WILD MUSHROOMS AND HOW THEY INFLUENCE THE MICROBIOME. THE FUTURE OF METABOLIC MEDICINE, NUTRIGENOMICS

A good friend of mine wrote: 

I developed a pinpoint rash on my left lower leg in early 2017. In September 2017, I developed a total body rash and saw a dermatologist in October of that year who did a biopsy, the pathology report said: Indeterminate for Eczema or Psoriasis. The rash cleared everywhere except my lower legs, which continued to worsen.

The following months I spent a considerable amount of money on skin lotions without any visible results, photos taken at that time.

It was at this time, she moved from Yakima to Westpoint in the wild coast of Washington.

She began researching on what natural remedies may be available for her annoying skin condition. She across a site (Paul Stamets) which recommended stacking psilocybin microdose with Lion’s Mane and flushing (Niacin would do it). 

Lion’s mane is touted for its action on the brain. Soon after I began ingesting Lion’s mane, I noticed an improvement in my recall ability for words, when I could see the object but cant name it.

Since starting  Lion’s mane and Turkey Tail Mushroom tinctures, the eczema? On my right lower leg has completely resolved, the eczema is resolving well in the left leg. You can still see the residual inflammation.

I purchase the tinctures from Harmonic Arts in Cumberland, BC, Canada. I follow The Herbal Jedi on YouTube.

D B-S G is a close friend of mine, a nurse to the core of her heart until her retirement recently. Very open to non western approach to health, and looking at the nature of the wild coast as her pharmacy for good health and well being and emotion.

My mind flew back to another continent and another context. I was a junior doctor at the teaching hospital of the University of Queensland in Australia. I was rotating through the Rheumatology services and had an excellent consultant to learn from. 

I recognized that there is a connection between the inflammatory  lesions in the Eyes, Joints and Guts of many of the patients who presented to the clinic complaining of Joint aches and pains.

Who was Behçet?

Who was Sjögren? Why is that it is no longer called Mikulicz’s Syndrome?

Behçet was a respected Turkish Opthalmologist who presented his findings, now called Behçet’s syndrome, to a group of Western Opthalmologists congress over one hundred years ago. He made the error of being dressed in the traditional dress of the Ottoman Turks and the westerners paid no attention to him, dismissing his findings as hallucination of an oriental fakir. Months later, dressed elegantly in a tuxedo, his presentation was well received. (Did something similar happen to a humble Indian scientist who on being accepted while dressed in tuxedo, insisted that his tuxedo be fed at the banquet since it was the costume that got the westerners to accept his mathematical genius) (Those of us adults still reading the children’s book Le Petite Prince would remember a planet with a scientist) ) 

FROM LE PETIT PRINCE 

I had thus learned a second fact of great importance: this was that the planet the little prince came from was scarcely any larger than a house!

But that did not really surprise me much. I knew very well that in addition to the great planets--such as the Earth, Jupiter, Mars, Venus--to which we have given names, there are also hundreds of others, some of which are so small that one has a hard time seeing them through the telescope. When an astronomer discovers one of these he does not give it a name, but only a number. He might call it, for example, "Asteroid 325."

I have serious reason to believe that the planet from which the little prince came is the asteroid known as B-612.

This asteroid has only once been seen through the telescope. That was by a Turkish astronomer, in 1909.

On making his discovery, the astronomer had presented it to the International Astronomical Congress, in a great demonstration. But he was in Turkish costume, and so nobody would believe what he said.

Grown-ups are like that . . .

Fortunately, however, for the reputation of Asteroid B-612, a Turkish dictator made a law that his subjects, under pain of death, should change to European costume. So in 1920 the astronomer gave his demonstration all over again, dressed with impressive style and elegance. And this time everybody accepted his report.

If I have told you these details about the asteroid, and made a note of its number for you, it is on account of the grown-ups and their ways. When you tell them that you have made a new friend, they never ask you any questions about essential matters. They never say to you, "What does his voice sound like? What games does he love best? Does he collect butterflies?" Instead, they demand: "How old is he? How many brothers has he? How much does he weigh? How much money does his father make?" Only from these figures do they think they have learned anything about him.

