American doctor David Servan Schreiber. Read online "anti-stress". The main thing is the desire to find a way out

Cancer... He, like an evil adder, quietly creeps not only into our homes, but also into our soul, our hearts, in order to destroy the usual way of life and take away from it the most precious thing we have - our family and friends. And we, being under the hypnotic influence of the usual: “Cancer is death!”, limply give up, allowing the monster to complete its dirty work.

My dad died a few years ago. The cause of death was lung cancer. Doctors did not operate on him, citing his rather advanced age (he was 69 years old at that time) and the difficulty of diagnosis. My mother and I turned to a well-known private clinic, which promised us almost complete healing without surgical intervention. Dad only managed to undergo one procedure. Only 2.5 months passed from the moment of diagnosis to the day of death.

Four years later, my mother was hospitalized on an emergency basis with suspected intestinal obstruction. Thunder struck immediately after the operation, when the surgeon stated: “Cancer of the transverse colon with metastases to the liver,” and added a memorized phrase: “She has a maximum of 1.5–2 months left to live, get ready...” The first thing that overwhelmed me was - emotions. I fell into a terrible depression, cried day and night, cursed life, so cruel and unfair, and when I was allowed into the ward and I saw my mother’s eyes... there was so much silent plea for help in them, so much hope, so much faith... and this call was addressed to me... That’s when I realized that I couldn’t, I simply didn’t have the right to “prepare,” to sit and indifferently wait for “the beginning of the end.” Who, if not me, can snatch the only person dear to me from the clutches of death?

I read a huge amount of literature on alternative medicine, studied various approaches and techniques, and got acquainted with reviews of patients who survived cancer and conquered death. By the time my mother was discharged from the hospital, I had already drawn up a plan for her further treatment at home.

Almost a year after the operation, we met with the surgeon, who was sincerely surprised to see before him an energetic, healthy woman, full of vitality and energy, whose fate was decided on the operating table. The test results shocked him even more:

“This can’t be! What were you treated with?” And I answered: “By faith! The belief that cancer is not death!”

In this book, I collected all the materials that helped me refute the gloomy forecasts of doctors and restore the life of a loved and dear person - my mother. I hope that they will help all those who today have lost hope and have lost faith in the future. There is always a way out of any situation. The main thing is to want to find it!

Elena Imanbaeva

The main thing is the desire to find a way out

Oncology... This word, even in its “benign” understanding, evokes in most people genuine horror and fear of the future - fear of a tragic ending and fear of the possibility of becoming one of many cancer patients without hope of recovery.

Modern medicine has been trying for decades to solve the problem of the “plague of the 20th”, and now of the 21st century.

And it seems that here it is - the one and only means that allows us to put an end to the “case of malignant neoplasms” once and for all, but official statistics make us think about the opposite. The incidence of malignant tumors in Russia is increasing by 1.5% annually. Moreover, 30% of patients die within the first year after detection of a neoplasm. About 300 thousand residents of the Russian Federation die from cancer every year. According to the World Health Organization, our country is one of the three European countries with the highest mortality rates from cancer.

But a person must live, and this is natural, just as it is natural that our body is capable of defeating any, even the most terrible, illness. The question is different - how to mobilize the body’s defenses, make them work for you, turn every cell, every shaped element into a real “professional killer”?

The purpose of our book is to help people “standing at a crossroads” to believe that cancer is not a death sentence. There are no hopeless situations in life, there is a reluctance to look for a way out!

On the verge of despair

There are many deadly diseases, but cancer pathology occupies a special place among them. An oncological diagnosis, even if it is not cancer, causes shock, fear, and despair. And this is not surprising. The recommendations in the hospital discharge: “Discharged for symptomatic treatment at the place of residence” are nothing more than an admission of the pointlessness of doctors’ further struggle for the patient’s life. People who have had to hear a terrible diagnosis of cancer, and then go through surgery and severe post-operative treatment, often fall into despair and depression.

A. Lowen in his book “Psychology of the Body” writes that cancer is closely related to the suppression of feelings: “... the struggle for health, when it does not fully include feelings, is unproductive. If the despair at the root of many cancers is not identified and addressed, it consumes the patient's energy and leads to degeneration of body tissues."

In reality, illness is not a purely physical problem, it is a problem of the entire human being, consisting not only of his body, but of his mind and emotions. Emotional and intellectual states play a significant role in both susceptibility to and recovery from diseases, including cancer. Active and positive participation of patients can influence the course of the disease, treatment outcomes and their quality of life.

Many have lost someone close to cancer or have simply heard about the horrors of this disease. Therefore, they believe that cancer is a strong and powerful disease that can affect the human body and completely destroy it.

In fact, the science of cells—cytology—suggests the opposite: a cancer cell is inherently weak and poorly organized.

A state of despair aggravates the course of cancer. K. Simonton and S. Simonton in the book “Psychotherapy of Cancer” note that stress is a powerful “nutrient medium” for oncology. The human nervous system was created as a result of millions of years of evolution. For most of man's existence on Earth, the demands placed on his nervous system were different from what modern civilization dictates to us. The survival of primitive man depended on his ability to quickly determine the degree of threat and decide whether to fight or flee in this situation. As soon as the nervous system perceives an external threat, our body immediately reacts to it (through changes in hormonal balance) and is ready to act accordingly. However, life in modern society often requires us to suppress such reactions. It often happens that from a social point of view it is impossible to either “fight” or “flight”, so we learn to suppress these reactions. We suppress them all the time - when we make some mistake, hear an unexpected car horn, stand in line, are late for the bus, etc.

The human body is designed in such a way that if stress is immediately followed by a physical reaction to it - a person “runs” or “fights” - the stress does not cause much harm to him. But when the psychological response to stress is not released due to the possible social consequences of your “fight” or “flight”, then the negative effects of stress begin to accumulate in the body. This is the so-called “chronic stress”, stress to which the body has not responded appropriately in a timely manner. And it is precisely this kind of chronic stress, as scientists are increasingly recognizing, that plays a very important role in the occurrence of many diseases.

Chronic stress suppresses the immune system, which is responsible for neutralizing (destructing) cancer cells and pathogenic microorganisms. We feel stress not only at the moment when we experience a certain event that contributes to the formation of negative emotions, but also every time we remember this event. Such “delayed” stress and the tension associated with it can have a strong negative impact on the body’s natural defense systems.

