It has long been known to psychologists, neurologists, and for that matter, other healers as well, that certain types of patients, classified as neurotics, do not—deep down in themselves—wish to get well, incomprehensible as this must appear to the man in the street. This strange and apparently illogical desire can apply equally to those suffering from so-called organic disease, in spite of the fact that the methods of treatment adopted for effecting a cure are by no means rejected by the patient, but—and this is the point—he will accept them only on certain conditions being fulfilled. For example, he will agree to undergo a certain form of treatment, but will raise all kinds of objections to whatever other form of therapy that the practitioner may deem, by his specialized knowledge and experience, to be the more effective. Should the practitioner assert his professional authority by insisting upon his method being carried out, then the patient may outwardly appear to obey, while inwardly revolting all the time. The method is most likely doomed to failure at the very outset.

In this way does the patient guard his beloved ego. In the light of his full consciousness it is obvious to him, as indeed it is to others, that getting well is of immense concern to him, but the preservation of his own ego is of far greater importance, and should recovery signify the "sacrifice" of the ego, then he remains ill, in spite of all his own efforts and those of his physician to restore him to health.

All this is, of course, unconscious. The intelligent, reasonable, conscious self continues its search for health by trying this remedy, then that, by going to this doctor, to that naturopath or osteopath, to this Nature Cure Home and to that Hydro, but we all so well know, deriving little or no benefit from any.

It is evident that he is involved in a vicious circle. There must be some inhibiting factor preventing his complete or partial recovery.

Close observation reveals that if there be any one factor res­ponsible for his ailment, it will be found in the patient's own ega-centricity, and egocentricity contains innumerable factors in itself. The patient himself is not aware of this, because egocentricity is the outcome of his early training, of his behavior patterns or style of life originating from infancy. We are all products of our training formulae which result in conditioning us to behave in the way we do, thus these are powerful forces in our lives, and so long as we remain ignorant of them, they are responsible for much un-happiness and ill-health.

Consider this very simple illustration: few of us can tolerate a flat contradiction, especially in a heated argument. According to the circumstances, we flare up and defend our point of view in a most unreasonable way, but in reality, what we are defending is our own precious ego. Were it not so, the severe defense would not produce nervous prostration, hysteria, digestive and other bodily disturbances. This constant and blind defense of the ego, irrespective of truth or logic—this continual attempt to "save our face" at any price—MUST and does lead to physical malfunction­ing and thus to illness. Then so long as the physician, the family or others can minister to our egocentricity, we get, more or less well. Here is a condition being fulfilled to the satisfaction of the patient. Sufferers want to get cured of their symptoms, but how often are they willing to accept the means in full, whereby that desirable end may be attained? There is always a "BUT." These patients unconsciously fight against clarification, because there is a subtle awareness that, were this to be brought about, it would mean their having to accept the responsibilities of life and facing up to its difficulties.

Now> if the individual's early training formulae are the un­conscious factors ruling his life, how can the cure take place? Here are suggested three possible ways: —

1. By the practitioner possessing adequate knowledge of character and of the workings of the human mind, not only causing the patient to become aware of the nature of his training formulae, but also of his goal. He must also be able to make the patient see that the possible attainment of his goal is being accomplished at the expense of so much bodily suffering and mental distress through his, all unknown to him, egocentric behavior patterns, thus de­priving him of full enjoyment of the satisfaction of complete and unfettered achievement.

The practitioner must endeavor to make his patient recognize that the same goal, or a better one, can be attained by objective behavior for OBJECTIVE purposes. This latter is all-important for the cure. In other words, objective aims must be substituted for egocentric ones.

2. By the treatment not interfering with the egocentric aims of the patient; but this is negative in its results, for it means that the patient is for ever dependent upon his doctor, who unwittingly panders to his patient, and so long as he (the doctor) continues to be the patient's contact person, as the mother, father, sister, brother or wife were in the past, so long will the patient be tied to the physician. When that ceases, the "cure" is undone and the patient goes on his fruitless search for health in the never ending vicious circle.

3. By the patient himself—without any aid—realizing the unconscious purpose 01 goal his ailment is serving, and then being willing to renounce, not necessarily the purpose, but rather the MEANS of attaining it, namely, his egocentricity, which results in his illness.