If you were to say to the grown-ups: "I saw a beautiful house made of rosy brick, with geraniums in the windows and doves on the roof," they would not be able to get any idea of that house at all. You would have to say to them: "I saw a house that cost $20,000." Then they would exclaim: "Oh, what a pretty house that is!"

I had this experience just today. I was a little sad that a trip to see a good friend, let us call him Mr Carlos, he who likes linen suits and Ray Ban glasses, was unable to meet me in Oporto Portugal but directed me to our mutual friend Maqroll El Gaviero Judio who had gone off to Marrakech.

When I conveyed this information to an older lady and her younger open minded daughter I was very interested in their response. The older one said: It will now cost a lot of money to change your flights and destination. She was thinking of nothing but money. The younger open minded person said: I really feel sorry that you could not see Sr Carlos. I quote this amazingly sensitive lady: I know it is hard for you, not because of your peculiar circumstances  but just the pain of not being able to see someone you love so much.

Older people (whether by age or temperament) think of money, the younger one think of emotion. If you want to remain young at heart, think and experience emotions, much like wha the Buddha said about Mindfulness.

When confronted by a sceptic monk who said every one sits, talks and eats, the Buddha was supposed to have said: Yes that is true. But when we sit we know we are sitting, when we are eating we know we are eating and when we are sitting we know we are sitting.

I know at least Maqroll El Gaviero Judio would be waiting for me in Marrakech, when I decide to go there.

I will get back to Turkey Tail mushroom.

Sjôgren was a Swedish ophthalmologist (was he working in Göteborg? and Mikulicz was un covered of his Nazi leanings and his findings were not given any recognition and Sjogren got the honours. But it took time and honours and professorships were held back from Sjögren. He achieved fame for his personality and hard work. 

Both Behçets and Sjôgrens have Eye-Gut-Joint connections, even though they were initially described as (eye) and dry mouth.

In my dear friends case, I recognize the gut-skin connection immediately. And fortunately Turkey Tail mushroom helped her.

The healing in her occurred because of the effects on the microbiome of the Turkey Tail mushroom (my thoughts).

Research into the medical sciences are going forward at a tremendous pace. The pharmaceutical industry can take advantage of it by producing newer medications but the science is also unfolding the potency of the natural pharmacy. 

I agree with my friend that the resolution of her eczema/psoriasis resulted from the gut effects of Turkey Tail mushroom 

There are articles of great interest coming out of Washington State, but when you google Turkey Tail a lot of commercial merchant website comes up. Try to use Google Scholar and you would get scientific or at least semi-scientific articles. 

It is a PREBIOTIC which is totally different from PROBIOTIC

Both Eran Elianav and Eran Siegel are science super Stars in Israel and their team at Weitzmann Institute has added so much to our knowledge about Microbiome. 

They already prescribe natural and pharmaceutical products with people with metabolic problems in Israel based on the Microbiome. It is just a matter of time before this way of thinking arrives in USA and other richer countries.

I do not prescribe any PROBIOTIC in the pill form but looking at the Natural bounty of PREBIOTICS combined with your (my) microbiome, I can get the anti-inflammation that I(you) need. Microbiome and Obesity and inability to loose weight and Type 2 Diabetes and even the course of Autism among many other metabolic diseases are related. 

Coming back to my friend, she lives in that part of Washington State where she can do gathering for her nutrition. This is what our ancestors in the not too distant past did. The highly processed food which causes too many of the diseases that take persons to doctor and others has a very short history.

My friend lives in an land of plenty (we used to say that in Oz) and she can have a short foraging session to collect mushrooms as she was doing on this day the photos were taken 

Do not start eating them if you are not sure what they are 

My friend informed me: This is psilocybin azurecens. they grow in the dune grass around here. I will NEVER touch those ever again! 8x more powerful than cubensis variety.

Have you heard of Wood Lovers paralysis?

Here is some information from Aotearoa and their Drug regulatory agency.

So, what is wood lovers paralysis?

Wood lovers paralysis refers to a phenomenon where muscle weakness occurs a few hours after taking magic mushrooms. It’s so-called because it appears to be caused exclusively by mushrooms that grow on wood.