Cancer indicates that there were unresolved problems somewhere in a person's life that were intensified or complicated by a series of stressful situations that occurred between six months and a year and a half before the onset of cancer. The typical reaction of a cancer patient to these problems and stress is to feel helpless and give up the fight. This emotional reaction sets in motion a number of physiological processes that suppress the body's natural defense mechanisms and create conditions that promote the formation of atypical cells.

People paid attention to the connection between cancer and a person’s emotional state more than two thousand years ago. One might even say that it is precisely the neglect of this connection that is relatively new and strange. Almost two millennia ago, in the 2nd century AD, the Roman physician Galen drew attention to the fact that cheerful women are less likely to get cancer than women who are often depressed. In 1701, the English physician Gendron, in a treatise on the nature and causes of cancer, pointed out its relationship with “life’s tragedies, causing great trouble and grief.”

One of the best studies examining the connection between emotional states and cancer is described in the book by C. G. Jung's follower Elida Evans, A Study of Cancer from a Psychological Point of View, to which Jung himself wrote the foreword. He believed that Evans had solved many of the mysteries of cancer, including the unpredictability of the disease, why the disease sometimes returns after years without any of its symptoms, and why the disease is associated with the industrialization of society.

Based on a study of 100 cancer patients, Evans concludes that shortly before the onset of the disease, many of them lost emotional connections that were meaningful to them. She believed that they were all psychological types who tended to associate themselves with one object or role (a person, a job, a home) rather than develop their own individuality. When this object or role with which a person associates himself begins to be threatened or simply disappears, then such patients find themselves as if alone with themselves, but at the same time they lack the skills to cope with such situations. Cancer patients tend to put the interests of others first. In addition, Evans believes that cancer is a symptom of unresolved problems in the patient's life. Her observations were confirmed and refined by a number of later studies.

Any mental and physical illness is initiated by emotional shocks that took place in the recent past or even in distant childhood. The more negative charge a critical situation has, the greater the potential danger it poses. The negative potential of emotional trauma in initiating various diseases is based on the “freezing” of emotions in our memory, since emotions are “stored” in the body. Emotions “frozen” in the body are capable of creating functional (not physical) connections that inhibit the normal passage of nerve impulses in the body and prevent the normal functioning of the neural network.

Since almost every area of ​​the brain is connected to a specific organ or area of ​​the body, the result is increased (or decreased) muscle and blood vessel tone in a specific location of the body. In his work, Hammer identified a clear correspondence between the type of psychological trauma, the location of the “closed circuit” in the brain and the location of the tumor in the body.

The trapped emotions begin to damage the brain in a certain area, similar to a mild stroke, and the brain begins to send inappropriate information to a certain part of the body. As a result, blood circulation in this area deteriorates, which leads, on the one hand, to poor nutrition of cells, and on the other, to poor removal of their waste products. As a result, a cancerous tumor begins to develop in this place. The type of tumor and its location clearly depend on the type of emotional trauma. The rate of tumor growth depends on the strength of the emotional trauma. As soon as this happens, swelling appears in the corresponding area of ​​the brain (in the place where emotions are “trapped”), which can be easily observed on a CT scan. When the swelling resolves, tumor growth stops and healing begins. Due to brain injury, the immune system does not fight cancer cells. Moreover, cancer cells in this place are not even recognized by the immune system. It follows that the key to complete recovery from cancer is to treat the brain first.

But if stress is a prerequisite for the occurrence of cancer, how destructive should despair, the feeling of one’s own helplessness and the helplessness of the attending physician, be for the patient?

Unfortunately, we know for sure that in a world where rockets fly into space, there is no cure for this terrible disease. But we must be sure that any illness is not a sentence to something inevitable and tragic. Illness is just a challenge, a signal for war with an invisible and dangerous enemy, which can and must be defeated!

Oncology – a sentence or a challenge?

Why is the mortality rate from cancer still high? Why, having advanced techniques and technologies in its arsenal, cannot official medicine, even for a lot of money, solve this “problem No. 1”? Most likely, because cancer is perceived by our consciousness as a sentence, as the ultimate punishment, which makes no sense to challenge. And if we consider oncology as a challenge - a challenge to the entire way of life, way of thinking, to the person who was BEFORE the discovery of the disease, a challenge to the main human instinct - the instinct of self-preservation?

American psychiatrist David Servan-Schreiber became a victim of an insidious disease. While working at a Pittsburgh clinic, 30-year-old Servan-Schreiber decided to test the capabilities of a new magnetic resonance therapy device. Colleagues placed the “test subject” in the cabin and began taking pictures. They were alerted by some strange formation the size of a walnut. So, quite by accident, Servan-Schreiber was diagnosed with a brain tumor. In an instant, the doctor turned from a young and healthy man into a patient. When he asked the oncologist how long he had left, he answered - from two months to a year. David decided not to give up and first of all sat down to read specialized literature.

A few days after the disease was discovered, Servan-Schreiber underwent surgery. The tumor was excised. Three months later he was examined and the results were encouraging. After another three months, everything is fine again. David got to work.

Once one of his patients, whom Servan-Schreiber was consulting, suggested that he go to an Indian shaman. The sorcerer made a great impression on the psychiatrist: without approaching the person, he named his illnesses. David decided to test the magician's capabilities for himself. The shaman looked at the newcomer and said: you had a disease, but it went away. And then for some reason he doubted his own words and asked to go to his mother, whom he described as a very strong healer. David made an appointment. The witch turned out to be an ancient old woman. The grandmother put her hand on the “patient’s” head, stood there for a few minutes, then frowned and muttered: “I feel like you had an illness and it has returned.” David left the old woman neither alive nor dead. Returning home, the psychiatrist went for an unscheduled examination. The old woman's words were confirmed.

