unit7-the-healing-power-of-belief.doc

Unit 7For the past two years, I have been studying cancer survivors（幸存者） at UCLA, trying to find out why it is that some people respond much better to their treatment than do others. At first I thought that some patients did well because their illnesses were not as severe as the illnesses of others. On closer scrutiny(详细的调查，仔细的研究), however, I discovered that severity （n，严重，严格，严谨，严厉的对待）of the illness was only one of a number of factors that accounted for the difference between those who get well and those who dont. The patients I am talking about here received upon diagnosis（诊断） whatever therapy（治疗，疗法） medication（药物，药剂）, radiation（辐射，放射物）, surgery（手术） - their individual cases demanded. Yet the response to such treatments was hardly uniform. Some patients fared much better in their therapies than others. 过去的两年中，我一直在加州大学洛杉矶分校观察那些在癌症中存活的患者，想要找出为什么这些人接受治疗的效果更好。一开始我认为有些患者恢复那么好的原因是他们的病情比较轻，但是经过更仔细的观察，我发现病情的严重性只是为什么他们和其他人治疗效果不同的许多原因中的其中一个原因。我这里讨论到的病人接受了他们各自所需要的不同的治疗，像药物治疗、放射性疗法、手术等等。然而病人对于这些治疗方法的反应和效果不尽相同。一些患者接受治疗后恢复效果比其他人要好的多. What was it, then, that was different? Was there any one thing that all survivors had in common? Yes. I have found that the major characteristics of these survivors were very similar. Among the similarities are: 那么，那不同是什么?所有幸存者有什么共同点吗?是的。我发现,这些幸存者的主要特点是非常相似的。在相似之处是: They all had a strong will to live. 他们都有强烈的求生意愿 They were not panicky about their illness. 他们对他们的疾病不是那么恐慌 They had confidence in their ability to persevere. 他们对自己坚持下去的能力有信心 Despite all the forecasts to the contrary, they believed they could make it. 尽管所有的预测都是相反的，他们相信他们可以做到 They were capable of joyous response. 他们有能力愉快地回应 They were convinced that their treatment would work. 他们对他们的治疗有信心 One woman with whom I worked closely is perhaps symbolic（象征性的） of the entire group. Lets call her Annie. Her illness was diagnosed as cancer of the liver（肝）. An exploratory（v，研究，探测，勘测） operation convinced the surgeons（外科医生）that the disease was too far along to（根本不） be treated by any known means. But Annie, far from being discouraged or depressed by this verdict（定论，判断）, was absolutely determined to overcome her illness. She decided to fight with all of her powers of mind and body. Her family physician（医生，内科医生） was so impressed with her spirit that he felt the dismal（adj，忧郁的，凄凉的） prediction of the specialists（专家，行家，专科医生） ought not to preclude （阻止，阻碍）further efforts. Very supportive, he encouraged Annie to see a surgeon（外科医生） in Houston who had a high record of success with patients who had a strong will to live and a confident attitude. The surgeons name was John Stehlin. 一个跟我密切合作的女人就是这种人的典型代表。我们叫他Annie。她的病被诊断为肝癌。一次探查性手术让外科医生确定目前已知的任何技术都不能治疗。但是安妮对这项判决一点也不期内沮丧，而是下定决心战胜她的病。她决定用她心灵和身体的所有力量去战斗。她的家庭医生对她的精神印象深刻，他觉得专家沮丧的预测不应该排除进一步的努力。他非常支持并鼓励安妮去找一个休斯顿的外科医生，他在拥有求生的强烈意志和自信态度的患者的恢复中保持较高记录。外科医生的名字叫John Stehlin. Annie went to Houston and was interviewed by Dr. Stehlin. She visited the floor in St. Joseph s Hospital where Dr. Stehlins patients were cared for. Instead of a gloomy （adj，灰暗的，令人沮丧的）white hospital setting, she found a cheerful, animated（活生生的，有生气的）, attractive（有魅力的，迷人的） series of rooms, the largest of which was called the Living Room. It was equipped with easy chairs, reading corners, and alcoves（壁凹） for audio video machines, containing a large array of tape cassettes of some of the funniest（连环图画） motion pictures ever produced. Dr. Stehlin installed the sets and obtained the cassettes after reading an article I wrote for the New England Journal of Medicine on the therapeutic（adj，治疗学的，疗法的，有益于健康的） value of laughter. He had always believed that hopefulness and laughter go together. People who are capable of experiencing joy, he discovered, were much better candidates（最后命运或结局如何已显而易见，报考者，申请求职者）for successful surgery and therapy than those who were morbid（病态的，疾病的）and apprehensive（adj，忧虑的，有理解力的，惶惑）.