There is currently no scientific explanation for why this happens, and very little is known about the effects. It seems most common in New Zealand and Australia, and is often linked to three species of mushrooms: Psilocybe azurescens, Psilocybe cyanescens, and Psilocybe subaeruginosa. These species are very closely related. They’re usually foraged outside and have a high psilocybin content.

Wood lovers paralysis can come on very quickly, but generally seem to come on a few hours after consumption. Reports suggest people feel weakness in their facial muscles first, but it can also start in the feet or hands. For some people, this weakness will spread across their whole body, leaving them completely paralysed – they’re totally unable to move for up to several hours. Generally, people report that they would be able to co-ordinate movement without difficulty if not for the weakness.

When I began working with this traditional tribe I am with, in the first week I was taken for a drive by a young man and he stopped at the middle of the road: Doctor if you listen carefully, you can hear the trees talking to you..

What a lovely introduction to this tribe. 

Show respect to what is in the nature, they an help you and also they can harm you. Take only what you need  and not what you want.

Wait for me, my dear friend Maqroll El Gaviero Judio, I will see you soon..

Turkey Tail mushrooms are known by three different scientific names: Trametes versicolor, Coriolus versicolor, and Polyporus versicolor.  All three Latin names for turkey tail mushrooms refer to the same common medicinal mushroom. photo and description from the web,

TURKEY TAIL MUSHROOM: IDENTIFICATION AND USES

Turkey Tail Mushrooms are one of the most common mushrooms in the forest, and they grow all around the world.  They grow on almost any type of wood, and there are no known poisonous look alikes.  Yet they’re also one of the most expensive medicinal mushrooms to buy.  The high price tag is not because they’re difficult to forage, but driven by the fact that they have so many astounding medicinal benefits.

Most people are a bit intimidated by foraging their own medicinal mushrooms, and they’re willing to defer to others, even if it means paying a steep price for the privilege.

Turkey Tail mushrooms are known by three different scientific names: Trametes versicolor, Coriolus versicolor, and Polyporus versicolor.  All three Latin names for turkey tail mushrooms refer to the same common medicinal mushroom.

The Chinese call them Yun Zhi (cloud fungus) and the Japanese call them Kawaratake (mushroom by the riverbank).

WHERE TO FIND TURKEY TAIL MUSHROOMS

One of the best things about foraging turkey tails is they’re available year-round, and they can be found just about anywhere in the world.  They usually grow on dead hardwood stumps and downed hardwood trunks or branches.  On occasion, they’ll even grow on conifers.

Good Luck to all of you, gatherers of natural wisdom and food..

iVAN ILLICH. THE MEDICAL NEMESIS

 CUERNAVACA, MEXICO is so full of longings.

No puedo vivir sin amor, laments the alcoholic ex-British consul played by that great actor Albert Finney in Malcolm Lowery's book Under the Volcano. 

I searched and searched, asked multiple shop keepers and coffee shop owners , where is Cafe Geneva , where our beloved Gabo (to the Cubans), Gabriel Garcia Marquez would sit and have his coffee. No trace and I was sad.

The third connection was my chance encounter with a BOOK, named aptly Medical Nemesis while I was still a student. I was so attracted to this idea and I am certain some of the arguments of the philosopher still stays in my brain. I sought him out but he had died in Germany. (He was Austrian)

His name was Ilan Illich.

He was well known for his pronouncement: the major threat to the health in the world is Modern Medicine.

Why did Ivan Illich come up to memory this morning, on this lovely day, when my mind feels almost euphoric?

Over the years, I have met some human beings who take their healing duties seriously, one of them is Dr JK who lives in South Dakota but practices Acute Medicine in neighbouring states.

I asked him why is he so keen on working so much? Last week he worked about 140 hours, that means he was virtually living in the ICU and snatching sleep whenever he can.

I knew it was not money, he was not that kind of person. 

this was his answer:

I have a gift to heal people and especially with Covid I can change lives. I have R brain ischemic stroke who came in could not stand 2 days ago now is walking with standby assist after starting John Berg Protocol. It is too amazing to miss. They think I am a rock star here.

and he added:

I do the things that work.

We discussed about the lack of courage of ill prepared medical professionals who are given responsibility far above their capacities and thus very afraid of practising medicine outside of the cookbook textbook method (Medicine is a human science and not a mathematical science)

Why did a Catholic theologian, influenced by that great theologian philosopher, Paulo Freire, go on to influence multitudes of people about humanitarian medicine? 