At first, after the terrible news, David could not come to his senses. He did not want to communicate with anyone, he lost his appetite and sleep. For hours he walked back and forth around the house and constantly asked himself why the disease did not subside. He was treated by the best oncologist in the country; he had the latest generation drugs at his disposal. After much thought, Servan-Schreiber came to the conclusion: since the body cannot cope with the disease, it means that something is wrong with its immunity. This means that we must not bury ourselves alive, but rather challenge the insidious illness and mobilize the body’s defenses. He took a notebook, divided it into parts, in one column he wrote what reduces the body’s defenses, in the other - what increases it. This is how tables appeared, one of which concerned food, the second – chemicals, the third – feelings and emotions, the fourth – shopping.

David started his life again. He stuck to his new routine even as he underwent a second surgery to remove the tumor and then a course of chemotherapy. Fortune turned to Servan-Schreiber - he was completely cured.

More than 15 years have passed since then. During this time, Servan-Schreiber became a professor at the University of Pittsburgh, and his books on how to defeat cancer are in demand around the world. But most importantly, he had a son, whom he named by the Russian name Sasha.

Here is another example, less optimistic, but quite typical for cancer patients.

A physical education teacher in one of the secondary schools in Moscow, S. V. Arturov, experienced constant aching pain in the subscapular region on the right for two months. Various local anesthetics provided short-term relief. S.V. did not seek medical help because he believed that due to constant physical activity, a similar condition could occur in any athlete. An annual medical examination helped identify the presence of the disease. S.V. turned out to have stage 3 lung cancer. An operation was performed, but the patient's condition did not improve. He withdrew into himself, stopped communicating with friends and relatives, going outside, or performing any active movements. And although the pain syndrome disappeared, S.V. lost all interest in life. Three months after surgery, S.V. died.

Cancer is not just a serious disease, it is a challenge that requires a person to show fortitude, courage and strength. Cancer is not a death sentence, but the most serious reason to change. The intention to change can be seen as challenging a fatal disease.

Let's speculate. For example, excess weight forces a woman to look for various ways and methods of losing weight. She looks through numerous relevant literature, watches videos, talks with friends who have managed to lose excess weight, and is deeply imbued with this idea. Next, she begins to try on this idea - to intend - to intend for herself. In other words, the woman constantly visualizes herself in a new quality. That is, in the most general form, the essence of “intention” is that it not only wants to change, but it seems to already imagine itself changed, that is, in a new qualitative state, in a new “form.”

While still an ordinary person, she already imagines and “sees” herself as a slender lady with a wasp waist and “fixes” this “shape” in her mind as a kind of “program” for subsequent changes at various levels. Then, moving towards her goal, she gets acquainted with the technology of losing weight using one of the selected methods and after regular exercises, the once plump woman no longer recognizes herself in the mirror. Many acquaintances and friends do not recognize her, and as a result, she is forced to change her entire wardrobe and even her habits, since her new shape no longer corresponds to her previous clothing size. She gains self-confidence and personal power.

Thus, the woman achieved her (intentional) goal. She may not even realize that there was a force of intention behind all her actions, but that doesn’t matter. The important thing is that before she began to change, she formed something that can be called an intention to change. Next, the woman activated her will factor and, working on herself, purposefully lost excess weight.

The situation is similar with the development of any other skill and ability. The mechanism of change can be represented as follows:

Deep awareness of the need for change;

Intentional formation of the final goal;

Obtaining relevant knowledge (familiarization with the technology of the transformation process);

Volitional work for a certain period;

Getting the result.

The above example was related to a change in the body, but exactly the same mechanism of formation also takes place with a purposeful (intentional) change in consciousness.

As noted above, there is a close connection in the mind-body chain. And in this chain, the mind is a more complex and difficult to transform link than the body. That is why the first priority in importance should always be put to the task of changing the mind or system of thinking, the patient’s worldview and his attitude to life and illness, and only then begin to change the body.

The famous doctor David Servan-Schreiber in his book “Anti-Cancer” described and collected almost all the world experience in the prevention of a dangerous disease.

Just don’t be scared by the word “cancer” in the title! With the same success, these tips could be called anti-diabetes, anti-heart attack, anti-stroke and anti-excess weight. But what can you do: 15 years ago, neurologist David Servan-Schreiber accidentally discovered that he had cancer...

The doctor realized that medical treatment methods alone were not enough to defeat the disease and devoted himself to the search for natural prevention of oncology. After all, everyone has cancer cells. But not everyone gets cancer.

​ This diet from Servan-Schreiber turns out to be equally useful both as a general preventive approach to maintaining health, and as part of an overall complex of anti-cancer treatment (which includes, in addition to the diet itself, surgery + chemotherapy (and/or radiotherapy) + one or more another anti-cancer diet (for example, the Laskin diet, or the Servan-Schreiber diet below, or any other) + a complex of anti-cancer dietary supplements + positive emotions + relaxation + dosed physical activity + positive emotional mood.

The proposed system of their measures is general in nature and should be followed by everyone who cares about their health, which, naturally, includes cancer prevention.

Nutrition

Quite traditional dishes of different nations can save you from tumors, as they lower blood sugar levels or fight inflammation, which, it turns out, “feeds” the tumor.

And there are foods that make cancer cells... commit suicide! At the same time, there is enemy food that is better to avoid.

The following foods protect against cancer:

1. Green tea. Brew for 10 minutes, drink within an hour. 2-3 mugs per day.

2. Olive oil. Better cold pressed, 1 tablespoon per day.

3. Turmeric. Add to dishes in combination with black pepper, otherwise it will not be absorbed. A pinch a day is enough. Ginger has similar properties.

4. Cherries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, blueberries, cranberries. Can be frozen, can be fresh, quantity is not limited.

5. Plums, peaches, apricots (all stone fruits). According to the latest research, they help as much as berries.

6. Cruciferous vegetables: broccoli, cauliflower and other types of cabbage. It is advisable not to boil, but to bake or cook in a double boiler. Can be raw.

7. Garlic, all types of onions. 1 head or half of a small onion is enough. Better in combination with olive oil, you can lightly fry it.

8. Mushrooms. There is evidence for champignons and oyster mushrooms, as well as various types of Japanese mushrooms.

9. Dark chocolate with more than 70% cocoa content. Just not dairy!

10. Tomatoes. Precisely boiled, preferably with olive oil.

How to eat

It is necessary to exclude from the diet the following foods that “feed” cancer cells, and these are:

Sugar (white and brown).

Bread. Especially white rolls, all baked goods are from the store.

White rice.

