echo. Osteopathy of itself will not cure any known disease. If considered as a part of physical therapy, like massage, Swedish movements, Delsarte, etc., it may be useful in selected cases. There is no more reason to dignify the physical movements which they use as a "pathy" than to dignify the masseur and others who use physical treatment by some "pathic" suffix. A vast multitude has said Osteopathy should be eliminated, and with it statesmen and politicians who champion its cause. Several of the most eminent men of our profession, after full and exhaustive investigation, have testified under oath as to the qualifications of the Osteopath to practice, and their universal opinion and belief is that "Osteopathy is not a system for curing disease; in fact, it is dangerous and hurtful in most diseases, and especially to invalids, who should not receive such treatment." My readers will recognize that the above quotation does not express my sentiments concerning Osteopathy. Quite the contrary. I have from the beginning been a friend of Osteopathy, regarding it as a valuable addition to the healing arts. I quote it to remind the Osteopaths that the "regulars" are as hostile as ever. Please do not imitate them in your attitude toward others, Mr. Osteopath. T The Mind as a Factor in the Cure of Disease. By DR. C. E. PATTERSON, 316 E. Bridge St., Grand Rapids, Mich. HIRTY years ago, at the time when I graduated from a medical college, I can truly say I do not remember of ever hav ing heard as much as the mind even mentioned in connection with any treatment for the cure of disease. Whether or not it is taught in the colleges to-day, I do not know, but I do know this, that but few of the medical journals will accept a single article where the mind is made an important factor in the cure. I know, further, that even if a physician has really woke up, so he sees he has been blind in the past, the medical profession is ready to jump on him, as the saying goes, with both feet, and if possible to crush him out of existence at once. Few have the courage to come up against the opposition they meet in the profession, especially so unless he has some exalted influence or position, oftentimes gained by political pull, or money qualification. Else he chance to be some foreigner, with some unpronounceable name, containing about three X's and one or two Q's, and then every American physician will even break his neck in an endeavor to use the formula sug gested before the other fellow does, and every medical journal stands with open pages for him to write anything he has a mind to fling upon an unsuspecting public. Last October I pulled down a sign on my place that had been there fifteen years, reading "Patterson Home," and in its place put up the sign "Institute of Healing and Mind Science." Within a few days I met one of our regular physicians, so-called, and he greeted me with the question, "You have turned Christian Scientist, have you?" Well, there would have been a time when that would have hurt me, and feeling that that must be the general opinion among my fellow physicians, I would have quietly pulled it down. But now, No! "Once I was blind, but now I see." Furthermore, I know that the physician that does not recognize that the physical body is only a part of the man, and in fact only the house in which the real man lives, is not qualified to practice the healing art, say nothing of medicine as a science. And now I sense the question, “Who is the ruler of the house?" My answer is, "The Soul is Ruler." A Contented Mind is Good Medicine And now I hear some one say, "No, the mind is ruler," which now brings us to the question, What is the mind? My answer to that question would be that the mind was the expression of the soul, according to the truth and ⚫ understanding the particular soul was in possession of. For instance, my thoughts prompt my mind to steal, which if my soul has not learned some time in the past it was not the best thing for one to do, the act of stealing would be the expression of how much my soul knew, while if I did not, there would be an expression of a higher state of mind through soul knowledge. If my taste generates the thought whereby my mind directs the soul to gormandize, an aching stomach is the expression of how poor a mind I have. got, or in other words, how little knowledge my life ruler had, whereby it was allowed to be misguided by a simple mind made by a selfish thought. Some will say, though, that the mind and soul are one and the same, but I ask you at once, "Did you ever change your mind?" I do not think a single person will think he ever changed souls. I again ask, "What is it that rules and directs the action of the heart, lungs and digestion, either in animals or idiots, who do not have a sense mind?" Then we come to the question at once, how is the mind formed? My answer is, by the thought. And then, what is the duty of the mind? Answer, to direct the soul, or ruler of the body. Now it seems from what we have said, all might see, that as man thinketh so he builds the mind, and as the mind directs, so the life ruler directs the body, providing that only the sense mind is brought into action. But I would also add that there is also a subconscious mind which consists of knowledge gained by past experience, which, when it comes to the surface, so to speak, or in one's consciousness, it at once battles against the sense mind, coming direct from thought, prompted by the senses, and constitutes what we call "reason," which saves the soul from being wrong 207 ly guided. For instance, supposing some person suggests to you, you are not looking well. There is the thought which if reinforced by the suggestion of one or two others, a mind is soon formed that will direct the soul to send that body to the bed, and you feel you are sick. But in some who have the control of thought, the subconscious mind would at once speak up and say, Nonsense! Never felt better in my life. And no sickness. The doctor who enters a sick room full of sympathy and a forlorn look is just as good as an extra dose of poison to the patient. How many patients are actually killed by