Look at the COVID clusters in the USA in the. past few days..

ALL OF THEM IN NURSING HOMES WHERE OLDER PEOPLE ARE PACKED IN ..

Compare that with life in Japan. If you have a chance you can watch the documentary in NHK Japan 

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/tv/hometown/20211024/5003179/

Respect for age shows in the lives of the Japanese (perhaps the western influence may erode it in the future). This 75 year old woman whose home was destroyed by a flood, had it rebuilt with the help of volunteers and the city authorities and she wistfully says: I do not know how long I have left to live and I want to spend it here, This house holds so much memories for me, this is where I want to be.

With Covid raging and millions of people dying without getting appropriate treatment (Brasil and India on top of the list followed by USA where there is treatment but not successful for various sociocultural reasons), I think we have to rethink the role of the society in the health of the individual. Teach them to prevent diseases. The food industry single handedly is responsible for at least fifty percent of the chronic diseases and until they cooperate and bring healthy chemical free food to the people or people going back to gardening and growing their own food, this situation is not going to change. 

Teach people to fish, rather than giving them a fish a day.

Teach people to look after themselves, pry them away from doctors and nurses and medical establishment until it is necessary, as these professionals are educated in DISEASE care and not HEALTH Care. 

A good friend of mine, M vP, has a programme in Cambodia where he takes people from the community and educate them to take care of the health of the community they live in: in an appropriately economic way, reliable and preventative.. Peer to Peer education about HEALTH. There are no doctors or nurses involved in the day to day care and you can see his results in that poor country can match many of the richer countries and certainly has better results than most of the developing countries who are eager to import the latest gadgets and machinery and gimmicks and sell them for a profit to an eager but ignorant populace (a very small percentage of the population). mopotsyo.org

Health before Profit but wherever I go I see Profit before Health. A good friend of mine ruefully confided in me: the way Diabetes being managed in his country USA is very good for his investments.. he said much to my chagrin: Diabetes is good for the Stock Market..

Ivan Illich stood against all that

hope some of the people who listened to him can influence others..

I tell the medical students when i have a chance to preach. If you are going into this because you want to make money, if you have good franchise you will make more money, if you learn how to play stock market you will make more money. Become a doctor only if you are interested in alleviating the pain and misery of others and that would mean, without doubt, sacrifices at a personal , family and financial level . Good Luck.

IVAN ILLICH   MEDICAL NEMESIS 

CASUALIDAD NO ES TAN CASUAL.. AS INDIANS SAY, THINGS HAPPEN FOR A REASON, MAY BE YOU ARE NOT SMART ENOUGH TO UNDERSTAND

 Things have a reason for happening. A colleague who seldom talks about travel, sent me this 

I am on my way to Israel. It is fully vaccinated, as close to full as it can get, but the local social and political situations make certain segments of the population hold out on the vaccine and thus they still averaging 11 cases per 100. 000 whereas it is about 7 in USA and France and less than that in Spain and Portugal. My family advised me against travel to israel at this time and the airlines after a long discussion allowed me to change my travels to another time.

Singapore Airlines to the rescue. I was able to get a ticket to Oporto using Frequent Flier miles and this would be the first time "tourist" visit for me as my visits are always tinged with some humanitarian medicine. 

The colleague who sent me the above information was indirectly blessing me on my location of travel (instead of Israel). Toda Rabah. 

Artigo XII.
Decreta-se que nada será obrigado nem proibido.
tudo será permitido,
inclusive brincar com os rinocerontes
e caminhar pelas tardes
com uma imensa begônia na lapela.

In the book of poems Caravanssary, a copy of which I have never been able to procure, author Alvaro Mutis describes my alter ego, Maqroll

and i would adopt that to my next destination: dressed as a travel agent, he offered miraculous remedies of powders and leafs from various continents while promising young women that their premenstrual cramps would disappear at the chant of a mantra in the Tagalog language.

I wrote the following in 2007. All I can say is that Maqroll remains unchanged, resisting all the efforts of others to change him.