安妮去了休斯敦并且收到了斯特林医生的接见。她去了圣约瑟夫医院，斯特林医生的患者在那里接受治疗。这家医院的设置不是令人压抑的白色，而是由许多令人愉快的、很有吸引力的小屋子构成，最大的一间被称作起居室，那里装饰了一些简约的座椅，有阅读角，还有影音装置，里面有一长列的磁带记录着一些十分有趣的影像。在阅读完我为英格兰医药时报撰写的一篇讲述笑容的医疗作用的文章之后，斯特林医生就安装了这些设备并且购买了那些磁带。他一直相信希望和笑容对治疗十分有作用，他发现那些经常很开心的人接受治疗的效果比那些忧虑不安并畏惧疾病的患者要好得多。After spending only 15 minutes with Dr. Stehlin, Annie felt uplifted （振作的）and thrilled by the atmosphere of the place. She met with patients who had come through even greater ordeals（严峻的考验，苦难的折磨） than her own. Dr. Stehlin examined Annie and studied her medical record. Then he told her he would be willing to operate and give her the best possible care - but only if she had complete confidence in herself, in him, and in the operation. He suggested that she return home to think about it. 仅仅和斯特林医生一起呆了15分钟，安妮就觉得心情变好并被周围的环境所感染而感到十分兴奋。她遇见了一些比她的病情更为严重的病人。斯特林医生为安妮做了检查并且查看了她的病例，然后他告诉安妮他很愿意对她进行治疗并尽可能提供最好的帮助，但是唯一要求是安妮必须要完全地相信医生、她自己还有手术。斯特林医生建议安妮回家好好想一想。Annie did, but there wasnt much to think about. She was eager to proceed. When she returned to Houston, it was obvious to Dr. Stehlin that she was strongly motivated. He operated and removed 70 percent of her liver. Nevertheless, Annies, convalescence（=recovery，逐渐恢复健康） at St. Josephs was rapid. She was caught up in a powerful, affirmative（adj，肯定的，赞成的，同意的） atmosphere. Today, three years later, she is active and free of symptoms（病状，征兆；symbolize，象征）. Annie and Dr. Stehlin know the odds（=possibility，可能的古怪的，奇数的，剩余的，临时的） are that there are probably other pockets（病灶） of cancer throughout her body. But her condition has stabilized. She is a happy, functioning human being. 安妮确实回家了，但是没有什么好考虑的，她很渴望能够成功存活下去。当她回到休斯敦的时候，斯特林医生认为很明显她已经非常有动力了。他做了手术并切除了安妮约70%的肝脏，然而安妮在圣约瑟夫医院恢复地十分迅速。她在一个充满了力量与支持的环境中振作起来。三年以后，时至今日，安妮现在十分积极，并且不再受病症的困扰。安妮和斯特林医生都明白她的身体里很可能仍然有癌细胞在活跃，但是安妮的状况很稳定，她很快乐并且很健全。At the School of Medicine of the University of California, Los Angeles, I have been trying to find out if emotions affect the chemistry of the human body. For several decades, the term psychosomatic has been in general use. It means mind body relationship. But the precise way the mind affects the body has not been clearly defined. As the result of recent research, however, it is possible to say that specific changes take place throughout the body as the result of human attitudes. 在洛杉矶加利福尼亚大学医学院，我一直在探寻是否情绪会影响身体内的化学物质。“身心治疗”这个术语已经被用了几十年了，它的意思就是身体和心灵的关系。但是思想如何影响身体尚不清楚。根据最近的调查结果，我们可以说当人们的心理态度发生改变时，人们的身体也会发生一定的变化。Indeed, Dr. Kichard Bergland, a brain researcher at the Harvard Medical School, has written a paper suggesting that the human brain is basically a gland（腺体）. Building on this view, Dr. Carmine Clemente, director（主任） of the Brain Research Institute（研究中心） at UCLA, has been looking into the secretions（分泌物） of the brain. He has estimated that there may be thousands of such secretions - all of which play a part in the functioning of the body. 事实上，哈佛大学医学院的大脑研究学者Kichard Bergland医生写了一篇文章，认为人类的大脑是一个基本的腺体。根据这一理论，加州大学洛杉矶分校大脑研究中心的主任Carmine Clemente一直在探寻大脑的分泌物。他估计可能有几千种分泌物他们都对身体某部分机能有一定的作用。What to me is most fascinating of all about these secretions is that they are not locked away （把锁起来）or completely removed from the conscious intelligence（意识）. It is true that the mind has no ongoing（adj，不间断的，进行的，前进的）awareness（n，察觉，觉悟，意识） of the numberless（adj，无数的，无号码的） functions generated（产生的） by the brain - the beating of the heart, the actions of the nerve cells, the functions of all the glands. But the fact that we have no direct knowledge of these functions as they occur does not mean that we are barred from any supervision over them. The significance of biofeedback （生物反馈）- a term used to describe the ability of the mind to enter into the workings of the body - is that human beings may actually be able to exert（尽力） increasing control over themselves and may be able to play an important role in overcoming illness. 