sympathizing old women of the neighborhood, who are so anxious to tell the patient how badly he looks, and then shed a tear or two. Oh, I would say to you, if the patient is a friend of yours and you don't want him to die, keep sympathizers away, for they are mind builders, misguiding the soul, rather than guiding it toward re covery. Now what really are nervous diseases? My answer is, only result of a misguided soul, by a foolish mind made by foolish thoughts. Will drugs help the trouble any? No. For the disease is of the soul rather than the body. Then how may I help such a patient? By getting the patient to change the line of thought whereby there is a mind builded to direct the soul to health, rather than to death, or even sickness. The Bible says, "A contented mind doeth good like medicine." Supposing the patient has some bodily ill, not brought on by mind influence, then what? By all means prompt the thought in the individuals that they are going to get well, and even have them say it, and their sickness will be of much shorter duration than it would have been otherwise, and possible death averted. Even broken bones can be grown together much sooner by well directed thought than they would be otherwise. But do not misunderstand me, and think I use so little reason as some so called Christian Scientists, and think bones need not be put into apposition, and that thought, or even God, will do such foolish things. O no! Get a surgeon, carpenter, or blacksmith, for what I care, to put the bones back in position and hold them there, then direct the thought to the soul to grow them together as soon as possible, and results will be most wonderful. The soul, dear reader, is the ruler of your body, and as the mind directs it, so it acts. As you let your thoughts run, that is the kind of a mind you are building as ruler of your soul, which has control of the wonderful piece of machinery, your body. ease: Inharmony between your soul and body. Health: Perfect accord between soul and body. Disease: Negative condition. Health: Positive; Dis negative condition, made by fear and lack of reason. Positive, made by reason, which generates or creates good judgment, will power and health. Which do you want? You can have the one you choose. If you are inclined to be of a negative nature naturally, would say, make it a point to associate with positive natures, until you get to become positive yourself. By so doing you can cure any nervous disease, but I would say don't be looking for sympathizers all the time, else you never will. Sympathizers are always negative. And now in closing this article to my readers, I would say in conclusion: "Now ever in future Know this as a fact, T Sleep: What it Should Mean. By EARLE WILLIAM GAGE, 610 HE real meaning of sleep to humans should be sufficient rest to give all organs proper rest and reoiling as well as refitting time. Far too many people term sleep as closing the eyes for a period of time, no matter whether they be seated or lying. We have even heard people remark about sleeping while standing. This is quite as probable as rest without sleep. If any one endeavors to sleep standing, he is causing untold disorders of physical, mental as well as involuntary organs. To sleep standing places the body in the same position as to turn off the power of one electric car, and leave it standing on a main track, with the other cars running, and to not expect a collision to ensue. The body's formation is not unlike an electric car. The motor represents both mind and heart. The controller, which is under the management of the motorman, our will powers, and the conductor, collector of debris, and replacer of proper substances. Cherry St., Jamestown, N. Y. Standing, sleeping! Impossible. When we are really sleeping, every muscle, every organ, outside the heart, are resting. If we stand sleeping, we throw off, at the same time have on the muscle powers. If we remain seated to sleep, we partially have a similar result. To sleep or doze, seated after eating, binds the productive organs, and otherwise cramps stomach and intestines. No complete rest result can be gained by sleep otherwise than lying in a comfortable position. By opening the skulls of living animals and substituting a glass plate for the bony covering, it has been shown that in sleep the blood moves slowly through the vessels of the brain, and the vessels themselves are smaller than when the animal is awake. From this fact it has been concluded that sleeplessness may be due to either of two conditions, both of which will cause an increased amount of blood in the brain, an increased force of the circulation, or a dilated state of the blood vessels. It is supposed that Some Good Advice for Sleeplessness wine, coffee, tea and certain forms of heart trouble cause wakefulness in the first of these ways, and that exhaustion, mental care, and worry, as well as nervousness, act in the latter by affecting the little nerves which ramify in the coats of the blood vessels and whose function it is to give them tone and regulate their caliber. It is often asked why coffee and other drinks will sometimes cause sleep and at other times wakefulness in the same person, and the answer probably is that in certain states they act by increasing the force of the heart's action and thus produce the latter effect, while in other and exhausted nervous conditions they give strength to these little nerves, cause a general toning up of the blood vessels, less blood in the brain, and sleep. Besides these causes of wakefulness, there is physical pain and anything which acts directly on the senses, as loud noises, a bright light, or foul and irritating air. If possible, never have any light directly shining its rays upon your bed at sleeping hours. It is not considered a good policy to even have the rays of a light shining into the sleeping room, from another room. It causes uneasy nerves, and is quite liable to be promotable of nervous troubles, to the body, if not weak eves, as no light can be tolerated by the human eye which is artificial. No one can sleep easy while any light is upon him. The utmost limit to which life can be prolonged without sleep is probably about one week, or 168 hours. No comment of wonderful scientific cases in newspapers or otherwise can alter this statement. Science is very uncertain, and there are not many facts by which scientific men are able to swear. They may therefore be excused for holding all the more firmly to the idea that without food and sleep, life is impossible. How little food and sleep are sufficient to support life is a different question. Between little and none there is a vast difference. 