One can say that many a person feels, and rightly so, but unconsciously, that "being in health" is a very difficult business, while consciously he allows himself to be deluded into fantasying a goal of sham well-being, namely, happiness without any bother­some means to attain it, thus evading all responsibility. The more apparent it becomes, as treatment proceeds, that this way does not lead to that dreamland of happiness, but rather to those very difficulties which go to make up life as a whole, and without which no complete life can be experienced, all the greater resistances does the patient put up against such enlightenment. So long as the patient entertains a false idea of what health really is, he is not sufficiently prepared for a cure. This is the physician's job, but hardly any doctor gives a thought to the overwhelming egocen­tricity of his patient, SIMPLY BECAUSE HE (THE PHYSICIAN) HIMSELF IS QUITE UNAWARE OF HIS OWN EGOCEN­TRIC BEHAVIOUR. Here it is a case of "Physician heal thyself!" Life in the kingdom of health must be prepared for by the prac­titioner and learnt by the patient, just as life in a foreign country, and any treatment that omits this "positive-training" logically increases the resistances of the patient.

The breaking down of resistances can be accomplished by bringing about an improved point-of-view, a clarification, and by making the patient realize that happiness cannot be attained by the way of fantasized conditions surrounding the idea of health; but health for health's sake must be striven for, so that OBJEC­TIVE purposes may be fulfilled. The GOAL health must become the MEANS to achieve the greater goal of a full, objective life. Secondly, there must be a clear conception of what health really is, namely, a harmonious working of the organism as a whole, both mental and physical. It does not mean a fool's paradise or Utopia without suffering, without difficulties, but work and development and all the responsibility that is part and parcel of a real active life.

It is erroneous to say: "I could perhaps achieve health IF only I had the strength, but life has so dealt with me that I cannot possibly go on." That is just an excuse, which originates from the false notion that ENERGY is required in the Soul-life. The actual change of view-point needs no exertion at all, but merely enlight­enment.

Whilst it is of the utmost importance to seek the cause of disease, it is perhaps more imperative to set out to discover the goal or purpose the ailment is unconsciously serving. With such a discovery, those early training formulae become exposed to the patient, that are responsible for the nature of the goal and the method of its achievement.

Every patient comes to treatment with a system of training formulae or rigid rules of life acquired in his early days. This inner disposition forms the very foundation of his attitude towards life, of his attitude towards his fellow-beings, and above all, of the production of his symptoms. The object of treatment, therefore, is the releasing and breaking down of this disposition so antagon­istic to life, or what amounts to the same thing, the substitution of a new "productivity" for the old rigidity. Thus do the training formulae govern the patient's attitude towards everyone, and there­fore also towards the practitioner.

When the training formulae dictate that one must not confide in anybody, that one must make a good impression, and that one must secretly be superior to others, so will these characteristics inevitably work themselves out between doctor and patient, and indeed from the very first moment. The patient will try to make a good impression upon the doctor, but he will not unreservedly place his trust in him; he will even seek to make fun of him over some obscure point. If now the practitioner shows any signs of annoyance he is no true physician, but yet and in spite of the fact that psychotherapy has been established for a very long time now, many practitioners, even to-day, often sternly say to their patients: "If you do not place your entire confidence in me, we can get no further," or, "If you are going to behave in a dramatic manner just to impress me, I cannot do anything with you." Or even, "if you think you have the better of me, and if you are going to gain some fun at my expense, then we part company." Here the cure is doomed to failure right at the very start, as the practi­tioner does not understand that training formulae are governing his patient's attitude, as indeed, they are ruling his own.

An interesting point that is noted in practice is that those individuals who are powerfully extraverted are strongly inclined to suffer physical disturbances of function, whilst those who are exceptionally introverted suffer far more often from conditions of manias and phobias. It however, by no means follows that those who are behaving in an extraverted manner are behaving for objective purposes, in spite of their behavior being of an objective nature. Objective behavior can be just as much in the service of egocentric purposes as egocentric behavior, but never VICE VERSA.

Let us remember then that health should not be the ultimate goal of existence, but the MEANS WHEREBY we can live more abundantly in the service of our fellow-men.

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