Moodle at CCNM

In this presentation, Dr. Edwards presents evidence from the current literature on the effects of spiritual practice and the capacities of consciousness and applicability to the practice of Naturopathic Medicine.

The presentation will cover what healing means in the clinical environment, how the experience of the patient’s suffering can be support by addressing spiritual distress, providing compassionate presence and offering accompaniment. Clinicians need to be aware of their own inner life or spirituality to be able to provide such care. The concept of a transformational model of care will be discussed.

The prevalence of anxiety & depression in patients with functional gastrointestinal distress is significantly higher than compared to healthy controls. These numbers shed light on the need for mental health intervention for people suffering from functional digestive distress. This presentation offers a review of current literature on the effect of stress-reduction techniques, specifically mediation, on the microbiome and how to implement beneficial stress-reduction techniques into treatment plans for patients with gastrointestinal distress.

This presentation introduces the student to the anatomy and physiology of the subtle energy body system and its application to the individual in how it relates to the emotions, the thought patterns held in the unconscious mind and correlating symptomology held in the physical body. Students will learn to understand physical symptomology of disease from an expanded perspective which includes the subtle energy body and its interconnection with the emotional, mental and spiritual levels. Specifics of the subtle energy body system will be explored both theoretically through the examination of two different subtle energy body systems developed throughout the world, and personally through the exploration of their own energy system. Case histories will be presented and an exploratory exercise will be included.

In this presentation, we are joined by three panelists who share their stories involving their near death experiences followed by a Q & A.

Each and every one of us will experience some form of trauma in our lifetimes; whether it’s physical, emotional or karmic. These traumas, along with every single other event that has happened to us in our lives, are stored within the subconscious mind. The subconscious mind makes up 95-99% of the way we see, act and respond to the world, yet, traditional therapies for mental health are only working with the conscious mind, the 1-5%.In this lecture, find out how to not only how to release the limiting beliefs, blocks and stored trauma that are creating dis-ease, but also learn how we can harness the infinite power of the subconscious mind for quantum healing.

University-based scientific research has now demonstrated that life continues after bodily death. This comforting and life-changing news will be officially announced in early 2021 after the completion of multicenter studies at six universities / institutes and publication of Dr. Gary Schwartz’s seminal paper. Widespread awareness of this evidence and availability of SoulPhone communication technology will trigger a worldwide paradigm shift.The term greater reality describes all that exists – the vast totality of life that usually can’t be perceived by humans. The term greater reality living invites people to consider how they might live and treat themselves and others when they really know that bodily death is not the end of life. The book Greater Reality Living by Drs. Pitstick and Schwartz and online and local Greater Reality Living groups will help people learn more about all of this. The L.I.V.E.S. formula will enable people to: learn the afterlife evidence, internalize the great news, vitalize themselves holistically, enjoy the many benefits, and serve themselves and others.

In clinical care of patients, the spiritual aspects can be easily overlooked, and yet recognition may be central in the patient’s symptom presentation, and in providing optimal care. This presentation focuses on how to assess the spiritual aspects, in practical clinical questions, and in common spiritual themes that may be present in clinical situations. The presentation discusses “Near Death Experience” elements, comparison to delirium, and the challenges of various biological theories in understanding the “NDE”. It is vital that health care workers can recognize when a patient has had an “NDE,” and not minimize or discount such an important or possibly unexplained experience for the patient. NDE stories can be used to help patients struggling with fear of dying, with grief, with suicidal ideation, or lack of purpose. Finally, understanding the NDE can broaden our perspectives of consciousness; of how we perceive life and death; and how we can come to terms with the end of life for ourselves and for our patients.

As compassionate professionals or devoted caregivers, we may at times be invited into conversations with patients or clients that addresses religious views on death and the afterlife. Meeting people "where they are" in terms of belief systems is a delicate art that requires patience, wisdom and skill. How do we offer compassionate listening and support for beliefs that may not resonate with our own? How can we honor the other person's reality fully and lovingly, without imposing our own views and biases?

This presentation will provide an overview of active research activities within the Helfgott Research Institute related to spirituality in health and medicine. Research described will include: qualitative research related to experiences with psilocybin; Yoga Nidra for anxiety and sleep; trauma-informed yoga for stress; and student health and spirituality at NUNM.

Dr. Yvonne Kason will describe how person experiences as a young medical doctor introduced her to spiritual experiences: while meditating in 1976 during her final year in medical school, she had what she now knows was a kundalini awakening: then in 1979 during her medical residency, she had her first adult Near-Death Experience in a medevac plane crash, an out-of-body and white-light mystical experience, followed by a psychic awakening of clairvoyance a few weeks later. Not finding a satisfactory explanation for her own “paranormal” experiences in the western medical traditions, she began a quest researching spiritual experiences, drawing from the literature of many faith traditions as well as from transpersonal psychology. Her discovery of the widespread occurrence and lack of understanding about these experiences, propelled her in 1992, to become the first Canadian medical doctor to specialize her practice in the counseling and research of patients with diverse “Spiritually Transformative Experience” (STEs), a term she coined in 1994. STEs include Near-Death Experiences, mystical experiences, spiritual energy or kundalini awakenings, diverse psychic experiences, other death related-STEs, and inspired creativity. Dr. Kason will describe the key diagnostic features of each type of STE, examine their common and often powerful after-effects on the body, mind, and spirit, and review key strategies for counseling persons who have had STEs.

Key ideas in neuroscience, social psychology, and transpersonal psychology point to a view of human identity as a social phenomenon. One important part of that view the presence of the fundamental need to belong, both as a primal biological impulse and as a psycho-spiritual quest. In that light, the relationship with the patient can be seen as a matrix of healing. In this lecture, we explore the concept of the self as being fundamentally social and how this helps with promoting greater wellbeing and the spiritual journey.

This is an exciting time in health-care, where both paradigms of health and well-being are beginning to demonstrate efficacy in arenas where traditional disease-based models have been more limited. Dr. Rediger presents a summary of 16 years of investigation into patients with indisputable evidence for improbable recovery or remarkable achievement involving illnesses traditionally considered incurable, and discusses the most salient factors associated with their recoveries. The relevance of this is shown for the major killers of western culture, namely, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, autoimmune illness and lung disease. Dr. Rediger illustrates the power of a bio-psycho-social model using traditional biomedical markers for helping us see both health and illness from a different perspective, and concludes by discussing the power of grounded, ethical hope in the context of a science of health and well-being.