Your body believes....

Next Tuesday I will be recording my interview with Bernie Siegel, MD or Bernie as he likes to be called and Lionel Ketchian for Dreamvisions7 Radio.

We will be discussing my healing journey from the effects of paralytic polio and trauma and my latest book, 'The Adventures of Runnergirl 1953.'

I was introduced to Bernie's work in the 1980's. I was hospitalized with a staph infection in my right shoulder. I met an earth angel of a nurse, Beth Jordan, who told me my life needed healing. She brought me a cassette tape of one of Bernie's lectures. I went to hear him speak when he came to Harvard University and bought his books. I sent him my drawings when I was having difficulty getting pregnant and he helped me to remove the blocks through his interpretation of my drawings.

Life got very busy with life with twins and my career as a VA social worker. The years of the habit of dissociation as a way to survive trauma and polio, caught up with me and in December of 2006, life as I had come to know it came to a screeching halt. As Bernie teaches, every crisis is an opportunity for growth and healing.

After the diagnosis of Post-Polio Syndrome I was angry, scared and frustrated. I then got still and asked for Divine Guidance.


The answer to my prayers came in the form of a poem, "Running the Race" followed by many many poems in which I imagined myself healthy, whole and free, dancing in the rain without my leg brace and running unencumbered.

I returned to reading Bernie's books and joined his on-line Forum.

Bernie was thrilled that I was taking on the challenge of the 2009 Boston Marathon and had many wonderful quotes about the metaphor between running a marathon and life.

From "The Adventures of Runnergirl 1953":
Speaking of signs ….

Bernie Siegel, MD, one of the pioneers in mind/body medicine, and a dear friend since the 1980’s, sent me an email telling me to look for the penny. It would be from him and God telling me everything was all right. I found a penny in Wellesley. I told Janine this story as we were walking from the finish line back to the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. At just that moment she looked down and there was another penny. I added it to the 27 cents and the six cents that I carried with me in the back pocket of my capris.

The lynch pins in my healing journey were gratitude and love. Bernie teaches us to be grateful for whatever life throws our way and to find the gift in the challenge.

One of the first poems I wrote was:
The Gift of Polio - From Feel the Heal: An Anthology of Poems to Heal Your Life
Thank you God for the gift of polio that brought me so close to you
while paralyzed I saw your face no matter what I’d do
Many wonderful healers you sent them to me at age 5
perseverance and triumph life’s lessons learned
but my Spirit could not yet thrive.

At age 53 the gift was sent to me a second time
having time to sit and feel to heal I started to rhyme.
The second time felt worse than the first
yet your love and wisdom I found
out of pain and weakness and fatigue a remarkable spirit rebound.

Reliving all the trauma of special shoes and such
I discovered remarkable healers who brought a loving touch.
I had no clue I had such strength and the ability to grow
no matter what the outcome deep gratitude I show.

This gift so precious I live a new life gratitude flows from me
my heart and soul are filled with grace each day’s a gift from thee.

And I learned to love myself whole using the power of my pen, my diving rod for healing to write poems about healing the past that was rife with messages of being unworthy.



When I believed that I wasn't worthy of love and care, my body manifested disease. I had over 25 surgeries and experienced many chronic conditions. After the wake up call of the diagnosis of Post-Polio Syndrome which, I was told, was a progressive neuromuscular disease, I sent different messages to my body and felt my heart open with compassion and gratitude for all that I survived. My body has achieved so much during these past twelve years harnessing the power of the mind/body connection and believing that I am worthy of experiencing health and wholeness. Every day I practice an attitude of gratitude and make choices that support my happiness and well-being.

I am deeply blessed and grateful that I will get to share my miraculous journey, coached and blessed by Bernie through the years, with Bernie, Lionel and the listeners of Dreamvisions7 Radio. Broadcast dates are March 20th & 22nd at 12am & 12pm ET. Visit Dreamvisions7 Radio and click on the listen live.

To your health and wellness
From my heart to yours
Mary

Be sure to visit my website by following this link.

My books are available on Amazon.



“The Adventures of Runnergirl 1953” takes you on Mary McManus’ healing odyssey from a wheelchair to the finish line of the 2009 Boston Marathon and beyond. After the diagnosis of Post-Polio Syndrome in December 2006, Mary got still and asked for Divine Guidance tapping into the powerful connection she experienced to the Divine from an early age. She harnessed the power of her mind to heal her body, feverishly writing poetry in which she imagined herself healthy, whole and free from the shackles of her youth. Mary’s quest to heal her life led her to the sport of running. Her story is one that will leave you cheering for the underdog, discovering the meaning of different ability and experiencing the stunning view from the back of the pack of a race. You will have the privilege of bearing witness to how Mary overcame every challenge that life presented to her. The sport of running provides the backdrop for her journey of transformation from a survivor of childhood paralytic polio and severe trauma at the hands of family members to a woman who embodies faith, grace under fire, courage, determination, endurance and resilience. Running became a way of life for Mary that tested her mettle while forging friendships to last a lifetime. As you’ll discover in “The Adventures of Runnergirl 1953” nothing, not even a serious knee injury in December of 2014 could stop her on the roads or in her life.

Feel the Heal: An Anthology of Poems to Heal Your Life


Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing Hope and Possibility that chronicles the first 7 years of my healing journey:


Going the Distance: The Power of Endurance (With a Foreword by Jacqueline Hansen):


My healing journey using the power of visualization is featured in David R. Hamilton's book, "How Your Mind Can Heal Your Body-Anniversary Edition." It's available on Amazon.