The Spiritual Anatomy of Emotion: How Feelings Link the Brain, the Body, and the Sixth Sense

630 Pages·2009·3.54 MB·English

by  Michael A. Jawer

The
Spiritual Anatomy
of
Emotion
“The Spiritual Anatomy of Emotion is brilliant . . . comprehensive . . .
holistic.”
STANLEY KRIPPNER, PH.D., EDITOR OF ADVANCES IN
PARAPSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH AND COEDITOR OF
THE VARIETIES OF ANOMALOUS EXPERIENCE
“The Spiritual Anatomy of Emotion is a landmark book that presents a picture
of consciousness that is far more majestic than anything conceived in
conventional neuroscience. Based in solid science, this bold effort will
challenge anyone who reads it with an open mind. Highly recommended.”
LARRY DOSSEY, M.D., AUTHOR OF
RECOVERING THE SOUL AND REINVENTING MEDICINE
“Jawer and Micozzi articulate one of the most profound understandings of
consciousness since Descartes. The book brings Antonio Damasio’s ‘feeling
brain’ into full embodiment. It is a monumental contribution to understanding
ourselves as human beings.”
ALLAN COMBS, PH.D., AUTHOR OF THE RADIANCE OF BEING
“The Spiritual Anatomy of Emotion presents a unique and arresting view of
such topics as mind, body, memory, illness, perception, and emotion. The
authors show us an altogether novel way of understanding who we are and
what we’re about. There’s more to being human than we ever imagined, and
this book is an excellent road-map for anyone who wants to take that journey.”
ERIC LESKOWITZ, M.D., DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHIATRY,
HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL
“Jawer and Micozzi have collected a unique body of data on environmental
sensitivity, which has great relevance to human health and psychology. They
put together this data with original ideas on emotion very persuasively in The
Spiritual Anatomy of Emotion. I highly recommend this well-written and
accessible book.”
ERNEST HARTMANN, M.D., AUTHOR OF
DREAMS AND NIGHTMARES AND
BOUNDARIES IN THE MIND,
PROFESSOR OF PSYCHIATRY AT TUFTS
UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE,
AND PAST PRESIDENT OF THE ASSOCIATION
FOR THE STUDY OF DREAMS
“I agree completely with the thesis in The Spiritual Anatomy of Emotion from
what I have observed in the many case reports we receive from the general
public; from a monthly paranormal experience group at our center; and from
my experience as a clinical psychologist.”
SALLY FEATHER, PH.D., DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH,
RHINE RESEARCH CENTER
“Jawer and Micozzi have come up with important findings that could open up
a whole new field of research.”
CARLOS ALVARADO, PH.D., ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
OF RESEARCH IN PSYCHIATRIC MEDICINE,
UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA
Acknowledgments
Since this book has been ten years in the making, it’s my great good fortune to
have many wonderful people to thank.
First are the researchers and writers whose work has not only informed and
inspired my own but who have aided me in many and sundry ways. They
include: Larry Dossey (whose willingness to write this book’s Foreword has
meant so much and who generously offered to publish a paper of mine in his
journal, Explore); Ernest Hartmann (a gentleman and scholar whose boundary
concept provides this book’s underpinning); Stanley Krippner (a man of wide-
ranging interests whose enthusiasm first signaled that I might have a thesis worth
publishing); the late Lyall Watson (whose intrepid forays into the biology of the
unconscious I’ve enjoyed over the years and who sent along a message that was
particularly welcomed); Joseph Chilton Pearce (whose humane discourses I’ve
likewise followed and who provided one of this volume’s first and most
enthusiastic endorsements); Rupert Sheldrake (who took the time to meet with
me and whose adventurous spirit of science is an inspiration); Kenneth Ring
(whose engaging e-mails offered valuable feedback during the book’s early
going); Michael Thalbourne (whose concept of transliminality parallels my own
thinking and whose correspondence over the years has provided continual
encouragement); Allan Schore (whose willingness to converse with me is so
much appreciated given his own trailblazing efforts in the fields of
neuropsychiatry and attachment theory); Elaine Aron (whose focus on highly
sensitive people pointed me in a helpful direction early on); James Hillman (who
kindly corresponded with me when he didn’t know me from Adam); Peter
Grossenbacher (who patiently conversed on synesthesia and other issues,
suggesting many useful ideas along the way); Colin Ross and Lenore Terr (who
contributed valuable perspectives on dissociation and trauma, respectively);
Mohammad Yunus (whose willingness to discuss sensitivity with a complete
stranger was gracious and thoroughly appreciated); Elio Frattaroli (whose book
on psychiatry in an age of medication opened up a cogent frame of reference);
and Miriam Greenspan (whose work on the “dark emotions” offers intriguing
food for thought).
