The wound that never heals. Your greatest gift.
![Does the idea of the wounded healer offer a way out of suffering?
[Excerpt: In 1951, Jung first used the term wounded healer.Jung believed that disease of the soul could be the best possible form of training for a healer. In a book published days before his death, Jung wrote that only a wounded physician could heal effectively. In so doing, Jung drew upon the myth of Chiron, making it one of the most fundamental archetypes of human history and modern medicine.]
The notion of the wounded healer dates back to antiquity. Plato, the father of Western philosophy, stated that the most skillful physicians, rather than being models of good health, are those who have suffered from all sorts of illnesses.Such physicians become eloquent examples of “the wounded healer.”
The Greek myth of Chiron, the centaur from whose name chirurgie is derived in French and surgery is derived in English, can help us to understand. The Greek gods Apollo and Artemis taught medicine to Chiron. Chiron was wounded by an arrow from Heracles’ bow. He did not die (because gods are immortal); instead, he suffered excruciating pain for the rest of his eternal days. It was because of his grievous wound that Chiron became known as a legendary healer in ancient Greece. Chiron later took an orphaned child, Asclepius, into his care. The mother of Asclepius, Coronis, was a mortal, the daughter of Phlegyas, a king of Thessaly. Coronis was unfaithful to Apollo, and Artemis, Apollo's twin sister, killed her for her unfaithfulness. Coronis was placed upon a funeral pyre. (One version says that Apollo cast her into the fires of his own anger.) As her body started to burn, Apollo felt sorrow for his unborn son and snatched the child Asclepius from his mother's corpse, saving him from death. Apollo then handed Asclepius to the Centaur Chiron who became his tutor and mentor and taught him everything he knew about the healing arts. It was thus that Asclepius became one of the two founding fathers of Western medicine.
Realizing the good Asclepius had brought to man, the great Zeus made him into a god, placing him among the stars, transforming Asclepius into the constellation Ophiuchus (the serpent-bearer). The snake was used in the healing ritual; non-poisonous snakes were left in the dormitory where the sick slept overnight on the bare ground.
The cult of Asclepius became very popular during the 300s BCE and the cult centers (known as an Asclepieion) were used by priests to cure the sick. Invalids also came to the shrines of Asclepius to find cures for their ailments (in the same fashion pilgrims visit Lourdes today.) The process of healing was known as incubation. The patient would spend the night in a dormitory. During the night they would supposedly be visited by the god in a dream. Priests would interpret the dreams and then recommend a remedy or give advice on how they could be cured with perhaps a recommended visit to the baths and gymnasiums. There were many centres and schools of medicine, from Trikkis in Thessaly to the island of Cos. It is believed that Hippocrates, a great doctor of antiquity, plied his trade on the island of Cos. It is also said that Hippocrates was a descendant of Asclepius.
In 1951, Jung first used the term wounded healer.Jung believed that disease of the soul could be the best possible form of training for a healer. In a book published days before his death, Jung wrote that only a wounded physician could heal effectively. In so doing, Jung drew upon the myth of Chiron, making it one of the most fundamental archetypes of human history and modern medicine.In recent years, the work of Guggenbühl-Craig has shed new light on this question.
Guggenbühl-Craig writes that, in the therapeutic encounter, there is the healer-physician and the wounded patient. In order to promote healing, the physician tries to activate the patient’s own healing powers, for example, the patient’s desire to make good lifestyle decisions or to follow the physician’s advice. And yet, the healer-physician has wounds, too; this is the physician’s own health story. The physician’s experience of being wounded is what makes him a brother of the patient, rather than his master. This triggers a fundamental change in perspective. The suffering patient can be cared for by the physician and be instrumental in the physician’s own healing. Each encounter between physician and patient can be transforming and creative for both people.
There is no reason for those in the healing professions to be ashamed of their suffering. Viktor Frankl, a psychiatrist who managed to survive the Nazi concentration camps, teaches us that, just like destiny or death, suffering is a fundamental human experience. For Frankl, if life has meaning, suffering must necessarily have meaning too. The way in which a person accepts his destiny and suffering provides his life with a profound sense of meaning in the imperfect world in which we all find ourselves and which, as a result of our constant search for meaning, is evolving toward greater cohesion and solidarity. This process might bring us joy and will most certainly bring us greater peace of mind.