Heavily cooked pasta.

Potatoes and especially mashed potatoes.

Corn and other types of crunchy cereals.

Jams, syrups, jams.

Soda, industrial juices.

Alcohol outside of meals, especially strong alcohol.

Margarine and hydrogenated fats.

Industrial dairy products (from cows fed corn and soy).

Fast food, including French fries, chips, pizza, hot dogs.

Red meat, poultry skin, eggs (if chickens, pigs and cows were raised on corn and soybeans, injected with hormones and antibiotics).

Peels of store-bought vegetables and fruits (as pesticides accumulate in them).

Tap water. Water from plastic bottles that were heated in the sun.

At the same time, it is useful to use:

Coconut sugar, acacia honey.

Agave syrup.

Mixed grain and wholemeal products: rye bread, dark rice and basmati, oats, barley, buckwheat, flax seeds.

Lentils, beans, sweet potatoes.

Muesli, oatmeal.

Fresh berries.

Homemade lemonade.

Tea with thyme, citrus zest.

It is good to drink a glass of red wine once a day with meals.

Olive oil, linseed oil.

“Natural” dairy products (that is, from an animal that has been fed grass).

Olives, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes.

Vegetables.

Fish, but not large ones: mackerel, mackerel, sardines, salmon.

“Eco-friendly” meat and eggs (from animals that have not been injected with hormones).

Peeled vegetables and fruits.

Filtered water, mineral water, bottled in glass bottles.

Chemical products that should be avoided:

Deodorants and antiperspirants with aluminum.

Cosmetics with parabens and phtholates: see the label of shampoos, varnishes, foams, hair dyes, nail polish, sunscreens.

Cosmetics with hormones (estrogens) and placenta.

Industrial insect and rodent repellents.

Plastic dishes made of PVC, polystyrene and expanded polystyrene (you cannot heat food in them).

Teflon pans with damaged coating.

Cleaning and detergents, toilet capsules with ACRYLIC.

Dry cleaning of clothes and linen.

Perfume (contains phthalates).

To replace the above you can use:

Natural deodorants without aluminum. Look in pharmacies and specialty stores.

Natural cosmetics that do not contain parabens and phthalates.

Products based on essential oils and boric acid.

Ceramic or glassware.

Cookware without Teflon coating or with intact coating.

Use only environmentally friendly detergents and cleaning products, including washing powders.

If you use dry cleaning, air the laundry in the air for at least an hour.

Report at the meeting of the Regional public organization "Phytotherapeutic Society" on February 24, 2011, Associate Professor of the Russian Medical Academy of Postgraduate Education Korshikova Yu.I.

I was introduced to David Servan Schreiber’s book “Anti-Cancer” by the professor of the radiological clinic of the Russian Medical Academy of Postgraduate Education, M.P. Vavilov, for which I express my deep gratitude to him, as well as for his help in editing the last version of the abstract.

The book was written by David Servan-Schreiber, a scientist and doctor who suffered from brain cancer for 15 years, underwent 2 operations, several courses of chemotherapy and managed to write a book about his illness, which is considered one of the world's bestsellers. Not everyone of us may have this book in our hands, and not everyone will be able to read it due to lack of time, so I took the trouble to briefly convey its contents, and most importantly, its ideas.

“This book talks about mortal danger and how to find yourself, live to the fullest, how to make life worthy of fighting for. This book is about how to change your lifestyle to successfully fight the disease." The author dedicates this dramatic narrative primarily to fellow doctors and hopes that they will incorporate the methods described in the book into their practice.

The author of the book was diagnosed with brain cancer by accident when he was 32 years old. The thirst for life prompted him to conduct a huge analytical work of medical literature on oncology. As the epigraph of the book, he took the words of Rene Dubos, a microbiologist, professor at the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research, who discovered the first antibiotic - gramicidin, used in clinical practice in 1939, and the initiator of the first UN summit on environmental problems (1972).

“I have always felt that the only problem with scientific medicine is that it is not scientific enough. Modern medicine will become truly scientific only when doctors and patients learn to control the forces of body and mind that act as the vis medicatrix naturae (the healing powers of nature).”

The first part of the book introduces the reader to a new perspective on the mechanisms of cancer, in particular with discoveries in the field of oncoimmunology. The author presents a view on the importance of inflammatory processes underlying the growth of tumors, as well as the possibility of blocking their spread by preventing the feeding of tumor tissue through blood vessels.

New ideas about the occurrence and progression of the disease open up four ways to overcome it:

1. Protection from adverse environmental influences

2. Correction of diet (reduce consumption of foods that contribute to the occurrence and spread of cancer)

3. Healing psychological wounds

4. Establishing a relationship with your body that stimulates the immune system.

In the section “Weaknesses of Cancer,” the author writes that there are examples of inexplicable healing of cancer patients, even in an advanced stage. Many doctors believe that a diagnosis error was made, or that recovery is explained by the delayed effect of chemotherapy. Actually this is not true. The body itself finds and turns on some reserves and defeats the disease. Having studied a large amount of experimental data on tumors, the author draws attention and describes one unique story of mouse number 6, which was called “mighty mouse”. He was injected with huge billion-dollar doses of cancer cells (two billion, which was 12% of his body weight), but he did not get sick. Zheng Cui, working in one of the experimental laboratories in America, realized that there was a case of innate resistance to cancer. Half of this mouse's grandchildren also turned out to be resilient. There was an episode where they got cancer after being inoculated with cancer cells, but then they were completely cured. Their age in human terms was equivalent to 50 years. This is precisely the period when people most often develop cancer.

The mystery of resistance was solved by Dr. Mark S. Miller. “Looking at samples of S180 cancer cells taken from tissues of resistant mice under a microscope, he saw a real battlefield.” Leukocytes, including the famous natural killers, fought the cancer cells.” The mice's resilience is due to the powerful resistance that the cancer-resistant mice's immune systems develop in response to the "intruder." The author calls killer cells anti-cancer special forces. This mechanism also works in people. A study of 70 women with breast cancer found that when killer cells were sluggish, almost half of the women died over a 12-year follow-up period. In contrast, 95% of women with active killer cells survived. “Professor Zheng Cui’s experiments demonstrated that mouse white blood cells are capable of destroying two billion cancer cells.” As a result of a short battle in half a day, 160 million mouse leukocytes destroy the tumor. Immunologists could not imagine anything like this. Immunologist Lloyd Old told Zheng Cui; “It’s good that you are not an immunologist, otherwise you would simply throw away this mouse.” Zheng Cui replied: “We should be grateful to nature for not reading our textbooks!”

