All the case stories discussed in The Instinct to Heal and reproduced below are taken from my own experience (but for a few that have been described elsewhere by my psychiatric colleagues and are indicated as such). For obvious reasons, all the names have been changed, as well as all information enabling any sort of identification of the individuals involved. On a few rare occasions, I have chosen to merge similar cases into a single one for litterary effect or clarity.

A strong IQ, a weak EQ
Without emotions, chaos
Peter : what kind of life is a life without emotions
Mary-Anne : the emotion was there, hidden inside the body

Celeste and the little fairy
A day in the heart of Charles
Mary’s heart beats to fast
Christine finds the words to speak to her son
Death of a master of the universe

Maggie is not afraid of cancer or loneliness anymore
Pauline : 55 years later, the fear is still threre
Sarah : There are no words to describe what happened to me
E.M.D.R. therapy on Kosovo children
Lilian comes to terms with her violated childhood)

Fred wakes up at dawn

Caroline replaces morphine with acupuncture
A doctor tries acupuncture on himself
Paul treats his depression with acupuncture

Patricia’s baby blues
Benjamin’s dangerous energy
Keith : electroshocks, or omega-3 ?
Nancy : depression before cancer

Bernard : fighting anxiety with more sports and fewer tranquilizers
Xaviera : jogging against depression

Canine Rx
The power of touch
The animals of Sarajevo

Angela talks to her mother
How to talk to Aunt Esther

An old lady dives back into life