Maqroll El Gaviero Judio

A tale of a wandering Jew. Dedicated to Maqroll the Gaviero, an imagination of Alvaro Mutis.
Though his life was devoid of danger, unless you call fifteen foot waves in the open seas off the coast of Funafuti smooth sailing, his desire to accept only his longings as his home made him dangerous to women who were always dreaming of becoming someone else’s wives. Once he casually asked an Ecuadorian who had relentlessly pursued him what her plans were for the morning, the suppressed fury of rejection in this Andean from a port full of black sands was to destroy his social standing all along the rugged pacific coast. He dined with the diligent bourgeoisie who carefully nurture the deliberate, mean spirited hypocrisies of their convictions. In reply to a question of a customs agent in the island of Hispaniola , he could not codify for them his imprecise profession and was suspected of running drugs while the actual purpose of his visit to the island was ignored. Abandoned by a mother who specialized in making others loose their power of speech, thus made a vagrant at birth at a distant corner of the Portuguese empire, he had traveled by trains along so many rivers as an adolescent. The forces of water pushed him into a period of wanderings among the small islands that dot the pacific ocean. He quoted about the frivolity of life, the morning after reading his favourite Norwegian author, the village was gulped in a wave that caused the island nation he was visiting to declare itself homeless.

Being free is not easy, but I recommend it for all souls who long for a little bit of fresh air from their golden cages where they are imprisoned. Let your wings which has been cut by your family, your education, your jobs, your country and your religion, grow back again and feel that air in your hair.

These thoughts are dedicated to a very very special person: La Poete de Côte Sauvage. 

A SOMALI FILM WINS THE OUADOUGOU FILM FESTIVAL: HYPHENATED TALENTS AROUND THE WORLD: WAIT FOR ME PONT NEUF.

 A Somali film exploring what people will do for love has won the grand prize at the prestigious Pan-African film festival in Burkina Faso.

This is a prestigious film festival cancelled last year because of the pandemic but well attended and many African, pan African film coveting for the prize, the Golden Stallion of Yennenga (from Burkinabe mythology).

"It is a beautiful film that tells a story with humanity," Mauritanian film director Abderrahmane Sissako is quoted as saying.

I pause for a moment, when did I first hear of Abderrahmane Sissako?

Was it February 2016? The only Biennale in India held in Cochin was in full swing and my good friend Biju Thomas invited me to a movie called Timbuktu 

It was a memorable movie, snippets of which still floats around in my brain. Like many of the talented from the developing countries, Sissako is a Mauritanian-French.

This rare somali language film was directed by Khadar Ayderus Ahmed, who is Somali-Finnish. The lead Omar Abdi may be a Somali-Norwegian and Yasmin Warsame is Somali-Canadian.

The world is full of talent, just look at the talent shows now airing all around the world. Our planet is full of talent.

As a child I was fascinated by the name Mogadishu (like Timbuktu, Bandar Abbas) bringing into a child's imagination the exoticism not available in Melbourne, Australia. 

The Gravedigger's wife is the official entry from Somalia for Oscars. Good Luck. 

In The Gravedigger’s Wife, Finnish Somali writer-director Khadar Ayderus Ahmed observes the long, arduous lengths love can reach to. His poetic debut is a study of slowing time to capture the ceremonial element in the act of caring for another, where the smallest moments mark the most radiant demonstrations of reverence. Mesmeric cinematography and an impactful score make for an unforgettable journey into regional landscapes rarely appreciated in the popular cinema of Europe or the Americas, and even rarer viewed on Somali terms. In that way, perhaps what Ahmed offers is more than a love story and rather a visual lesson in story as love.

NATALEAH HUNTER-YOUNG

I wondered who else might have won the prizes at Ouagadougou?

The Silver Stallion went to Haitian director Gessica Geneus for her film Freda. And the Bronze Stallion went to the Tunisian director Leyla Bouzid for Tale of Love and Desire.

Haiti, a country I have visited only twice both at a time of my professional formation, always evoked a sense of otherness, as if they belonged elsewhere. Haitianization is a word I learned in Jamaica.

Gessica Geneus is Haitian but her influence seems to be French more than american. I am sure we will hear more from her, as she was already was being praised for her filmatic genius when she was only 17.

