From Publishers Weekly
This carefully researched and accessible study by Benson (The Relaxation Response), a professor at Harvard Medical School, focuses on the power of the mind in curing illness. Benson cites a wealth of scientific data, as well as anecdotes from patients, to establish evidence that "remembered wellness"?his term for the placebo effect?is a major factor in relieving serious medical conditions. Remembered wellness can occur when a sick person calls the doctor for an appointment then feels much better, if not recovered, by the date of the appointment. The majority of research presented here deals with the strong negative or positive power of belief systems on the body. Benson argues that humans are genetically prone to attach meaning to life and then translate this predisposition into belief in a higher power. Faith in God, according to Benson and documented by recent studies on the positive effects of prayer, is as important to healing as are medical procedures. This is a thought-provoking inquiry into the mind/body connection. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Apropos to the world of modern medicine, Shakespeare wrote, "Oft expectation fails, and most oft there, Where it promises most." To this arena of lofty expectation and technological wizardry, Benson (Harvard Medical Sch.) again explores the healing power of the human psyche. As in his The Wellness Book (LJ 3/1/92), Benson illustrates via exhaustive case studies and anonymous examples the power of what has been erroneously labeled the placebo effect. Further, he cites numerous instances where the intersection of prayer and meditation have stemmed the tide of pain or disability, illuminating for the uninitiated the raw potency of the human will. Benson's academic credentials lend credence to his authoritative voice as he "demythologizes meditation" (says one early reviewer) as well as the world of wholistic healing. Somewhat overblown at times, Benson's previous works go far to cover much of what is reiterated here. Purchase where interest in spirituality and wholistic medicine is high or as an initial foray into this area.?Sandra Collins, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary Lib.Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
Benson pursued the relationships between medicine and belief for years before founding Harvard's Mind/Body Institute in 1988. Here, with Stark's writing help, he reports many scientific studies of this relationship, of the placebo effect, and especially of the "remembered wellness" (i.e., desire for health) effect. His three-legged stool of health and well-being--pharmaceuticals, surgery and other procedures, and self-care--helps keep him focused as he explores the reasons for the occurrence of remembered wellness and the mechanisms by which it acts. Many physicians do not want to admit the effectiveness of remembered wellness because it cannot be seen or quantified, but Benson points out that only 15 percent of medical treatments are based on "reliable medical evidence" and that emotions, feelings, and traditions must be borne in mind. In the last chapters, he looks particularly at the roles that religion, faith, and spiritual experiences play in healing. William Beatty


From Kirkus Reviews
An elaboration, a rehash even, of Benson's Beyond the Relaxation Response: How to Harness the Healing Power of Your Beliefs (1984). Benson uses the analogy of a three-legged stool to describe how health and well-being rely on the balanced application of (1) pharmaceuticals, (2) surgery and procedures, and (3) self-care. Greater utilization of self-care has been his career focus, and here he recounts his discovery of the relaxation response, his research into the placebo effect (renamed here ``remembered wellness''), and his identification of ``the faith factor.'' Benson proposes that religious convictions enhance the relaxation response dramatically. He contends that as a species aware of its own mortality, human beings are ``wired for God,'' that is, through evolution we have become genetically programmed to have faith in some absolute power. Further, he argues that affirmative beliefs, especially faith in God, have many positive effects on health. In 60 to 90 percent of doctor visits, he says, remembered wellness and other self-care techniques can be the treatment of choice, and he lists numerous specific conditions--asthma, insomnia, hypertension--in which studies show that belief plays a major role. The flip side of the coin is that negative thoughts elicit powerful negative effects, and he offers some ideas on dealing with these. Benson's utilitarian approach to religion may offend thoughtful believers, and his spiritual approach to healing may not sit well with the scientific crowd. An appendix plugging a video and 17 audiotapes on relaxation available from Benson's Mind/Body Medical Institute gives the whole project a self-serving air. For those familiar with Benson's work, there's not much new here. -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.


Review
Gerald G. Jampolsky, M.D. author of Love Is Letting Go of Fear Demonstrates that science and faith share a powerful route to wellness...full of good news for scientists and skeptics, believers and nonbelievers alike.


Book Description
In this life-changing book, Dr. Herbert Benson draws on his twenty-five years as a physician and researcher to reveal how affirming beliefs, particularly belief in a higher power, make an important contribution to our physical health. We are not simply nourished by meditation and prayer, but are, in essence, "wired for God." Combining the wisdom of modem medicine and of age-old faith. Dr. Benson shows how anyone can, with the aid of a caring physician or healer, use their beliefs and other self-care methods to heal over 60 percent of medical problems. As practical as it is spiritual, Timeless Healing is a blueprint for healing and transforming your life.


