How would you react when you see, aside from the above title, the following in the cover of a book: "The Path Towards Jesus M.D. as the greatest physician who ever walked on Earth?"
Written by a Filipino doctor as the culmination of his 40 years of " deepening journey of transformation," the book is published by and to support the Self Health Empowerment Movement, "a national and global movement towards the ultimate healthcare system: a system of self health education, a system of self health empowerment, a system that is built by the people and for the people, a system that brings back the glory of the Divine design of human beings, a system that bolsters people's sense of their own Divine magnificence."
Close friends have told me about Dr. Romy Paredes, how they have been healed and continue to be healed with his guidance which he attributes to the greatest physician, Jesus M.D.
It was only after going through his book (thank you Gwen Ngolaban for sharing this with me!) that I discovered that Dr. Romy Paredes was a graduate of the UP-PGH (University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital) in Manila.
Despite being among the best and brightest who are able to enter this prestigious medical school (my opinion), Dr. Romy wrote that every UP-PGH intern continues to experience taking care of a complete ward of about 50 patients all by oneself. While this experience strengthens every intern's medical skills (my opinion), Dr. Romy wrote that having so many patients also turned the interns'focus on cases, not people. "Because of so many patients to handle, (the interns) no longer have the time to explore the person behind the case, the soul behind the person."
So many patients yet so few doctors- hence work can become mechanical for doctors who forget to recognize early enough how the stress of this mechanical work can make them sick themselves. Dr. Romy himself experienced being a workaholic, on "doing doing doing mode "until he himself got stressed out, burnt out, to the point of feeling jittery and unable to breathe- which he thought was symptomatic of heart attack or a stroke."
He turned to his friend, Bo Sanchez, who advised him to pay attention to the message- which Dr. Romy realized as a message for him to slow down, to let go, to allow the divine plan, not just his own human plan, to take the time to BE, to balance DOING with BEING.
At this point, Dr. Romy himself experienced a deeper understanding of healing, which took him from drug prescription to homeopathy, to herbals, to nutritionals, to prescribing less and less as he" continues to search for higher levels of truths."
How did he overcome and heal his experience of being burnt-out? In his own words - "I slowed down, I played and wrestled with my boy, I HUGGED TREES, I walked barefoot on the ground, I let go, I forgive myself and others, I went through a process of self-observation."Then every part of his body gradually relaxed, his breathing slower and slower as he felt the energy of nature, the energy of God and heard the language of God, and sensed ONENESS. Deep meditation with soothing music helped to reconnect his rhythm with the rhythm of nature.
Dr. Romy wrote, "When we are purely "doing doing doing," we get misaligned with the rhythm of nature and so we get stressed out. When we are on the "being" side, we get in tune with the rhythm of nature" which allows us to observe that " the blooming of a flower is a silent and subtle process, that sunrise and sunset are also quiet and beautiful processes, that nature does not rush - humans rush."
When" doing-ness is balanced with being-ness," not only healing proceeds but an entirely new journey, a new way of looking at the world, a new way of living-that of living at the core of one's being" are experienced. Those who have experienced the unique style of healing of Dr. Romy can witness to their continuing healing and continuing new beginnings of their being. I can also witness how close friends who have been diagnosed with very serious ailments are continuing to experience their new "being", their "new life" under the guidance of Dr. Romy.
If you are interested to read more of Dr. Romy's book, Sacred Simplicity, please contact the Self Health Empowerment Movement at their address: 318 Sikatuna Street, Bgy. Zapatera, Cebu City.
* * *
Email at cherryb_thefreeman@yahoo.com