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What is Healing? Why a Circle?
by Franklin Abbott
Healing Circle Coordinator
About a year ago, a friend told me about the
healing circle in New York City. She had heard
from a friend of hers that the PWA's and
PWARCs attending the circles were finding them
of great benefit in keeping healthy. As a
psychotherapist I have noticed fra - a long time that
there is a profound connection between attitude
and health. The word disease broken
down into its components is dis
ease, a lack of ease. Ease equates
for me with an inner peace that
is often hard to find and even
harder to hold on to in the
chaos of modem times. This
is more true of people who
face discrimination and
prejudice. It is also mac true of
people who are physically,
emotionally and spiritually challenged
by life threatening illness. Most people coping
with HIV infection have struggled within
prejudice against them based on their sexual
preference or the label of drug addict or
hemophiliac or a canbination of several of the
above.
Many people who arc HIV infected have faced
rejection by families, co-workers, neighbors,
friends, churches, employers. When confronted
with prejudice ate rejection on top of battling a
deadly viral infectiai it is difficult to maintain an
attitude that fosters inner peace. Simply put, it is
hander to keep oie's spirits up, harder to focus at
being alive and staying well. Jamie Achterbuig,
author of IMAGERY AND HEALING, describes
healing as "beconing whde and in harmoiy with
a conmunity that demonstrates compassionate
suppol" This is very different from the tradition
model of docta healing patients a faith healers
curing the afflicted. The circle of healing aims to
be a conmunity demonstrating compassionate
suppol We do that through the use of the circle
formal In a circle all participants are viewed as
equal. Everyone who comes to the circle is seen
both as a healer and as someone in need of
healing. HIV infects individuals but
AIDS has infected our whole
society with fear, bigotry,
and hopelessness.
Healing needs to
happen both fa HIV
infected individuals
and a fear infected
wold.
The healing process
employs a variety of tools
and many of these are used at
the healing circle. Breath, imagery,
music and touch are basic elements in our
meditation. The healing circle attracts many
different kinds of people with different systems of
belief. Consequently it is designed to be
comfortable fa Christians, Buddhist, Jew, Pagan
and non-believer alike. The energy that is
generated by the circle if life enhancing - there is
no claim to cure anyoie of anything. It is my
belief that healing begins in the heart and spirals
outward into the body, mind, and spirit.
Meditation is a way to contact the heart and fa
most people brought up in Western culture
meditatiai is a difficult task to accomplish atone.
The support of the circle is important in helping
participants deepen in their meditation.
The symbol fa the healing circle is African
origins. It is seven triangles converging on a circle
of light. Seven is a magical number with various
significance in the world's religious and
mythological systems. In India it is believed that
there are seven energy centos in the body called
chakras. When they are aligned and in tune with
each other an optimal state of well being can be
experienced. The circle of healing intends to be a
place where anyone in need of healing be it
physical, emotional or spiritual can find support to
tune in to his a her own inner processes and
rhythms. In doing so we enhance the possibility of
finding a circle of light inside ourselves that can be
source of hope and health, a place where healing
can begin and deepen
The circle meets at the First Existentialist
Church, 470 Candler Park Drive The Church is
near Little 5 Points and the CAndler Park
MARTA Station It is wheel chair accessible. The
circle meets from 3:45 - 5:30 oi the first and third
Sundays of each month. It is free and open to all
who need healing be in physical, emotioial, or
spiritual. The circle is suppoted the the First
Existentialist Church which doiales the space and
by the various facilitatos who donate their time.
The circle begins with music often provided by
Beth York whose album, TRANS
FORMATIONS, is available at Charis bookstore.
It is conducted in part on the floa so participants
should wear comfotable clothing and bring a
pillow/blanket Fa more informatiai call 378
5570. Facilitators fa the rest of this year are Linda
Malrose, psychologist, November 20th, Maya
Smith, body therapist, December 4th, and Beth
York and Aurora, musicians and music therapists,
December 18th.
ntAVTv/t
Watch Your Mailbox for details- or
call the NAPWA office at 874-7926.
Ampligen Study
Dropped After
Poor Results
An article in The New York Times October 14
confirmed rumors that had been circulating fa
weeks - - that ampligen was rot proving effective
in the current double-blind trials.
After 20 patients in that study progressed to
AIDS, the code was broken fa those 20. Twelve
of them were taking ampligen, compared to eight
who were taking the placebo - - indicating that
ampligen was not stopping the progression to
AIDS.
Ampligen had been considered a very
promising treatment after an earlier study,
published in June 1987, reported good results in
10 patients with AIDS, ARC or lymphadenopathy
- - especially reductions in viral cultures a other
measures of viral activity. That study did na have
enough patients to look for prevention of
progression to AIDS.
Apparently no one knows why the two studies
of the same drug produced such different results.
Dextran
Sulfate Facts
Continued from Page 1
release less fat This raises questions about how
Dextran Sulfate might interact with AL 721/lipid
products, since it would be affecting the
environment in which such products operate in the
body. The effects of any possible interaction, fa
better a fa worse, are speculative at this pant, as
no one has studied the matter.
Before starting or Dextran Sulfate, make sure
from your docta that your kidneys and platelets
are okay. Otherwise there could be some very
extreme problems with bleeding. The literature fa
physicians strongly recommends coagulation tests.
Dextran Sulfate is used to tower chdesteral levels
in the blood, probably by causing the liver to
Please note that this article does NOT coitain
complete safety precautions, nor instruettons fa
use. The Dextran Sulfate situation is moving so
rapidly that any detailed instructions could be
obsolete very quickly. Check with your Buyer's
Oub a call Project Inform (1-800-822-7422) in
San Francisco , or from your Dextran Sulfate
source, to obtain the latest information. Most
The Bottom Line
Pro:
• Strong, confirmed in vitro evidence.
• Synergism with AZT.
• Blocks cell-to-cell infection missed by other
drugs.
• Very promising results reported by
physicians monitoring a growing number of
people.
Number of
Patients
No Treatment
Standard AZT
@1200 mg/d
Low dose AZT in
combination with
Dextran Sulfate
and Transfer
Factor
Transfer Factor
alone and in
combination with
Dextran Sulfate
and/or AZT
Dextran Sulfate
Change in
T-4 Helper
Cells
10.8%
+39.5%
+24.4%
alone and in
combination with
AZT and/or
Transfer Factor
Concerns:
• Possible differences between the research
product and products actually available.
• Lack of early results in very preliminary U.S.
human trials, using Dextran alone.
• Unknown effect of AL721/lipid products
(no impact or possible beneficial impact
reported by users, however.)
importantly, let your physician know about any
treatment plan you plan to use, in case he a she
knows of any new dangers or precautions.
Summary
Dextran Sulfate appears to offer many potential
baiefits with oily known and manageable side
effects. However, until hard data is obtained firm
human studies, no claims can be made about the
drug's effectiveness. Finding a clear answer is
made more difficult by the usual FDA red tape.
Official government research efforts are looking at
the results achieved by Dextran Sulfate alone,
despite the fact that the data suggests a better
response from a combination with AZT. Once
again, we must look to the Community-based
Research Initiatives, where a wide range of
combinations are being monitored, but where it is
difficult to know just what results are being
observed.
-Stebbo Hill