Carl Jung said that one of the great archetypes, along with others such as Mother, Wise Woman/Man, and Hero, was the archetype of “Healer”.
We who go into Medicine recognize early on that we are Healers. Native American elders see it in the children who are born with the gift… they see that this child, this one, has the potential to be of service to their people, has the power to heal.
In mainstream America, we who have chosen Medicine (or did it choose us?), do not often utter the great “I am.” We willingly will call ourselves by “doctor” or “Nurse Practitioner” but will avoid saying “I am a Healer.”
We rarely claim our stake… rarely accept that we have been gifted.
Why do we not fully embrace the title of “Healer”? I know when I have said it myself, when I have said, “I am a Healer,” it sounds weird, almost egotistical. Why, I wonder? Is it that if I proclaim myself a Healer, it follows that I must step onto the path of deeply practicing the art of healing?
In Medicine at 50 Below, I knew the difference. I knew the difference between the superficial “get patients in and out quickly delighting them with the latest pharmaceutical wonder,” and being in a place that needed me to the core, a place where I was “Healer.”
When we as Healers sink into this aura that surrounds us, we not only get to know who we are, but we are given direction on where and how we can best live out the Art of Healing.
And let’s face it, has our culture, our country ever needed this more?