Let us also think about this wise answer.

The development of late metastases or secondary tumors is associated with the state of the immune system. When the immune system is in order, microtumors do not develop and, conversely, when the immune system is weakened, cancer progression is observed.

"1.Traditional Western food

2. Constant anger, depression

3.Social isolation

4. Denial of the “true” self

5Sedentary lifestyle

Stimulate the immune system

1.Mediterranean, Asian, Indian (anti-inflammatory cuisine)

2.Calmness, joy

3.Support from family and friends

4. Acceptance of yourself, your values ​​and your personal history

Regular physical activity."

"Cancer is a wound that won't heal"

Inflammation is a universal reaction of all living beings, aimed at restoring tissues damaged by one factor or another. Redness, swelling, heat, pain are protective, expedient reactions that ensure restoration of the affected tissue. During the recovery process, new vessels and cells are formed. Once the necessary replacement of damaged tissue occurs, cell growth stops. “Immune cells activated to fight imposters return to surveillance mode.”

In recent years, it has become known that cancer “exploits” the recovery phase. The uncontrolled formation of new cells begins, which does not stop. Unhealthy cells block the defense system. The author shows the role of the inflammatory factor using examples of the development of lung cancer in chronic bronchitis, liver cancer in hepatitis E B, etc. Based on a large amount of literature data, the author pays great attention to stress, which adds fuel to the fire of inflammation. Increased secretion of norepinephrine and cortisol stimulates the formation of inflammatory factors in the body. They act as a kind of “fertilizer” for latent or multiplying cancer cells.

Traditional Western food

- refined sugars and white flour,

- vegetable oils rich in omega-6 fatty acids (corn, sunflower, soybean),

- dairy products made from industrially raised milk from cows

Eggs from chickens whose feed is dominated by corn and soy;

Constant anger and depression;

Low physical activity

Cigarette smoke,

- air pollution,

Toxic cleaning products

House dust

Factors that reduce inflammation include:

Mediterranean, Indian, Asian cuisine,

Complex sugars

Whole grain flour,

Meat from animals fed with flax seeds or grass,

– olive and linseed oil, refined rapeseed oil,

Fatty fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids

Dairy products derived from the milk of animals that are primarily grass-fed;

Eggs of country hens or hens that feed on flax seeds;

Emotional and behavioral reactions: laughter, serenity, calmness,

Physical activity: fifty-minute walks at least 3 times a week or 30 minutes daily,

- clean living environment

"Black Knight" of Cancer

In the laboratory of Michael Karin, a professor at the University of California, researchers working in collaboration with the German Research Association have identified the Achilles heel of cancer tumors in experiments on mice. This is nuclear factor kappa B or NF-kB. Blocking it causes cancer cells to die and prevents the formation of metastases.

Substances that inhibit factor-kappa B have long been known. These are, for example, catechins in green tea and resveratrol in red wine. They are also found in other foods that are reported in cancer diet recommendations.

Part three

Cut off tumor supply routes

“Win like Zhukov at Stalingrad”

In those distant difficult days for our country, Zhukov’s tactics of disrupting the supply of Hitler’s troops played a significant role in the victory of our troops at Stalingrad. Without food, an army is not combat-ready. So is the tumor. You need to disrupt her diet and she will die. The tumor cannot grow if it does not force the blood vessels to work for itself. The American practicing surgeon Folkman was convinced of this based on experimental work. He began to look for substances that would inhibit the development of blood vessels in tumors. “Judah Folkman developed the key points of his theory of cancer”:

1. Microtumors cannot turn into dangerous cancerous foci without the formation of a blood network that feeds them.

2.To create this network, they produce a chemical called angiogenin, which activates the growth of new blood vessels.

3. Metastases are dangerous only in cases where they can attract new blood vessels.

4. Large primary tumors form metastases. But as in any colonial empire, they do not allow the “outlying territories” to play any important role. To block the growth of new blood vessels (in metastases), primary tumors produce another chemical, angiostatin. This is why sometimes metastases suddenly begin to appear after surgical removal of the primary tumor.”

Michael O'Reilly spent two years looking for a protein that blocks the growth of tumors in the urine of mice and isolated it. This is how the problem of angiogenesis became a major focus in cancer research.”

Unfortunately, the pharmaceutical industry has not yet created a drug that inhibits angiogenesis, although in some cases, thanks to the use of the drug Avastin, it is possible to slow down the growth of tumors. The fact is that several pathogenetic factors probably play a role in the origin and development of tumors

In his book, the author pays much attention to the epidemiology of cancer. Cancer incidence is rising worldwide, with cancer now often affecting young people. Most scientists associate this phenomenon with environmental and nutritional problems. Breast, prostate and colon cancer are the privilege of industrialized countries. Toxic substances contained in water and food stimulate angiogenesis. Therefore, the highest value is given to biological products obtained without the use of toxic substances when growing agricultural products (plants and livestock). For example, chickens fed corn grits have a potentially higher risk of cancer than chickens fed flaxseed or other natural and varied foods. The author raises the question of the advisability of returning to the food of previous years.

It has been proven that cancer feeds on sugar. It’s not for nothing that sugar is now called the white death. The incidence of cancer is increasing in parallel with the increase in sugar consumption. The increase in the number of pustular diseases directly depends on sugar. An experiment was conducted in Australia. A group of teenagers were persuaded to limit their consumption of sugar and flour products for 3 months. After a few weeks, their insulin levels dropped noticeably and the amount of acne decreased. Cereal bread, vegetables, fruits, legumes - these are foods that will protect against cancer.

As for fats, the pathogenic role is attributed to excess omega-6 fatty acids. On the contrary, the predominance of omega-3 fatty acids in foods plays a protective role. Omega-3 fatty acids are found in meat from grass-fed or conventionally fed flaxseed-fed animals.

"Lessons from relapse."