Abderrehmane Sissako 

I had the greatest fortune of studying in London and used to be amazed by the diversity of humanity one saw in London

If you are tired of London, you are tired of life, did Samuel Pepys say that ?

Once we know the Other, we recognize the Otherness in ourselves and become tolerant of the differences among the planetary inhabitants. Diversity is the accepted word at the moment. Cultural competence, Multiculturalism were fad words which have disappeared from the popular discourse.

One of the greatest pleasures of being student in London was the regular visits to the Foyle's Book store one of the best book stores in the world and thus be acquainted with post colonial writings from Africa. I had already been introduced to the Caribbean writers by my good friend from Trinidad, Lincoln Myers and thus enjoyed the writings of VS Naipaul to the fullest, along with Guyanese, Bajan and Jamaican (what a vibrancy to that culture) writers.

I unashamedly love the English language and currently some of the best writers in our Language are not from England or America or Canada or Australia but local born English speaking natives of parents from other continents. 

I have never liked hyphenated nationalities, but the current situation of people movements across the world has a place for hyphens. Once that becomes an attachment rather than an identification, the deterioration of the individual begins. We are products of so many experiences so to objectify them into geographical origins of your parents is very limiting. An Icelandic born University student whose parents came from Turkish held Kurdistan, has more experiences however young she may be than Kurdistan of her parents. 

I dont remember who said this to me, I was still living in Australia at that time or whether i read it somewhere

To be a free human being, you have to free yourself of 

Your Family

Your country/Nationality

Your Profession

Your Religion/Culture

Your skin colour/gender

I have managed to free my self (at times with struggle) of all of the above except one: my devotion to my people 

This is what happened to me this morning, lovely sunday morning just before taking off to another continent.

Everytime I listen to a song or watch a musical video in French, I think: how come they all sound so enchanting? 

Wait for me Pont Neuf, I will be with you soon ..

DIA DE LOS MEDICOS. THE DAY OF THE DOCTORS. TODAY 23 OCTOBER IN MEXICO

 Nice to wake up to a warm message from Mexico.

My dear friend and colleague, Dra. Estela had written:

Mil felicidades, que te sigas iluminando con tu gran inteligencia, te admiro, te mando gran abrazo apretado y mil bendiciones.

Cuba

In Cuba, National Doctors' Day is celebrated as a holiday on December 3 to commemorate the birthday of Carlos Juan Finlay. Carlos J. Finlay (December 3, 1833 – August 6, 1915) was a Cuban physician and scientist recognized as a pioneer in yellow fever research. He was the first to theorize, in 1881, that a mosquito was a carrier, now known as a disease vector, of the organism causing yellow fever: a mosquito that bites a victim of the disease could subsequently bite and thereby infect a healthy person. A year later Finlay identified a mosquito of the genus Aedes as the organism transmitting yellow fever. His theory was followed by the recommendation to control the mosquito population as a way to control the spread of the sickness.

In Cuba, this celebration takes a serious note as doctors are held in high esteem in that country. Also Cuba helps poorer countries with Medical help more than any other country in the world . Around 30 000 cuban doctors work in 67 developing countries (during Covid also in Europe) giving a helping hand. I have met the doctors in remote parts of the world, including Pemba, Border of Venezuela/Brasil/Guyana and know of their work in Micronesia (Tarawa) and almost every country in Latin America and Africa.  To be an Internacionalista is a like badge of honour in Cuba. 

Having worked in many developing countries, to be a voluntary/humanitarian doctor in those countries is very difficult albeit extremely satisfying. 

It was interesting to see where the Best Doctors in the world are, I know for sure they are not in the USA or most countries in Latin America. Here is a list of the top 50.

The metholodological line employed by the Lancet , included 37  indicators

The human development index 

the number of health professionals per 100 000 population

Quality of Health Services

Main causes of death

 Most common risk facors among the population

Also the compliance with the United Nations Sustainable Development Objectives projected for the year 2030

Only Costa Rica, Uruguay, Panama, Cuba and Mexico are in the top 50 from this hemisphere.

In defense of the USA I will say that the best doctors in the world are in the USA so are the worst.

I will be looking forward to December 3 to celebrate the Doctors Day in Cuba, preferably in person with my colleagues. 

