Energy healing is moving out of the hippie margins and into the mainstream—just read Dr. Jill Blakeway’s new book, Energy Medicine: The Science and Mystery of Healing. Professionally trained in traditional Chinese medicine, Blakeway runs a Manhattan clinic where she treats a host of issues including infertility, digestive problems and pain management (along with recommending herbs and therapeutic bodywork as well as Western medical intervention when indicated).
The book is a fascinating exploration of scientific underpinnings for the historic global belief in humans having an essential life force (e.g., prana in Indian Ayurvedic medicine or qi in traditional Chinese medicine). Western medicine interprets this force as electricity—say, the readings of an electrocardiogram around the heart. Blakeway talks to Stanford and Princeton professors researching the physics related to energy medicine and healing, meets a Chinese qi gong master and interviews the scientists who use a hands-on energy healing technique to eliminate cancer in mice.
It’s a real tightrope of a read by a woman who, after decades of using a healing power she doesn’t fully understand, embarks on a journalistic search for an explanation of how energy medicine works. She also provides an intro to the practice for newbies, plus tips for developing your own healing powers or finding a healer to address your needs (avoid practitioners who overpromise and ones who charge extortionist prices).
Curious to learn more and try it out for yourself? Here’s the short list of our favorite energy-based healers in Southern California.