A few years after brain surgery, the author of the book was diagnosed with cancer again. It was a relapse of cancer of the same location. Surgery and a year of chemotherapy were performed again. But this time the author thought about his lifestyle. Why did the relapse occur? What mistakes were made in your lifestyle. At that time he was skeptical about homeopathy and herbal medicine. The relapse forced him to pay attention to natural protective factors.

He became acquainted with the work of Richard Beliveau, who was searching for food products to fight cancer. This scientist reported that an article was published in the journal Natura that 2-3 cups of green tea, drunk throughout the day, inhibits angiogenesis in cancer tumors. Beliveau later wrote a book about anti-cancer foods. These foods included various types of kale, most notably broccoli, garlic, soy, turmeric, raspberries, blueberries, dark chocolate and green tea. He prescribed a diet for one of the doomed cancer patients (pancreatic cancer) and he lived for 4 whole years.

The author quotes words from the book by scientist Campbell, “The activation of cancer cells is reversible and depends on whether the necessary growth conditions are created for cancer at an early stage.” If there are more activators than inhibitory factors, then the tumor begins to progress. The enormous importance of reversibility cannot be overestimated. -By influencing the soil in which there are cancer seeds, you can significantly reduce the likelihood of their development.

Food products that act as medicines include green tea, olive oil - an analogue of green tea in the Mediterranean diet, soy (thanks to flavonoids and low-active phytoestrogens), but in strictly defined and moderate quantities; turmeric (when adding turmeric to the food of mice, their metastasis decreased) mushrooms (reishi, oyster mushroom); berries (blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, blueberries (mostly wild), as well as cherries. Foods rich in proanthocyanidins promote apoptosis of cancer cells. Cranberries, cinnamon and dark chocolate have the same properties. In recent years, anti-cancer properties of plums have been identified , peaches and nectarines. Oncostatic properties are attributed to seaweed. They can be consumed in salads or soups. Citrus fruits contain anti-inflammatory flavonoids and also stimulate the elimination of carcinogens by the liver. People who drink pomegranate juice daily slow down the growth of prostate tumors by 67%.

In the early stages of any form of cancer, vitamin D suppresses the progression of the disease (2000 IU daily for a long time).

Spices and herbs as medicine.

In 2001, a new anticancer drug, Gleevec, was registered in the United States, active against common forms of leukemia and intestinal cancer. This drug inhibits the formation of new blood vessels in the tumor. It stops growing, and a state of “cancer without disease” appears in the body. By the way, many herbs and spices act similarly to Gleevec. These include members of the Lamiaceae family (motherwort, mint, marjoram, thyme, oregano, basil and rosemary. One of the terpenes in rosemary, carnazole, blocks the ability of cancer cells to infect neighboring tissues. Taking rosemary extracts helps the penetration of chemotherapy drugs into cancer cells. Apigenin from parsley and celery prevents the formation of new blood vessels in the tumor.

Turmeric and curry.

These spices, like green tea, stop the process of angiogenesis and simulate apoptosis of cancer cells. They enhance the effectiveness of chemotherapy and reduce tumor growth. For better absorption, turmeric should be mixed with black pepper. Ideally, it should be dissolved in oil. For example, you can mix ¼ teaspoon of turmeric with half a teaspoon of olive oil and a good pinch of black pepper. Add this mixture to vegetables, soups and salad dressings. Ginger also prevents new blood vessels from growing in tumors.

Food synergy plays an important role in anticancer protection. Therefore, we can talk about an anti-cancer diet, which includes various foods that can inhibit the development of cancer tumors and their metastases. Below is information on which foods should be consumed first and which should be limited or eliminated from the diet altogether.

Table 1. Basic principles of proper nutrition (from the book “Anti-Cancer” by David Servan-Schreiber

Reduce consumption Replace with

Products with a high glycemic index (sugar, white flour, white pasta, etc.); potatoes, especially mashed potatoes; White rice; jams, jellies, candied fruits; sweetened beverages Fruits, low-glycemic flours (such as whole grain breads), whole rice, quinoa, wheat, lentils, peas, beans

Alcohol (a small amount with meals is allowed) One glass of red wine once a day Dark chocolate containing 70% cocoa has a similar effect.

Hydrogenated (margarines) or partially hydrogenated oils (sunflower, soybean and corn) Olive, linseed, rapeseed oil

Regular Dairy (Omega-6 Rich) Natural dairy from grass-fed cows; soy milk, soy yoghurts; dairy products

Fried food, fried snack, chips Vegetables (green) and tomatoes, legumes, olives, tofu. Seaweed

Red meat, poultry skin Natural meat from grass-fed cows in a dose of no more than 200g per week; grass-fed poultry and its eggs;

Fish: mackerel, sardines, salmon (rich in omega-3 fatty acids).

Peels of fruits and vegetables (as pesticides remain in them) Peeled and washed fruits and vegetables and labeled “natural product”; wild berries (blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, etc.; citrus fruits (use fruits and peel); pomegranates and pomegranate juice

Herbs and spices: turmeric, ginger, mint, thyme, rosemary, garlic, onions, leeks, etc. Mushrooms, e.g. oyster mushrooms

Tap water in areas of intensive agriculture due to the presence of nitrates and pesticides Filtered tap water (using a carbon filter or, better yet, a reverse osmosis filter; mineral or spring water is odorless. The smell indicates the presence of water PVC

For cooking, you do not need to use utensils with damaged Teflon coating; it is better to use utensils made of stainless steel or ceramics.

Treat dishes with vinegar, baking soda or soap.

Avoid wearing cosmetics and use cell phones in moderation

The next large section is devoted to the influence of the mental status of patients on the development of the disease. It's called "Psyche vs. Cancer"

In this chapter, the author gives many examples of the role of positive emotions, support from loved ones, fighting spirit, faith in healing, active life position, and passion for work. In the USA, psychologists actively work in rehabilitation centers. Yoga, qigong, meditation sometimes give amazing results. For example, a young Austrian veterinarian fell ill with osteoscoma. His leg was amputated. Metastases disfigured the body. The oncologist believed that his patient would live no more than a few weeks. With the participation of his wife, Ian took up meditation. After several months of intense meditation sessions, he recovered and after 30 years he feels well and teaches meditation to cancer patients

It was discovered that the emotional state is reflected in the behavior of immune cells.

