In this issue of my email newsletter, I remind you of my upcoming January 23 live teleseminar: "10 Reasons People in Chronic Pain Fail to Heal and How You Can." This is a great opportunity, and participants will receive several bonuses for attending.

Also in this issue, I introduce you to Dr. Dan Benor's valuable WHEE protocol.

And last, but not least, I bring you intriguing news from the pain front on research about pleasure.

I hope you will aim for pleasure in this New Year,

You may have a whole range of feelings about the beginning of a new year -- relief, uncertainty, hope, worry -- among many, many possibilities. For people in emotional or physical pain, having a "clean slate" can feel life-saving, especially if they have new ideas about how they can improve their life situations. And if they are excited about trying out these new ideas, even better!

If you haven't checked out my new book, Reversing Chronic Pain, please make this one of the ways you explore the opportunities of "a clean slate in 2008." If this book is not right for you, PLEASE consider forwarding this email to a friend, family member, or client who is struggling with some form of pain in their lives. Reaching out to them can be one of your first intentional acts of kindness in this New Year.

Here's a recent review of the RCP book:

"Maggie Phillips has gathered an excellent assortment of methods for dealing with pain. These include breathing exercises; sorting out feelings about pain; relaxation; imagery; mindfulness; bioenergy approaches; movement; pendulating (alternating between constriction and expansion); love; and building on success. Each section has discussions, case examples, helpful exercises, notes and references. Phillips' approach is very straightforward and practical, acknowledging that no single method is suitable for every person or every pain. This is an excellent book both for those needing help with pain relief and for therapists who want to learn diverse methods for dealing with pain."
-- Dr. Daniel J. Benor
International Journal of Healing and Caring
www.ijhc.org

Dan Benor, who wrote the review above, is someone you might want to know about. He has developed a simple protocol, easy to learn and use, that works effectively with all types of pain as well as other stress symptoms. It's called WHEE (Whole Health-Easily and Effectively) and is a powerful combination of EMDR and EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique), an Energy Psychology approach. WHEE is a self-healing tool that is quick and effective with children and adolescents as well as with adults for small as well as large, complex problems. To learn more about WHEE from excellent testimonials and articles, as well as to register for telephone seminars or order the WHEE Workbook (paper and eBook editions), please visit Dan's website at www.wholistichealingresearch.com. It's a wonderful tool and a great way to create change in the new year.

I am teaching a teleseminar on 10 Reasons People in Chronic Pain Fail to Heal and How You Can. This seminar is scheduled for Wednesday, January 23, at 9 am Pacific, 12 pm Eastern time, and 6 pm in most places in Europe. The cost of this teleseminar is $40, and Included in this fee are several bonus items. You will receive:

1. Participation in the "live" 60 minute seminar once you have paid for the access call (which might also be "free" if you have flat rate phone service).
2. Access to free replay of the call available for one month following the call.
3. A free study guide to help you get the most out of the call.
4. Discounted VIP enrollment in my new teleseminar series that begins in February, 2008, entitled "Ask the Pain Experts." I will be interviewing a series of 3 experts in the area of pain treatment and mind-body healing. You are invited to help decide WHO will be interviewed, and the types of questions that will be asked. Essentially, you will have a reserved, front row seat!

Like many of you, I'm sure, I have become more and more interested recently in the emerging field of Positive Psychology. The beginning of a new year seems like a perfect time to explore this new frontier.

One angle is the study of pleasure and the brain. A fascinating article by Biederman and Vessel that appeared in www.americanscientist.org in May/June, 2006, offers the theory that pleasurable experiences are linked to an innate hunger for new information. Biederman and Vessel point out that the brain is wired for pleasure as evidenced by the reward network that is powered by natural opioids. Their article discusses a special kind of opioid called mu opioids, which are localized in the areas of the central nervous system that are involved in regulating pain and reward. Other research suggests that this opioid system may be involved in visual processing. In other words, the mu opioid receptors may be connected to the pleasure we receive when we acquire new information, especially through novel visual stimulation, such as watching a beautiful sunset, admiring works of art we have not seen before, or viewing a new movie that evokes stimulating emotions and thoughts.

The researchers tested their hypotheses by studying the brain responses of volunteers to pictures they preferred viewing through functional magnetic resonance exams (fmris). What the preferred pictures had in common were pictures that provided a sense of refuge, elements of mystery, and those of natural vs. man-made settings. The authors suggest that it is the brain's interpretation of the visual patterns through rich connections with previously stored information that leads to the feeling of pleasure. Similar research has been conducted with pleasure received through auditory stimulation.

These findings may help us consider how we can use the rewards of visual and auditory processing with people who have problems related to chronic pain, stress, trauma, and other difficulties. I hope my new website with its video and auditory clips can assist in boosting these kinds of rewards. To find out more, please visit www.reversingchronicpain.com for your free introduction to this approach.

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