Question for Bernie:
In November 1967 you did surgery on me when I was 30 days old. I had pyloric stenosis and the surgical repair you did has been perfect for 45 years. Since then I’ve been very lucky with my health, never having to return to a hospital until now. Thanks to the last 35 inch snow storm we had in Cheshire, CT, I have double inguinal hernias that need to be repaired. My questions to you are whether I had any allergies or problems with anesthesia when you operated on me. The hospital doing the hernia repair needs to know.
My parents never said there was an issue so I’m not sure. What would they do if I had a reaction to anesthesia during or after surgery? In all the thousands of surgeries you must have done what advice would you give me about being put to sleep? I’m feeling a little freaked out about being forced to go to sleep.
My mother sings your praises to this day about the wonderful job you did with me as a one-month-old infant. Thank you in advance for any help you could share with me, and if you ever do any book signings near Cheshire, please let me know. It would be an honor to meet you.
Bernie’s Answer:
You can keep up with my schedule on this website. Scroll down the right-hand menu column for what I’m doing, when, and where.
Mind and Heart Matters—Go to www.ctbulletin.com to read my weekly article in the Opinion section. Also, we have meetings in Woodbridge the first Wednesday evening in every month. If you are interested, contact Lucille Ranciato by e-mail ([email protected]).
Talk to your surgeon and the anesthesiologist about how they plan to put you to sleep. You could have spinal anesthesia and not need to “Go to sleep.”
Also, if you visualize having the surgery and it being successful several times a day, by the time you go in for the operation your body is ready for what you visualize to actually happen.
I have a CD to help people do this called Getting Ready which is available on my website. To help visualize yourself in the operating room, draw a picture of it. If you see that you have put anything negative in the picture, take it out. Try to match the drawing with your ongoing mental visualization.
Remember, having a surgical repair is entirely your choice—you cannot be forced to do anything. Keep your hernias if you choose to do so.
If you do choose to have the surgery, you can tell the hospital that you have no allergies. See yourself as acting like the kid who had surgery–he did not have any fear because he felt loved.
Bernie
Question for Bernie:
Thank you for your book Love, Medicine, and Miracles. I have been using its ideas to help me recover from psychological and spiritual dis-ease, rather than physical.
I wanted to ask you about whether you thought this is a valid approach:
I can’t remember if you overtly recommend this in your book, but I have been playing around with affirming that my mind is healing, that I am allowing myself to heal, that I am allowing a spiritual connection in, that it is okay and possible to heal, and that it is happening.
Do you think that these affirmations reach and stay in my unconscious mind and actually help me?
Thank you very much.
Bernie’s Answer:
My answer is an emphatic “YES, definitely!”
What we can picture in our minds and believe becomes your mind-body-spirit’s experience consciously.
You are preparing your body, mind, and spirit to anticipate healing which sends the message to your body chemistry to make the necessary alterations so that healing happens.
Faith, hope and healing go together creating the anticipated outcome.
Bernie
Question for Bernie:
My 46-year-old daughter has been recently diagnosed with breast cancer. She immediately had a double mastectomy and is now receiving chemotherapy every three weeks. She was diagnosed with bipolar disorder when she was 18.
She is understandably very angry. She is dealing with other family members and friends quite well, except for me. I do not understand why I am getting most of her anger. Can you tell me why this is happening?
Thanks for any help you can offer.
Her mom
Bernie’s Answer:
What you are experiencing with your daughter’s illness is one of those very hard to understand human behaviors that result from someone being under great stress. The anger you are getting from her is misdirected—she needs to vent and she feels safe with you and knows you will listen. Keep telling yourself that you are helping her as only a loving mother can—by listening until she empties out all her anger and makes room for healing.
You don’t have to solve the problem—you can’t. All you have to do is get her to the point where healing is possible by listening and loving her.
Anger is energy, but it is negative energy that has to be transformed. Once that turns into positive energy it will fill the void left by the negative energy and she can concentrate on learning to love her body again. When we finally learn to love our bodies unconditionally, the mind gets the message that we want to LIVE.
Give her some of my books to help her use the energy in a healthy and healing way. If you think she would accept them better from another family member or friend, ask that person to give her the books without saying that they are your idea. Later, when she is once again able to reach out without anger, then you ask her what she learned from the books.
Here is a quote that might help you…
Anybody can become angry – that is easy, but to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose, and in the right way – that is not within everybody’s power and is not easy.
̴ Aristotle
Bernie