209 The custom which many nervous sufferers attain in dosing themselves with chloral, bromide of potash, and the like, is to be deprecated. For not only do all of these things carry the danger of forming a bad habit in themselves, but as a rule their administration would not be considered good practice. by a good physician. If a woman is so nervous as to be constantly sleepless, she needs treatment for the nervousness rather than for the other. Rest, change of food, exercise, are the keynotes of the cure, and not the combating of a single symptom by medicines which are pretty sure to carry evil consequences in their train. Far too many physicians are to-day giving curatives for stomach troubles as a cure for sleeplessness. Here they are indeed wrong. Change the diet and this will ease the nerves; thus sleepful nights are obtained. Never drink coffee or tea, or meat prior to retiring. Drink milk or water, to a one cup confinement, eat some light cooked foods or easily digested fruit, such as bananas or an orange. Although these may work the stomach to some extent, they do not overwork the same sufficiently to overtax its durative powers. Meats lie hard, are very hard to digest, and the powers exerted in so doing warms the blood and irritates the nervous system. Eat not short of thirty minutes previous to bed time. Never, in coldest winter nights, have more than two comforters on the bed besides the sheets. If more be used, the weight upon the body forces down upon the blood veins and vessels, thus causing "dead" forces, or, commonly known, "sleep" limbs. This resentment of blood force overtaxes the heart's pumping work, and therefore does not allow that organ proper rest and time for rebuildment. Tea and coffee act directly on voluntary and involuntary organs alike. Thus exercise should ensue after drinking such beverages. Never drink them. previous to bed time, unless exercises are taken. Their action upon the or gans is such as to cause a very nervous period, and invariably the most healthy awake with a headache. Their forces deaden the heart's force, the head is left "dead" for proper force of blood, thus the headache. Constipation is a very common cause of sleepless nights. When the stomach and other like organs are unable to do their proper work they cannot rest properly. If you would have a harvest of sleep, good sleep, keep your system clean of all such poisonous matters. They not only poison the blood and other tissues, but are very liable to perform untold injuries to the organs within which they are confined. They irritate to a very great extent the nerve tissue surrounding the walls of the stomach and intestines. Always drink a glass of water, not too cold, previous to retiring. It will cleanse the kidneys, and have them. ready for the work of tomorrow. Drink another glass upon rising. If mineral water, fresh from the springs, can be had, it is positively the best kidney and general cleanser of all natural waters. Never go to bed empty stomached. It will cause an entire night of entire night of sleeplessness, resulting in a very gaunt feeling. Those who starve to death, no matter how fatigued, die wide awake. The stomach should have some matter to work upon during sleeping hours, or, as one medical student stated, "have something to hold it apart." Either is suggestive. Children until eighteen years of age. should always eat prior to going to bed. The various matters they consume are used in body construction as fast as they are digested. In the words of Ruskin, "See that your children be taught not only the labors of the earth, but the loveliness of it." Their health should mean a great portion of the great "loveliness" they should experience. In my previous article on "Rest" I stated numerous facts relative to sleeping which should be very helpful. Fires should never be allowed to burn unless very "dead," and with ample ventilation to the sleeping rooms. Never allow a draught to blow over the body while it is resting. It not only exposes it to numerous diseases, but weakens its tissues as weather will a building. Foul airs should never be about a sleeping room. If you are moving into a new house, if you are constructing a new house, choose the room touched most by the sun's rays. Leave the windows open all day, airing room and bed clothes well. Never make up a bed previous to at least an hour's airing, during which period the clothes are left hanging over a chair or foot of bed. Upstairs rooms are considered most healthy, their position being the same as altitudes of lands; high land healthful, low land contagious. Our sole health depends upon our sleep. We must acknowledge sleep as a rest regainer, else we are very apt to lose all powers of rest. Sleep, rest, and you never will know the meaning of requiring. Take the sleep your body consumes. It needs it, else it would not accept it. Be regular in sleep, and you will be regular in health. Be irregular in sleep and you are irregular in health. Sleep is God's great word for rest. Let it be ours. I Vital Magnetism. By C. B. BOBO, Sedalia, S. Carolina. ENCLOSE money order for one dollar to renew my subscription for The Columbus Medical Journal. I would not do with out it for five hundred dollars. I have enjoyed the February number very much. Mr. Siple's treatment of dropsy inYou said you hoped some terested me. of your readers would follow up this matter, etc. You will allow me a short introduction. I am now on my eighty-first birthday. If I live to see the 20th day of July next, will be eighty years old. Few people know they have one more birthday than they are years old, yet it is a simple fact. . |