Gracias, Dra. Estela

https://medicoanthropologist.blogspot.com/2014/08/dra-estela-rosales-garza-incredible.html

SYMBOLIC HEALING

 In the West (and those developing countries influenced by it), healing systems of their culture is considered absolute and the others given the collective nomenclature: Complementary or alternative. The western practitioners are often surprised that in many countries, including the populous ones such as India and China, it is the western medicine that is considered "alternative".

In the west, the psychosocial aspects of healing (the doctors cure but not heal) are neglected, so it is only normal that they do that of the "alternative" systems as well, grudgingly acknowledging that these systems may work because of the herbs or some other pharmacology. Enlightened western practitioners of medicine, would accept the symbolism of their own healing, which is based on their relationships with the patient. Psychiatrists fully understand this, perhaps that is why the best known Medical Anthropologists who practice Medicine are mostly psychiatrists (they tend to be jewish as well!)

Symbolic healing, that is, responding to meaningful experiences in positive ways, can facilitate human healing (Daniel Moerman) and in the article I had to read for during my Anthropology studies in London by James Dow 1986:

In this article I( JD) propose that symbolic healing has a universal structure in which the healer helps the patient particularize a general cultural mythic world and manipulate healing symbols in it.

Why do a Vietnamese patient choose to see a Vietnamese doctor? A Jamaican doctors surgery is full of Jamaican people waiting to see him? Aggressive women tend to favour male physicians and gentle men prefer female physicians. (my observations). Certainly culture plays an important part.

If you doubt whether Symbolic healing exist, then it is time you experienced it first hand or observed it.  The Cuban system of Healing, based on West African system that the slaves brought over syncretized to the Spanish Catholic system is very powerful. Archaic forms of exchange (rather than money) makes the system even more powerful. It is symbolic in that it can be used at a distance, but even within that symbolic healing there are powerful symbols, which has different meanings to the healer and the healed. The healing (unlike in the western system where the medications carry their own meanings of potency) is very much dependent on the relationship between the healer and the healed. This relationship, if put in practice within the western system, brings fabulous results. We must never underestimate the healing powers of the words, tone of voice and gestures of the Healer.

The healer that I have observed, requested services for patients far and wide, lives in Cuba and she is like a sister and certainly the person I trust most when it comes to advice about symbolisms in relationships with the outside world. 

Three weeks ago, I was told of some bad news concerning the family of a patient of mine whom I respect very much, a very knowledgeable elder of a tribe. I was so affected by it, first in my emotions and then my body became near paralyzed for 17 hours. The healer in Cuba could see this event in the context of my life: the event that precipitated the "illness", my role in the healing of the members of this particular tribe, my isolation from people that I love (covid isolation), lack of intellectual stimulation brought on by this and my exile from my beloved island (Cuba). She began a 21 day healing cycle which ended today .

The sensation of being healed is felt in the mind, in the spirit and in the body. First of all, persons creating inquiet in your mind slowly vanished, those who truly loved you became stars of your sky, your attitude to others changed in that you became more open and tolerant, your thinking capacity increased and sharper.

Those who mattered came into better focus. 

I use symbolism in my own practice of healing, predominantly among the Indigenous people of the world. Even though I am a Physician, I consider my self a healer rather than a Curer. As Delacroix would say, relieving a little bit of the pain in this world.

Thanks to my sister in Cuba and my many friends there.

Friends in Mexico, USA, France, Belgium, Caymans, Colombia, Argentina,Israel, Kerala, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia all morally support me to carry on my work..

Lets go..

THE DAY AFTER THE FULL MOON NIGHT

Photographs of the Full Moon kept on coming..

The full moon under a blue sky in the National Park where the indigenous people live 

The full moon was still visible in the morning sky when early health workers were headed out.

I was waiting for the sun, while enjoying the morning coffee,

while others were enjoying both the sunrise in the presence of the full moon 

 I had agreed to this spiritual journey of healing on the 1st october for 21 days . I had been warned that at the end of the healing journey, I would be a different person in certain aspects, some people would leave and others would arrive and that my passion for my work would only increase.

Today is the last day of the ceremony. The spiritual healer has been at her healing site all day ..I am very pleased at the results of her healing

and the nature itself gave me a present with the full moon last night and an excellent visit to the National park today..

Thank you..