term pneuma refers to breath, life, spirit, soul, or creative force. Equivalent terms for this life force can be found in other cultures from around the world in words such as prana from India, Qi and Chi from China, and ki from Japan.

The Nature of Souls

Finally, I share with my patients my one “vision” that occurred in a semi-dream five years ago. I believe the context of my vision was the talk I had delivered at my synagogue regarding Jewish belief about the nature of the soul.

My vision occurred in an early fall morning, as I was lying in bed. I dreamed that I was giving a lecture at a pulmonology conference. All of the people in attendance were wearing Jewish prayer shawls even though they were not Jewish, which did not strike me as odd in the dream state.

I noticed that as I was lecturing it seemed as if I was gently rocking back and forth in my bed. When I focused my attention on the rocking it ceased, only to resume when I went back to the lecture.

I was explaining the nature of the soul to my colleagues. I showed them a diagram of a tree. I pointed to the tree trunk and explained that this represents God or God’s soul. I then indicated that the tree branches represented souls emanating from God, and yet remaining connected to the source. As the branches branched so did the souls in this model. Thus, I concluded all souls are connected to one another through this tree network.

When I awoke I felt that my vision provided me with a better understanding of the nature of souls. I told of my vision to one of my friends who pointed out that the tree I had been lecturing about could have been the pulmonary tree, as our lungs are structured in a branching fashion. This suggestion made a lot of sense given that I had been lecturing to pulmonologists!

Furthermore, if a soul network can be characterized by a pulmonary tree, its root is the trachea, or main airway. This is the airway into which God breathed man’s first soul.

Takeaway

My interactions with my subconscious through hypnosis and dreams have greatly enriched my life. I believe that when I share these experiences with my patients, they are inspired to explore their own inner wisdom similarly.

As a final reminder of the connection of breath and life force, I note that the word "inspire" can refer to the inhaling of air as well as to becoming more creative.