Serge Daneault, MD. PhD.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2553448/](https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xfp1/v/t1.0-9/s526x395/995609_886437164723710_6242520037760038401_n.jpg?oh=6c4a54ea6b461e6153731b35cd7c40c1&oe=5569EE73&__gda__=1433074662_e5a1eacc906739de72a80305cb0ace97)
Does the idea of the wounded healer offer a way out of suffering?
[Excerpt: In 1951, Jung first used the term wounded healer.Jung believed that disease of the soul could be the best possible form of training for a healer. In a book published days before his death, Jung wrote that only a wounded physician could heal effectively. In so doing, Jung drew upon the myth of Chiron, making it one of the most fundamental archetypes of human history and modern medicine.]
The notion of the wounded healer dates back to antiquity. Plato, the father of Western philosophy, stated that the most skillful physicians, rather than being models of good health, are those who have suffered from all sorts of illnesses.Such physicians become eloquent examples of “the wounded healer.”
The Greek myth of Chiron, the centaur from whose name chirurgie is derived in French and surgery is derived in English, can help us to understand. The Greek gods Apollo and Artemis taught medicine to Chiron. Chiron was wounded by an arrow from Heracles’ bow. He did not die (because gods are immortal); instead, he suffered excruciating pain for the rest of his eternal days. It was because of his grievous wound that Chiron became known as a legendary healer in ancient Greece. Chiron later took an orphaned child, Asclepius, into his care. The mother of Asclepius, Coronis, was a mortal, the daughter of Phlegyas, a king of Thessaly. Coronis was unfaithful to Apollo, and Artemis, Apollo's twin sister, killed her for her unfaithfulness. Coronis was placed upon a funeral pyre. (One version says that Apollo cast her into the fires of his own anger.) As her body started to burn, Apollo felt sorrow for his unborn son and snatched the child Asclepius from his mother's corpse, saving him from death. Apollo then handed Asclepius to the Centaur Chiron who became his tutor and mentor and taught him everything he knew about the healing arts. It was thus that Asclepius became one of the two founding fathers of Western medicine.
Realizing the good Asclepius had brought to man, the great Zeus made him into a god, placing him among the stars, transforming Asclepius into the constellation Ophiuchus (the serpent-bearer). The snake was used in the healing ritual; non-poisonous snakes were left in the dormitory where the sick slept overnight on the bare ground.
The cult of Asclepius became very popular during the 300s BCE and the cult centers (known as an Asclepieion) were used by priests to cure the sick. Invalids also came to the shrines of Asclepius to find cures for their ailments (in the same fashion pilgrims visit Lourdes today.) The process of healing was known as incubation. The patient would spend the night in a dormitory. During the night they would supposedly be visited by the god in a dream. Priests would interpret the dreams and then recommend a remedy or give advice on how they could be cured with perhaps a recommended visit to the baths and gymnasiums. There were many centres and schools of medicine, from Trikkis in Thessaly to the island of Cos. It is believed that Hippocrates, a great doctor of antiquity, plied his trade on the island of Cos. It is also said that Hippocrates was a descendant of Asclepius.
In 1951, Jung first used the term wounded healer.Jung believed that disease of the soul could be the best possible form of training for a healer. In a book published days before his death, Jung wrote that only a wounded physician could heal effectively. In so doing, Jung drew upon the myth of Chiron, making it one of the most fundamental archetypes of human history and modern medicine.In recent years, the work of Guggenbühl-Craig has shed new light on this question.
Guggenbühl-Craig writes that, in the therapeutic encounter, there is the healer-physician and the wounded patient. In order to promote healing, the physician tries to activate the patient’s own healing powers, for example, the patient’s desire to make good lifestyle decisions or to follow the physician’s advice. And yet, the healer-physician has wounds, too; this is the physician’s own health story. The physician’s experience of being wounded is what makes him a brother of the patient, rather than his master. This triggers a fundamental change in perspective. The suffering patient can be cared for by the physician and be instrumental in the physician’s own healing. Each encounter between physician and patient can be transforming and creative for both people.
There is no reason for those in the healing professions to be ashamed of their suffering. Viktor Frankl, a psychiatrist who managed to survive the Nazi concentration camps, teaches us that, just like destiny or death, suffering is a fundamental human experience. For Frankl, if life has meaning, suffering must necessarily have meaning too. The way in which a person accepts his destiny and suffering provides his life with a profound sense of meaning in the imperfect world in which we all find ourselves and which, as a result of our constant search for meaning, is evolving toward greater cohesion and solidarity. This process might bring us joy and will most certainly bring us greater peace of mind.
Serge Daneault, MD. PhD.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2553448/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2553448/
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