I remember reading about that study. I read recently somewhere that phantom pain in limbs amputated under anaesthetic was statistically less than phantom pain in limbs amputated by traumatic injury. I have no idea what this means or how it's related or if it's even true. Why don't we have any Doctors on this list? Julie Krueger <<Regarding the power of the mind to invent symptoms, a few years ago experiments compared "ghost surgery" on the knee to real surgery, where some people were actually operated on, and another group was convinced they were operated on but had no surgery at all. Both groups did equally well. It was very shocking when it first came out.>> ========Original Message======== Subj:[lit-ideas] Re: pain management Date:6/23/2004 9:04:33 PM Central Daylight Time From:aamago@xxxxxxxxxxxxx To:lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx, lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent on: -----Original Message----- From: JulieReneB@xxxxxxx Sent: Jun 23, 2004 8:38 PM To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [lit-ideas] pain management I think this is fascinating. <<An Expert Interview With Dr. John Sarno, Part II: Pain Management Prophet or Pariah? Posted 06/14/2004 Editor's Note: John E. Sarno, MD, is a pivotal figure in the arena of pain management because of his hotly debated approach to the diagnosis and management of back pain. Dr. Sarno, Professor of Clinical Rehabilitation Medicine at New York University School of Medicine, and Attending Physician at The Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine at New York University Medical Center, is the author of 3 books that postulate the theory that most back pain is triggered by psychological origins instead of by a physiological defect. A.A. For those who haven't seen it, The Singing Detective is exactly about the protagonist carrying his repressed emotions from childhood in his skin in a horrendous case of body-wide psoriasis. In the movie the medical doctors finally give up and introduce him to psychologist Mel Gibson, at which point he begins to heal. The movie is new, but there was a BBC (PBS) production of it probably about 30 years or so ago. Thumbs up for the movie, but if I had to pick, I think the BBC production was better. Also, doctors are among the most conservative people in the world, extremely tradition-bound. By the time information gets to the stage where doctors are dispensing it, that information most likely has been around for a long time. In many cases, such as here, 100 years isn't long enough. Regarding the power of the mind to invent symptoms, a few years ago experiments compared "ghost surgery" on the knee to real surgery, where some people were actually operated on, and another group was convinced they were operated on but had no surgery at all. Both groups did equally well. It was very shocking when it first came out. In any case, my unconscious is telling me to get to bed. Thanks for posting this Judy. Very interesting. Andy Amago ------------------------------------------------------------------ To change your Lit-Ideas settings (subscribe/unsub, vacation on/off, digest on/off), visit www.andreas.com/faq-lit-ideas.html ------------------------------------------------------------------ To change your Lit-Ideas settings (subscribe/unsub, vacation on/off, digest on/off), visit www.andreas.com/faq-lit-ideas.html