Next are the parapsychologists, skeptics, and “fellow travelers” who have
done much to illuminate a fascinating but neglected corner of individual
experience—and who have helped me a good deal in my pursuit. They include:
Bill Roll (whose suggestion it was that I undertake a sensitivity survey in the
first place, and whose willingness to include me in one of his field investigations
opened up a remarkable window); Sally Rhine Feather (whose invitation to
speak at the Rhine Research Center I was gratified to accept and who can be
relied upon for helpful responses to most any question); Lisette Coly (whose
foundation provided me with the D. Scott Rogo Award, a grant that I was
delighted as well as humbled to receive); James Houran (whose review of my
first published paper, invitation to join a field investigation, and general good
counsel have all been gratefully received); Chris Roe (whose editorship of the
Journal of the Society for Psychical Research allowed me to publish my survey
findings in one of the field’s flagship journals); Caroline Watt (who sent me
several papers and supported one of her graduate students in conducting an
onsite investigation using the sensitivity survey); Brandon Massullo (that very
student, who creatively adapted my survey and shared his findings); Christine
Simmonds-Moore (who familiarized me with her research that draws on a
similar theoretical base); Paul Stevens (who corresponded on electromagnetism
and its possible relation to feeling); the late Ross Adey (who offered a wise
perspective based on his study of bioelectromagnetics); Michael Grosso (whose
intriguing speculations into the anomalous never fail to hold interest); Stephen
Appel (whose open-minded correspondence on sensitivity I much enjoyed); Rick
Leskowitz (whose desire to know more about phantom pain and energy healing
is impressive); Cyril Smith (whose dedicated research into electrical sensitivity I
have valued); Anne Silk (who generously shared materials relating to the same
form of sensitivity); Albert Budden (who presented his intriguing take on a
connection between allergies and electrical sensitivity); Dean Radin and Marilyn
Schlitz (who passed along relevant information from their vast knowledge base
at the Institute of Noetic Sciences); Bruce Greyson (who contributed many
helpful comments from his own extensive experience); David Ritchey (who
compared notes with me based on his project on anomalous sensitivities); Doug
Richards (who shared his paper relevant to boundaries); Charles Tart (whose
comment “You might be on to something” captured the refrain I heard from so
many other valued sources); Stephen Braude (whose correspondence never
failed to tickle in some way); Berthold Schwarz (a veteran psychical investigator
who cheered me with his comments); the late Theo de Graaf (who kindly wrote
to me concerning his research into trauma and its parapsychological import);
Allan Cooperstein (who shared his work on exceptional forms of healing);
Michael Piechowski (who shared his expertise concerning gifted children and
“over excitabilities”); Diane Corcoran and P. M. H. Atwater (who provided a
number of helpful responses on issues of near-death and out-of-body
experience); Elly Brosius (who gave me the opportunity to speak to her Northern
Virginia CFS-FMS Support Group and volunteered many good ideas concerning
outreach); Gary Stone (who coordinated my talk to the National Capital Area
Skeptics); Robert Forman (whose correspondence I enjoyed and who helped
publicize the survey in its latter stages); Bill Stillman (who opened my mind to a
possible link between anomalous perception and forms of autism); Bill Stoney
(who provided wonderful historical background on parapsychological research);
and Kreskin (with whom I conducted a fascinating—and, yes, entertaining—
interview).
