Cancer Researcher and Forgiveness Expert Dr. Michael Barry Says Holiday Stress Hampers Body’s Ability to Fight Disease
(HealthNewsDigest.com) – Philadelphia, PA — Stress, depression, anxiety and seasonal blues are perhaps the most powerful during the holiday season , when constant demands on our time, finances and families can wreak havoc on our spirits, minds and bodies.
Experts estimate that between 15 million and 20 million people suffer from some sort of depression, and the effects can take a toll physically and mentally.
Author, cancer researcher and forgiveness expert Dr. Michael Barry has spent years conducting clinical research on the link between cancer and negative emotions —those emotions that can be present with holiday depression and stress.
“The holidays can be an extremely difficult time for many,” Barry said. “We are faced with a plethora of issues, from financial stress, difficult situations with family members and overall depression that can be caused by a number of factors—from missing a loved one and feeling alone to being overwhelmed and fighting inadequacy.”
Barry’s specialty in the depression and stress equation is the forgiveness/unforgiveness factor. Holding in negative emotions and allowing them to rule our moods and outlook on life is actually physically unhealthy. At the holidays, for example, we may feel depressed, angry, bitter, sad about failed personal relationships, mounting finances or workplace dissatisfaction.
Forgiveness—of family members, friends, co-workers or others—Barry says, will help us to let go of the negative feelings that might plague us at the holidays. It is a known fact, he adds, that stressful emotions can wreak havoc on our immune systems and make it harder for us to ward off disease . The constant stress that bitterness, anger and resentment can cause makes our bodies produce stress hormones. These hormones, such as cortisol and adrenaline, raise blood pressure, heart rate and blood sugar levels, and reduce the production of natural killer cells—the “foot soldiers” in the fight against diseases like cancer.
Through his years of in-depth medical, theological and sociological research and clinical experience, Dr. Barry made a significant discovery that the immune system and forgiveness are very much connected. Negative or stressful feelings can actually prevent physical healing within the body . He discovered that the disease of unforgiveness can impact every organ, and it is an emotional disorder that can be prevented, treated and cured.
Barry has worked extensively with cancer patients, helping them to process emotions like resentment, anger, bitterness, stress and unforgiveness that may be thwarting their healing process. In his book The Forgiveness Project, Dr. Barry writes about the debilitating effects that negative emotions can have on our health. Through his forgiveness program, Release! The Healing Power of Forgiveness℠ , Barry helps patients work through the feelings that may be linked to physical issues in their bodies.
Barry is Director of Pastoral Care at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Philadelphia , where he specializes in the connection between spirituality and health. He has served in ministry for more than 20 years and has appeared on numerous radio and television shows around the country. He is the author of A Reason for Hope, A Season for Hope and The Art of Caregiving.
To find out more about The Forgiveness Project: The Startling Discovery of How to Overcome Cancer, Find Health, and Achieve Peace, visit www.ReleaseNow.org or call toll-free 1-877-896-3698.
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