最令我激动的是所有的这些分泌物不是完全孤立的，它们没有和大脑的意识相分离。尽管意识并不能持续了解我们的身体产生的无数的机能像心跳、神经元细胞的运动、腺体的作用等等，但是不清楚这些机能怎么起作用并不意味着我们不能控制它们。生理反馈机制（就是描述意识可以进入身体的运作并对身体产生作用）的重要性就在于人类本身可以控制自己的身体，并且在治疗疾病的时候可以发挥巨大的作用。Numerous medical reports now cite（引用） instances in which individuals have been able to direct their bodies in ways generally believed to be beyond the reach of the conscious intelligence. At the UCLA School of Medicine, I witnessed a demonstration in which a man controlled his own heartbeat. He could speed it up or slow it almost to a stop merely by concentrating. Such a performance is not unknown in Eastern cultures, but it was startling（令人震惊的；令人闪烁的）, to say the least（至少）, to see such a demonstration in an American medical school, with a dozen or more physicians（医生，内科医生） as fascinated observers of this use of biofeedback. Patients are using biofeedback techniques at the Menninger Foundation in Topeka, Kansas, and at other medical centers as a means of relieving their migraine headaches or lowering their blood pressure. The evidence is incontrovertible（毫无争议的） that chemical changes take place in the body as a result of mental functions or moods（语气，心情，气氛，心痛）. 现在，大量的医学报道都在描述人们目前可以用超越人类智慧的方法自己控制自己的身体状况。在加州大学洛杉矶分校医学院，我见证了一个人自己控制了自己的心跳。他只要集中注意力，就可以使心跳加速或减慢到几乎停止。在东方文化中，这种现象已经存在，但是至少在一家美国的医学院里，和许多对生理反馈机制感兴趣的观察者一起观察到这一现象很令人吃惊。在堪萨斯州托皮卡市的明宁哲基金会以及其他一些医疗机构里，患者们利用生理反馈机制来缓解他们的偏头痛或者降低他们的血压。心理或者情绪可以影响到身体的机能，大量的证据表明这是毫无争议的。This mind - body effect should not be surprising in view of（=considering，鉴于） the experience over the years with placebos（安慰剂）. The term placebo is used to describe a pill that contains no medical ingredients（混合物，组成部分） but that often produces the same effect as genuine（adj，真正的，坦率的，真诚的） medication. Placebos provide ample（adj，足够的，充足的） proof that expectations can have an effect on body chemistry. According to a recent article on placebos in Medical World News, studies conducted（实施） over the past 25 years have shown that placebos satisfactorily relieved symptoms in an average of 35 percent of patients tested（经过试验）. These symptoms include: fever（发烧）, severe postoperative（手术后的）pain, anginal（咽炎）pain headache, and anxiety, among other complaints. The explanationfor this strange phenomenon is that the human mind can create actual changes in body chemistry as a result of what it believes. If, for example, a person believes that a certain medication contains a substance that can accomplish a specific need, the body tends to move in that direction. 鉴于多年来对安慰剂使用状况的了解，心理身体影响机制不那么令人惊奇了。安慰剂这个名词过去是用来描述一种不含任何药物成分但是却能达到和药物治疗一样好效果的一种“药丸”。安慰剂提供了足够的证据证明心理期望对身体能够产生化学影响。一篇最近的刊登在医药世界报上的文章报导道，过去25年的研究表明安慰剂令人满意地缓解了参与测试的约35%的患者的症状。这些症状包括：发烧、严重的手术后疼痛、心绞痛、头痛、以及焦虑，在其它这些疾病中。对于这种奇怪现象的解释是人类的意识可以实际地引起身体中化学物质的变化，并且变化是朝意识所相信的方向发展。举个例子，如果一个人认为某种药物中含有可以完成某种特定需求的物质，那么身体就会朝那个方向发展。An increasing number of scientists now contend that the bodys healing system and its belief system are closely related. That is why hope, faith, and the will to live can be vital factors in the war against disease. The belief system converts positive expectations into plus factors in any contest（竞争，为而奋斗）against illness. 越来越多的科学家现在认为身体的治愈系统和人的信念系统是密切相关的，这就是为什么希望、信念、生存的意愿可以成为对抗疾病至关因素。在每一场对抗疾病的过程中，信念系统将积极的期望转化成为实际的有效果的因素。