I wish to further express appreciation to a number of people who critiqued my
work at various stages and without whom, frankly, the project would have built
neither credibility nor momentum. They include John Palmer, Carlos Alvarado
and Nancy Zingrone (whose conversations also helped familiarize me with the
parapsychological community), James McLenon, Ruth Reinsel, Joanne
McMahon, Roger Nelson, John Knowles, Linda Leblanc, Henry Bauer, George
Hansen (who imparted one particularly sage piece of advice), Bob Bourgeois,
Lucinda Grant, Louise Kosta, Mike Epstein, Jessica Utts, Paul Jaffe (who also
guided members of the National Capital Area Skeptics to participate in my
survey as controls), Michaeleen Maher, Gertrude Schmeidler, Nancy Didriksen,
Gerald Ross, Patricia Norris, Roy Fox, and the late Marilyn Ferguson.
The following individuals helped publicize the fact that I was conducting a
sensitivity survey. Their efforts were invaluable in attracting participation:
Nancy Kolenda (editor of Frontier Perspectives); Marsha Sims (then-editor of
the Journal of Scientific Exploration); Peter Johnson (secretary of the Society for
Psychical Research); Dennis William Hauck (creator of the Haunted Places
listserv); and all the other newsletter and magazine editors who publicized my
appeal for survey participants.
No acknowledgment can be complete without a nod to the many sensitives
who took the time to complete my survey and, in many cases, spent time with
me on the phone filling in the picture and providing a vantage point I’d never
had before. I can’t thank them enough for their time and their trust. I hope they
find the final product worthy of their exceptional experience. For that matter, I
appreciate the key contribution made by people who don’t consider themselves
especially sensitive and yet made the effort to complete my survey in the interest
of open-minded science.
I’m also grateful to the researchers who responded to my queries—and
occasionally went beyond the call of duty in discussing issues or making
suggestions. They include: Paul Plotsky of Emory University (who was
extraordinarily gracious with his time); Jim Jones of the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (a pioneer in the identification of chronic fatigue
syndrome); Esther Sternberg (a leader in psychoneuroimmunology at the
National Institutes of Health); Catherine Stoney of the National Center for
Complementary and Alternative Medicine at NIH; Jackie Wootton of the
Alternative Medicine Foundation; Peter Fenwick of the United Kingdom’s
Institute of Psychiatry; Mary Ann Cooper of the University of Illinois; Robert
Henkin of the Taste and Smell Clinic; Alan Hirsch of the Smell & Taste
Treatment and Research Foundation; Barnard Baars of the Neurosciences
Institute (who, in gratifying fashion, invited me to contribute an essay to his
online Science & Consciousness Review); Thomas Ramsøy, managing editor of
Science & Consciousness Review; Michael Corballis of the University of
Auckland; Stephen Christman of the University of Toledo; James Rubin of
King’s College London and Ben Greenebaum of the Bioelectromagnetics
Society (both of whom shared their knowledge of the state of research into
electrical sensitivity); Chris McManus of University College London; Stephen
Kosslyn of Harvard University; Kevin Nelson of the University of Kentucky;
Jonathan Davidson of Duke University; Nicholas Humphrey of the London
School of Economics; Robert Root-Bernstein of Michigan State University;
Lawrence Marks of Yale University; Joseph Glicksohn of Bar-Ilan University;
Ronald Melzack of McGill University; Joel Katz of York University; Mark
Johnson of the University of Oregon; Jerre Levy of the University of Chicago;
Simon Baron-Cohen of the University of Cambridge; synesthesia researcher
Richard Cytowic; Gordon Claridge of Oxford University; Jaak Panksepp of
Washington State University; James Pennebaker of the University of Texas-
Austin; Robert Cloninger of Washington University; Leonard Jason of DePaul
University; Judith Herman of Harvard University; Richard Loewenstein of
Sheppard Pratt Hospital; Erik Jarlnaes of the European Association of Body
Psychotherapy; Jane Koomar of Occupational Therapy Associates; Lucy Miller
of the Sensory Processing Disorder Foundation; Karen Gouze of Northwestern
University; and popular science authors Deborah Blum, John Horgan, and Mary
Roach. I also wish to extend special thanks to neurologist Oliver Sacks, whose
writings provide the peerless example of humane scientific inquiry.