Mantra and prayers also lead to the mobilization of mental energy, stimulating the active struggle of the body and leading to recovery. They should be remembered and specialists skilled in the methods of meditation, yoga, qigong, etc. should be involved in the treatment of patients.

In conclusion, we can say that the approach to treating cancer patients should be comprehensive. This disease is an area for the application of integrative medicine. By the way, the author of the book began to deal with the problems of integrative medicine when providing assistance to cancer patients.

Ph.D. Yu.I. Korshikova

David Servan-Schreiber, MD, PhD

Guerir le stress

I'anxiete et la depression sans medicaments ni psychanalyse

A NEW WAY OF LIFE David Servan-Schreiber

Antistress

How to overcome stress, anxiety and depression without drugs and psychoanalysis

UDC 616.89 BBK 56.14 S32

Translation from English by E. L. Boldina

Servan-Schreiber, D.

C32 Antistress. How to overcome stress, anxiety and depression without drugs and psychoanalysis / D. Servan-Schreiber; [transl. from English E. A. Boldina]. - M.: RI-POL classic, 2013. - 352 p. - (New way of life).

ISBN 978-5-386-05096-2

Brain science and psychology have undergone major changes in recent times. It was found that emotions are not just cumbersome baggage that we drag with us from our “animal” past. It is much more than that: the emotional brain controls our body and feelings, it is responsible for self-identity and awareness of the values ​​that make our lives meaningful.

The slightest malfunction in its work - and we fly into the abyss. But if everything is fine with him, we feel the fullness of life.

Combining his medical and research experience, world-renowned neuroscientist David Servan-Schreiber has developed exceptionally effective methods to help you connect with your emotional brain without drugs or psychotherapy. Heart rate optimization, eye movement desensitization, biological rhythm synchronization, acupuncture, proper nutrition, regular exercise and "affective communication" techniques - seven methods will allow you to take control of your own life.

You will no longer be a stranger either to yourself or to other people.

UDC 616.89 BBK 56.14

The publication does not contain information, causing harm to the health and (or) development of children, and information, prohibited for distribution to children. In accordance with paragraph 4

Article 11 of the Federal Law of December 29, 2010 No. 436-F3, the sign of information products is not placed.

© Editions Robert, Paris, 2003 © Edition in Russian,

translation into Russian, design. LLC Group of Companies ISBN 978-5-386-05096-2 “RIPOL classic”, 2012

Interns at Shadyside Hospital, University of Pittsburgh

To teach them, I had to learn everything all over again myself. They embody everyone who has the desire to understand and overcome the disease, and it is to such people that I want to dedicate this work.

Warning

The ideas presented in this book are largely influenced by the work of Antonio Damasio, Daniel Goleman, Tom Lewis, Dean Ornish, Boris Tsirulnik, Judith Herman, Bessel Van der Kolk, Joseph LeDoux, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Scott Shannon and others doctors and researchers. We attended the same conferences, attended the same colleges, and read the same scientific literature. Of course, my book contains many similarities and general conclusions with their numerous works, as well as references to them. Following the path already laid, I was able to benefit from those scientific works to which they themselves referred. Therefore, I would like to express my gratitude to them for everything useful that this book contains. And for views that may cause their objection, of course, I am entirely responsible.

All clinical cases presented on the pages of this book are taken from my practice (with the exception of a few described by fellow psychiatrists in the medical literature, which I definitely mention). For obvious reasons, names and any identifying information have been changed. At times repeating myself, I chose to combine clinical data from various patients for literary purposes or to present the topic more clearly.

New therapy for emotions

Doubting everything or believing everything are two equally convenient positions, since both free us from the need to think.

Henri Poincaré, Science and Hypothesis

Every life is unique, and every life is

difficult. We often catch ourselves envying others: “Oh, if only I were beautiful like Marilyn Monroe,” “Oh, if only I had the talent of Marguerite Duras,” “Oh, if only I led a life full of adventures.” , like Hemingway”... That’s right: then we wouldn’t have many of our problems. But then others would arise - their problems.

Marilyn Monroe, the sexiest, most famous, most liberated of women, whom even the president of her country lusted after, drowned her melancholy in alcohol and died of a barbiturate overdose. Kurt Cobain, the vocalist of the group Nirvana, who one day became a star on a planetary scale, committed suicide before reaching the age of 30.

Duras, Marguerite (1914-1996) - French writer, playwright and film director. - Note translator

th age. Hemingway also committed suicide: neither the Nobel Prize nor his amazing life saved him from a deep sense of existential emptiness. As for Marguerite Duras, talented, exciting, exalted to heaven by her lovers, she destroyed herself with alcohol. Neither talent, nor fame, nor power, nor money, nor the adoration of women or men makes life easier.

Nevertheless, there are happy people who live harmoniously. Most often, they are confident that life is generous. They know how to appreciate their surroundings and simple everyday joys: food, sleep, the serenity of nature, the beauty of the city. They love to invent and create, whether it's about material objects, projects or relationships. These people are not united by secret knowledge or belonging to a common religion. They can be found in every corner of the globe. Some of them are rich, some are not, some are married, others live alone, some have special talents, some are completely ordinary people. Each of them had failures, disappointments, difficult moments in life. No one is immune from this. But overall, they cope much better with life's adversities. These people seem to have a special ability to withstand adversity, to give meaning to their existence, as if being in closer connection with themselves and with other people, as well as with the life they have chosen for themselves.

What allows you to achieve this state? Over twenty years of study and medical practice, mainly at large Western universities, but also among Tibetan healers and Indian shamans, I have identified several key points that have brought real benefits to my patients and myself. To my great surprise, they have nothing in common with what I was taught at university. First of all, there is no talk of drugs or psychoanalysis!

Crucial moment

Nothing prepared me for this discovery. My medical career began with research work. After my studies, I took five years away from the world of medical practice to understand how neural networks generate thoughts and emotions. My degree in neuroscience was influenced by Professor Herbert Simon, the most eminent social scientist ever to win a Nobel Prize, and Professor James McClelland, one of the founders of neural network theory. The main theses of my dissertation were published in Science, a reputable journal in which any self-respecting scientist would one day want to see his work.