Another crucial（关键性的） factor that influences the system of belief and healing is the attitude of the physician（内科医生）. One of a doctors main functions is to engage to the fullest（达到极致） the patients own ability to mobilize（v，调动，动员，组织） the forces of mind and body in turning back disease. The patients belief in the judgment and healing power of the physician is often more important than the treatment itself in reversing（adj，回动的，v，（使）反转，（使）颠倒） the course of the illness. Dr. Herbert Benson, an associate professor（副教授） of medicine at Harvard Medical School and author of The Mind-Body Effect, believes that a doctors caring about his or her patient causes specific physiological improvement. In Annies case, for example, she had a very supportive family physician plus the enlightened Dr. Stehlin, who was very aware that encouragement and a positive attitude can be all-important. 另外一个影响信念和治愈系统的至关因素是对于医生的态度。医生的一个主要的作用就是使病人的意识身体力量得到充分发挥来抵御疾病。病人对于治疗和他的医生的信任往往比治疗本身更加重要。哈佛大学医学院医药学副教授，同时也是意识身体作用这一书的作者Herbert Benson博士认为医生对病人的关心呵护可以造成特定的生理的改善与提高。比如，在安妮的案例中，她拥有一个非常支持她的家庭医生，并且还受到了非常懂得鼓励和积极态度的重要性的斯特林医生的指导。People who are seriously ill need to believe that they have a chance. They respond not just to the doctors attitude but to the mood of the people very close to them. If hope is missing from the eyes and from the voices of their families, the absence will be felt. I feel that in the future there will be more and more programs in which caring professionals will help patients and their families to cope and to support the ill person each other. 那些得了很严重的疾病的人需要相信他们还有机会，还有希望。他们不仅仅受到医生态度的影响，还会受到与他们亲近的周围人的情绪影响。如果病人无法从他们家人的眼中及话语里看到希望，那他们就会失去希望。我觉得在未来将会有越来越多的护理人员会帮助患者和他的家人处理这些事情，帮他们建立希望来支持病人的治疗。It makes no sense to believe that only the negative emotions have an effect on the bodys chemistry. Every emotion, negative or positive, makes its registrations（n，登记，注册，挂号，登记人数） on the bodys systems. When I was ill. I read every humorous book I could get my hands on. My goal was to be uplifted and relieved of worry and panic through laughter. Thats why Dr. Stehlin uses comic films as part of his therapy. Illness is not a laughing matter, but perhaps it ought to be. Laughter is a form of internal（内部的，内心的） jogging（慢跑）. It moves the organs around. It enhances respiration（呼吸）. It is an igniter（点燃） of great expectations. 只认为负面情绪会影响体内的化学物质的话是说不通的。每一种情绪，无论正面或者负面，在身体系统中都会起到作用。当我生病的时候，我会读每一本我能读到的有趣的书，我的目标就是用笑容来驱赶焦虑和恐慌。这就是为什么斯特林博士会在治疗中使用喜剧电影。生病不是一件令人发笑的事，但有可能它应该成为这么一件事。笑是一种内部慢跑的形式。它使身体的每个器官运动起来，加强了呼吸作用，它是点燃希望的点火器。Through my studies at the medical school and from my own experience, I have learned that one of the prime elements of human uniqueness（独一无二的） is the ability to create and exercise new options. What an individual decides to do with his or her life; what a person believes or doesnt believe about the great mysteries of life; how people go about fulfilling their individual and collective needs and desires - all these involve options. Protecting and cherishing our right to exercise these options may well represent the finest（最好的）example of true human freedom. 通过我在医学院的研究和我自身的经历，我了解到人类特别性的一个很重要的元素就是人能够创造并进行新的抉择。一个人决定他这一生做什么，他们相信或者不相信生命的神秘，人们如何满足他们的欲望和追求所有的这些都涉及到选择。保护并珍惜我们能进行选择的权力才能代表我们拥有真正的自由。We must learn never to underestimate（低估） the capacity of the human mind and body to regenerate（再生） - even when the prospects（前景） seem most wretched（adj，不幸的，悲惨的，可怜的，卑鄙的，恶劣的）. The life-force may be the least understood force on earth. The eminent（杰出的，卓越的） psychologist and philosopher William James said that human beings tend to live too much within self-imposed（adj，自己担负，v，强迫，勉强，推行） limits. It is possible that these limits will recede（后退，减弱）when we respect more fully the natural drive of the human mind and body toward perfectibility and regeneration.我们永远都不要低估了意识的力量以及身体的可再生力甚至当前景十分令人苦恼的时候。生命的力量可能是这个世界上被了解的最少的力量。杰出的心理学家和哲学家William James说，人类过于生活在自己强加给自己的约束中了。当我们能更尊重意识和身体，相信意识可以日臻完美，身体可以自然恢复，那么这些限制就会渐渐减少了。 The most important thing I have learned about the power of belief is that an individual patients attitude toward serious illness c