About the Author
Herbert Benson, MD, is the Mind/Body Medical Institute Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School with an endowed chair that will be named after him when he retires. He is the founding president of the Mind/Body Medical Institute of Pathway Health Network and Harvard Medical School. Chief of the Division of Behavioral Medicine at the Deaconess Hospital, he also teaches at Andover Newton Theological School. He actively conducts medical research, lectures widely, and is the author of five other books. He lives in Lexington, Massachusetts.

FROM OUR EDITORS

Dr. Benson weaves personal anecdotes, scientific research, social commentary, and spiritual wisdom to explore the intersection between objective science and the mystifying power of the human spirit in this life-changing new book. He demonstrates how affirming beliefs, especially belief in a higher power, make a critical contribution to our physical health, and discusses his belief that humans are genetically encoded with a need for faith. A powerful blueprint for health and healing.

ANNOTATION

"...how patients can, with the help of their doctors, employ their beliefs and other self-care methods to heal over 60 percent of medical problems."

FROM THE PUBLISHER

In this life-changing new book, Timeless Healing, Herbert Benson, MD, explores the intersection between objective science and the mystifying power of the human spirit. In Timeless Healing, Dr. Benson shows how affirming beliefs, particularly belief in a higher power, make a critical contribution to our physical health. In essence, Dr. Benson's message is that our bodies are wired for God. The key to Timeless Healing is what Dr. Benson calls remembered wellness - a concept that may revolutionize the way health care is practiced in the Western world. A Harvard physician who has conducted scientific research for thirty years, Dr. Benson explains how he became convinced that humans are genetically encoded with a need for and nourishment from faith. He documents that when people call upon faith, they activate neurologic pathways for self-healing. Detailing the scientific evidence, Dr. Benson clearly shows how anyone, along with a caring physician or healer, can tap into a reservoir of remembered wellness to affect and cure up to 90 percent of medical complaints. Acknowledging Western medicine's deficits when it comes to appreciating faith and the human spirit, Dr. Benson does not dismiss modern health care out of hand. Instead, he proposes practical ways in which patients and the medical community can make faith an integral part of health care, and he explores the merits of unconventional medicine. He proposes a balanced treatment approach drawing upon all components of health caremedications, medical procedures, and self-care that includes remembered wellness.

FROM THE CRITICS

Library Journal

Apropos to the world of modern medicine, Shakespeare wrote, "Oft expectation fails, and most oft there, Where it promises most." To this arena of lofty expectation and technological wizardry, Benson (Harvard Medical Sch.) again explores the healing power of the human psyche. As in his The Wellness Book (LJ 3/1/92), Benson illustrates via exhaustive case studies and anonymous examples the power of what has been erroneously labeled the placebo effect. Further, he cites numerous instances where the intersection of prayer and meditation have stemmed the tide of pain or disability, illuminating for the uninitiated the raw potency of the human will. Benson's academic credentials lend credence to his authoritative voice as he "demythologizes meditation" (says one early reviewer) as well as the world of wholistic healing. Somewhat overblown at times, Benson's previous works go far to cover much of what is reiterated here. Purchase where interest in spirituality and wholistic medicine is high or as an initial foray into this area.-Sandra Collins, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary Lib.

Kirkus Reviews

An elaboration, a rehash even, of Benson's Beyond the Relaxation Response: How to Harness the Healing Power of Your Beliefs (1984).

Benson uses the analogy of a three-legged stool to describe how health and well-being rely on the balanced application of (1) pharmaceuticals, (2) surgery and procedures, and (3) self-care. Greater utilization of self-care has been his career focus, and here he recounts his discovery of the relaxation response, his research into the placebo effect (renamed here "remembered wellness"), and his identification of "the faith factor." Benson proposes that religious convictions enhance the relaxation response dramatically. He contends that as a species aware of its own mortality, human beings are "wired for God," that is, through evolution we have become genetically programmed to have faith in some absolute power. Further, he argues that affirmative beliefs, especially faith in God, have many positive effects on health. In 60 to 90 percent of doctor visits, he says, remembered wellness and other self-care techniques can be the treatment of choice, and he lists numerous specific conditions—asthma, insomnia, hypertension—in which studies show that belief plays a major role. The flip side of the coin is that negative thoughts elicit powerful negative effects, and he offers some ideas on dealing with these. Benson's utilitarian approach to religion may offend thoughtful believers, and his spiritual approach to healing may not sit well with the scientific crowd. An appendix plugging a video and 17 audiotapes on relaxation available from Benson's Mind/Body Medical Institute gives the whole project a self-serving air.

For those familiar with Benson's work, there's not much new here.