NYT OPINION: When I Got Cancer, My Dreams Told Me What My Doctors Could Not
By Katie Farris
Section: Opinion
Source: New York Times
Published Date: March 26, 2023 at 02:00AM
Nine months earlier, a nurse practitioner had felt the lump with her gentle, cool hands and told me: “I’m not worried. You’re young. It’s most likely a cyst.”
“If you’re not worried, I’m not worried,” I’d said and hopped off the table.
The helicopter dream changed all that. I’m not certain why it gave me such a feeling of urgency, but it did. I went back in for the mammogram, then for a biopsy on the lump. Not long after that a stranger called and said: “You have cancer. Unfortunately. Someone will be in touch in the next couple of weeks.” That was August 2020. I was 36, and I’d soon be facing one life-altering decision after another in response to questions that had no medically logical answer.
I’m a deeply practical person. I grew up in a Scots family of farmers, coal miners, construction workers and veterinarians. I finished college one class short of a biology degree. I understand the importance of common sense and double-blind scientific studies, but at the same time, I believe that occasionally a little bit of woo-woo can’t hurt.
Note from TED: We've flagged this talk, which was filmed at an independent TEDx event, because it appears to fall outside TEDx's curatorial guidelines. A number of claims made in this talk about cancer revealing itself in dreams are not considered legitimate by most medical doctors and researchers. There is no viable research or evidence presented in the talk to support these claims. The guidelines we give our TEDx organizers are described in more detail here: http://storage.ted.com/tedx/manuals/t...
A vivid, more real-than-real dream that wakes you up and later comes true is one of the most awe-inspiring experiences a human being can have. It can be a life-changing event, especially when the dream is a compelling early warning sign of cancer that leads to life-saving medical intervention. The results of recent breast cancer dream research may create sufficient wonder at the mysterious workings of the universe to shake up the worldview of even the most conservative healthcare professional. This scientific information will inspire you to reclaim the time-honored habit of keeping a dream diary with the modern option of doing it on a smart phone.
Larry Burk, MD, CEHP, is an academic holistic radiologist whose unusual career path from MRI researcher to dream researcher has prepared him in a very unique way to give this talk on warning dreams. He is a consulting associate professor of radiology at Duke University Medical Center and a member of the International Society for the Study of Dreams. His research experience in the early days of MRI of the knee and shoulder allowed him to respond to his friends’ amazing breast cancer dream stories in a scientific way and lay a foundation for future studies of warning dreams in all different types of cancers. The dreams that changed the lives of the women in his pilot study are shared here in hopes of inspiring everyone to reclaim the time-honored practice of keeping a dream diary. It may save your life.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx
By Katie Farris
Section: Opinion
Source: New York Times
Published Date: March 26, 2023 at 02:00AM
When all the rational decision-making options are bad, relying on dreams offers a different kind of logic that can be a lifesaver in its own way.
As soon as I woke up from the dream about two helicopters crashing onto a highway, I called my doctor’s office and asked for a mammogram.Nine months earlier, a nurse practitioner had felt the lump with her gentle, cool hands and told me: “I’m not worried. You’re young. It’s most likely a cyst.”
“If you’re not worried, I’m not worried,” I’d said and hopped off the table.
The helicopter dream changed all that. I’m not certain why it gave me such a feeling of urgency, but it did. I went back in for the mammogram, then for a biopsy on the lump. Not long after that a stranger called and said: “You have cancer. Unfortunately. Someone will be in touch in the next couple of weeks.” That was August 2020. I was 36, and I’d soon be facing one life-altering decision after another in response to questions that had no medically logical answer.
I’m a deeply practical person. I grew up in a Scots family of farmers, coal miners, construction workers and veterinarians. I finished college one class short of a biology degree. I understand the importance of common sense and double-blind scientific studies, but at the same time, I believe that occasionally a little bit of woo-woo can’t hurt.
Read more at: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/26/opinion/cancer-treatment-dreams.html
Cancer warning dreams that can save your life | Larry Burk, MD, CEHP | TEDxRaleighNote from TED: We've flagged this talk, which was filmed at an independent TEDx event, because it appears to fall outside TEDx's curatorial guidelines. A number of claims made in this talk about cancer revealing itself in dreams are not considered legitimate by most medical doctors and researchers. There is no viable research or evidence presented in the talk to support these claims. The guidelines we give our TEDx organizers are described in more detail here: http://storage.ted.com/tedx/manuals/t...
A vivid, more real-than-real dream that wakes you up and later comes true is one of the most awe-inspiring experiences a human being can have. It can be a life-changing event, especially when the dream is a compelling early warning sign of cancer that leads to life-saving medical intervention. The results of recent breast cancer dream research may create sufficient wonder at the mysterious workings of the universe to shake up the worldview of even the most conservative healthcare professional. This scientific information will inspire you to reclaim the time-honored habit of keeping a dream diary with the modern option of doing it on a smart phone.
Larry Burk, MD, CEHP, is an academic holistic radiologist whose unusual career path from MRI researcher to dream researcher has prepared him in a very unique way to give this talk on warning dreams. He is a consulting associate professor of radiology at Duke University Medical Center and a member of the International Society for the Study of Dreams. His research experience in the early days of MRI of the knee and shoulder allowed him to respond to his friends’ amazing breast cancer dream stories in a scientific way and lay a foundation for future studies of warning dreams in all different types of cancers. The dreams that changed the lives of the women in his pilot study are shared here in hopes of inspiring everyone to reclaim the time-honored practice of keeping a dream diary. It may save your life.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx
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