Additionally, my thanks to the following individuals who helped this project
attain final form: Jon Graham (acquisitions editor at Inner Traditions); Jeanie
Levitan (managing editor); Erica Robinson (invaluable assistant to Jeanie);
Chanc VanWinkle-Orzell (project editor); Jeff Lindholm (line editor); Claudia
Bourbeau (indexer); Bill Gladstone (literary agent); Diane Arcangel (who
directed me to Bill); John White (who preceded Bill as my agent, representing
me faithfully even in semi-retirement); Allan Combs (who directed me to John);
Brian Becker and Dena Jaffee (associates of Andrew Weil); Kelly Bulkeley (an
outstanding author in his own right who graciously recommended a publishing
contact); Edward Kelly (ditto); Roberto Patarca-Montero (who lobbied yet
another publisher on my behalf); Sandra Schulman and Andrea Hurst (who saw
sufficient promise in the project to read portions of the manuscript); Donna
Thomson (who provided highly constructive criticism); Connie Shaw (who
extended a welcome publication offer, but before the time was quite right); Art
Pomponio, Georgia Hughes, and Lori Stone (who weighed the book seriously for
their respective firms); Stephanie Tade (who, wearing her marketing hat, offered
numerous valuable ideas); and Jessica Kingsley (who got the concept as clearly
as anyone).
I next want to acknowledge several people who have helped publicize my
work. They include Betsy Robinson (who wrote an article in Spirituality and
Health); Kaja Perina (whom I corresponded with at Psychology Today), Lee
Bowman (who published a piece for the Scripps Howard News Service);
Michael Kell (host of the Mind Brain & Body streaming radio show on Voice
America); Tacy Trump (the show’s producer); Rick Berger (who communicated
the survey findings within the Parapsychological Association); Annalisa Ventola
and Maura Elizabeth Manning (who wrote about them on their blogs); and
newsletter editors Steve Klein and Patrick Huyghe.
For permission to reprint illustrations in this book, I thank Joseph Bastien of
the University of Texas-Arlington, Roberto Osti of Robert Osti Illustrations,
Nancy Walker of W. H. Freeman and Company/Worth Publishers, and Bruno
Dubuc of Vidéotron/McGill University. I’m also grateful to Paul Simon Music
for permission to excerpt lyrics from the song “The Boxer.”
I should also like to express my abiding appreciation to the following friends
and family members. Some of them heard quite a lot about this project over the
past ten years and indulged me by letting me talk about it for that long. Each
supported me with friendship, enthusiasm, and constructive comments—and
many with love besides. They include: my parents, Helene and Robert Jawer; my
sisters, Anne Jawer and Judy Jawer; my brother, Bruce Jawer and my sister-in-
law, Margo Vandrovec; my brother-in-law, Nick Vermont; my in-laws, Sandra
and Arnold Wald; our treasured family friend Helen Fedder; my aunts, Shirley
Silverman and the dearly departed Nancy Gordon; our good friend, the late
Paynie Patterson; my chums Richard Aboulafia, Neil Pohl, Todd Birkenruth,
Karen Suhr, Steve Hochman, Sheila Margeson, Brock Hansen, Mark Smith,
Margie Jervis, Shawn Bohner, and Terri Zofer; my website designer, Eric
Scafetta; my former bosses, Gerry Lederer and Paul Lynch (who were willing to
grant me a leave of absence to work on the manuscript), and my current boss,
Reese Meisinger (who allowed me to take time to work on the edits). My kids,
Gabrielle and Bradley, also provided exemplary and loving support. One day
they will realize that not every book requires a decade for a daddy to produce!
I want to express a special debt of thanks to two people in particular. The first
is Marc Micozzi, medical editor for this volume. Marc is perhaps the best
associate anyone could hope to have: steady, supportive, deeply knowledgeable
of the history and practice of complementary and alternative medicine,
pragmatic, and with a disarming sense of humor besides. I’ve been privileged to
partner with him over four years now; we’ve kept the faith and made this
happen.
Finally, this book is dedicated to my loving spouse, Bonnie Wald. More than
anyone, she has been a nonstop booster of this venture—from the first hazy
outline, presented over dinner at an Italian restaurant through the countless hours
and hard slogging of research, writing, and editing. Bonnie is my confidant, life
partner, patient and constructive critic, and utterly trustworthy friend. Were it not
for her unwavering support over the past ten years (and all the late nights they
have entailed), this book would not be in your hands. Along with my love, I