After a rigorous scientific upbringing, it was not easy for me to begin clinical work to become a practicing psychiatrist. The doctors among whom I was supposed to gain experience in my specialty seemed to me too prone to empiricism, and their judgments too vague. They were more interested in practice than in the scientific base. I had the feeling that now I was studying only recipes (for such and such a disease, do such and such an examination and use medications A,

B and C in such and such doses for so many days). I considered this activity too far from the constant search for new things and mathematical precision to which I was so accustomed. However, I reassured myself that I was treating patients in the best, most research-oriented psychiatry department in the United States. Of all the departments at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, ours received the most research budgets, surpassing even the prestigious departments that specialized in heart and liver transplantation. With some arrogance, we considered ourselves “clinical scientists” rather than simple psychiatrists.

Some time later, I received funding from the National Institutes of Health and various private organizations to establish a laboratory for the study of mental disorders. The future could not have been brighter: I could satisfy my thirst for knowledge and activity to the fullest. However, very soon, some acquired experience forced me to reconsider my ideas about medicine and change my professional life.

I first went to India to work with Tibetan refugees in Dharamsala, the city where the Dalai Lama resides. There I saw traditional Tibetan medicine in action, which diagnoses a disorder by long palpating the pulses in the wrists of both hands and examining the tongue and urine. These doctors used only acupuncture and herbs. At the same time, they treated a whole range of chronic diseases with no less success than Western doctors. With two important differences: the treatment had fewer side effects and was much cheaper. Reflecting on my practice as a psychiatrist, I realized then that my own patients mostly suffered from chronic diseases: depression, anxiety, manic-depressive psychosis, stress... For the first time, I questioned the arrogant attitude towards various types of traditional medicine that I was instilled in me during my years of study. Was it based on fact - as I always thought - or just ignorance? Western medicine has no equal in the treatment of acute diseases such as pneumonia, appendicitis and bone fractures. But it's far from perfect when it comes to chronic illnesses, including anxiety disorders and depression...

The second event, of a more personal nature, forced me to overcome my own prejudices. On a trip to Paris, a childhood friend told me how she overcame a period of depression severe enough to destroy her marriage. She refused to take the medications prescribed by her doctor and turned to a healer who used relaxation, similar to hypnosis, for treatment, thereby allowing her to relive previously suppressed emotions. Several months of this type of therapy left her feeling “better than ever.” Not only did she no longer feel depressed, but she finally felt freed from the burden of the past thirty years, during which she could not bring herself to grieve for her father, who died when she was six years old. She gained energy, lightness and clarity of thought that she had never experienced before. I was happy for her, but at the same time I was shocked...

If you've read The China Study, you'll love David Servan-Schreiber's book. “Anti-Cancer” tells the story of a doctor-patient about how he managed to control the disease for 19 years. But first, get to know the author.

Author of the book “Anti-cancer – a new way of life”

French neuropsychiatrist, father of three children. Circumstances developed in such a way that David learned about his illness at the age of 32. From that moment on, he changes the position of doctor to patient. And begins life exploration.

Follow this link to find one of the latest interviews with the author of the book: read the interview with David Servan-Schreiber.

How did it all begin?

David was an eminent psychiatrist and was conducting promising research related to the workings of a specific part of the brain. MRI technology was used to obtain images of the brain (you've probably heard about such medical equipment).

It so happened that one of the volunteers (or patients, I don’t remember) who took part in the study was late or could not show up for the next session. Then the author himself lies down in the capsule, and colleagues take pictures of the brain.

The first one is bewilderment. Another one, and another. After this, his friends and colleagues show David pictures of his brain in dismay. It turns out that they clearly depict an incomprehensible object the size of a walnut. Malignant tumor.

That evening is a turning point in the author's life. From this moment his life study and fight against the disease begins. As a result, the first book dedicated to the prevention of stress (which is David’s competence as a psychotherapist and psychologist) appears. After this, the second bestseller, Anti-Cancer, was published.

What is the book “Anti-Cancer” about?

In short, David offers a concrete strategy for preventing and controlling cancer. The main idea with which the book begins is Everyone has cancer cells, but not everyone gets cancer.

In my opinion, the book is interesting primarily because it is the story of a doctor-patient battle (forgive the oxymoron). It is interesting how the author tries to maintain objectivity, being both a representative of the scientific community and a patient.

One powerful insight from the book: traditional (official) medicine is strong in crisis situations (remove the appendix, restart the heart when it stops), alternative (integral) medicine is strong in the treatment of chronic diseases (cancer).

It turns out that there is a direct connection between the disease and the psycho-emotional background. I understand that since childhood we have heard phrases like “nerve cells do not recover” and all that. But in the book the connection between the psychological (or mental?) state is explained from the point of view of physiology and biorhythms.

For example, have you heard about the balance of the body’s autonomous rhythms? These are breathing, blood pressure, indirectly sugar levels, etc. It turns out that prayers (from any religions) from a physiological point of view (how we pronounce them) allow us to bring these factors into balance.

Another joke: if you are depressed, start running. The connection is direct. Have you heard of “runner's high”? What about the state of flow or the fact that touch (proper massage) has a healing effect on the state of the psyche?

Anti-Cancer Strategy

Here are three components that, according to David Servan-Schreiber, help prevent and successfully fight cancer:

• proper nutrition;
• physical exercise;
• mental balance.

I've simplified it a bit. If you are interested in the ideas of the book, which are given in the last chapter, then here they are:

• lifestyle influence;
• the importance of mindfulness;
• synergy of the body's natural defenses.

As for nutrition and regular exercise, this is not news. A discovery for me personally was the direct relationship between the course of the disease and the state of mind (psychological background) of a person.

Speaking of nutrition: David offers the same concept as Colin Campbell, only more gentle (for example, he allows moderate consumption of a specific red wine - Pinot Noir, Burgundy).

Summary

I recommend the book to anyone interested in health issues. In my opinion, the main advantage of “Anti-Cancer” is that the author clearly argues the direct connection between the emotional (conscious) state and the course of the disease.

The book is suitable both for those who want to learn more about a healthy lifestyle, and for those who have already encountered the disease. She will tell you how to keep the right mental attitude and help you “stop being a cancer type personality.”