There has been a lot of hype about 2012 based on the cycles of the Mayan calendar, with many people predicting the collapse of civilisation. You may have seen 2012, the film starring John Cusack as a man trying to survive the end of the world. One man who has very definite views on how the world is evolving is bio-energy expert Michael O'Doherty. So who is Michael O'Doherty? He established the Plexus Bio-Energy Clinic with Tom Griffin over 20 years ago. The therapy they promote, which has roots tracing back centuries to the Far East, works by integrating a network of powerful and effective healing techniques - all with the aim of rebalancing a person’s life energy. In addition Michael believes very strongly in the power of the intention.
As well as treating patients, the Clare native trains practitioners as professional and personal therapists and he runs a number of workshops and seminars in Ireland and overseas. We met with Michael and his wife Tina at the charming Cahernane House Hotel in Killarney, where he spoke about health, happiness and the evolving power of the individual.
Michael Flatley has attributed his recovery from a debilitating mysterious virus that had besieged him for three years to you, and Brendan Grace has recently credited you with his return to wellness. So what is the secret to your success?
There is no secret. The body is made up for energy and that is a scientific fact, so when that energy is blocked, the person becomes unwell. The whole idea is to keep it very simple, to get the energy flowing, to get people to change their attitude, to change their focus in their life, and to make changes in their diet. The purpose is to get the individual to take back the responsibility for their own life, by making sometimes quite simple changes that can bring about miraculous results. We work with patients in realigning their energy, and teaching them how to keep the energy flowing through changes to their lifestyle.
When you say people need to take back responsibility for their own lives, are you referring to the influence that the traditional medical profession has on society?
Not specifically. I believe the traditional medical profession has a role to play in society. However I do not think it is the only option and I do not think that a patient should rely solely on it. We never advise people to stop taking their medication, in fact quite the contrary. We advise them to integrate energy work and a change in lifestyle to get their optimum from their health and well-being. One of the difficulties that society has had over the past number of years is that we have given control of our life in general, not just our health, to other institutions. We give over our health to the medical institutions, our spirituality to the religious institutions, our society to political institutions and our livelihoods to financial institutions.
We are now finding that these institutions have let us down and we need to find new alternatives. We now know that the banks, the priests, the politicians or the doctors don't have all the answers. Having the courage to realise that that we are on our own, so to speak, is the first step, because it is an easier option to hand over all of your problems to the priest, the doctor or the politician. When we take back control of our life path, we will have a greater clarity by realising that we are not merely passengers in our own life journey. This is an enlightening realisation and nothing at all to be frightened of.
If a person wanted to make changes in their life, how would they go about it?
The first step is to realise that he or she is a powerful individual, and then to begin to make subtle changes to the way they live. Fear is rampant at the moment - people are living in fear of losing their homes, losing their jobs, not finding jobs, not being able to pay bills and they are living in a cocoon of this fear. Fear begets fear. So the challenge is to conquer your fear. When you are frightened you run around like a headless chicken - you can't sleep, you can't operate, you are pure useless to yourself or anyone else. You would be amazed at how fear can be conquered by little things like taking time to relax, doing meditation breathing and visualisation. These can be very powerful tools and should not be dismissed. When we back our thought processes up with dietary changes, such as cutting down on sugar and stimulants like soft drinks, alcohol and coffee, and taking more exercise, then we become mentally stronger. You have to actively get involved in your well-being - change will not come about passively.
Your system for health and well-being is based on energy. When you talk of energy and it flowing in the body, what precisely do you mean?
It is established scientifically if we break the body down that it is made up of this source that we call energy, and ultimately energy is this spark that ignites everything within us all. It is what keeps us alive, it is what keeps our blood flowing, it is what keeps our heart pumping and our hair growing. Our body is in continuous change as a result of this energy. It’s a vibratory force that can be measured as it flows through our body, and society is just beginning to wake up and realise that. This energy can get blocked, particularly if a person is stressed, whether it is emotional stress, mental stress or physical stress, and this can lead to illness.
If a person had problems with their energy system, how would it manifest itself in their body?
Professor Valerie Hunt in UCLA has proven that the primary cause of all of our medical problems is the breakdown of the energy system, mainly caused by stress. These breakdowns can lead to digestive problems such as IBS or ulcers, depression, mood swings, migraine, coronary, burnout and even cancer.
There is a lot of stress around at the moment, so on that basis there must be a lot more sickness?
We know that 90% of people who are attending doctors’ surgeries have stress-related symptoms, so you are right that there is a lot of sickness in society at the moment. The way that much of society is dealing with this at is through medication like anti-depressants and sleeping pills, and while they may have an initial role in helping people get back on track, they don't resolve the problem. People now need to become educated - to be given the skills to deal with this stress and make the changes in their lives that can help them deal with it, so that they can cope with their situation better and their quality of life can improve. The reality is that people don't have to be ill, no matter how stressful their situation.
It is very easy for someone in a good place to appreciate what you are saying, but for the many on the breadline, people without work and those fighting to keep the roof over their heads, how can they motivate themselves to get up and go out walking or to eat better or to even start believing in themselves?
The first thing that someone can do is to take control of their thinking, thinking about what might be instead of looking on the positive side of what is. No pill is going to pull you out of bed in the morning, just like no pill is going to find you a job or give you the ability to pay your mortgage. But the right mindset will give you hope. This can be difficult at first, but when you wake up you should throw the feet onto the floor and do a few exercises or go for a brisk walk first thing - even if it is only for ten minutes. Start from that level alone and you will find it does make a difference. We spend far too much time focusing on the negative. I believe that if people are surrounded by worries, they should give themselves ten minutes a day to dwell on those worries and then banish them for the remaining 23 hours and 50 minutes. Dwelling on worries won't make them go away, but it will make you sick with worry.
If we don't change the thinking, we will keep getting the same old results - new thinking brings new results. To change your thinking might sound very simple, but believe me, it takes work, because we have been conditioned to think in a certain way. Start to see the positives, even as simple as, 'I can get out of bed - I am healthy - I can get out and do some work even if it is not the work I wanted.' It may only be charity work to begin with, but it is a start and it will get you into the rhythm of life again. You will be surprised to see how quickly improvements can come about as soon as you start thinking differently.
You talk about a new world emerging following the realisation that the old world had stopped working for society. What kind of a world do you see this as being?
I believe that out of our current crisis will come great growth, great individual growth, great community growth and great spiritual growth. Our raw emotions and greatest fears are being exposed, and our egos are being destroyed. But from confronting these emotions within ourselves, we will learn just how powerful we really are. By being forced to deal with raw emotions, we learn so much about ourselves, and will come to realise that we are capable of finding the solutions to our own problems. We will learn to look inwards instead of outwards for the direction we need. We will come to realise that we lived in an illusion for too long, and when we have fully woken up from this illusion we will have become better human beings. So I believe it will be a better world, where hope will be restored and where compassion and community will become the focus once again.
You sound as if you almost believe the global economic crash was a good thing?
I think it has been terribly difficult for the people who have suffered. I think it is fair to say that families from all sections of society have been badly hurt and let down. The world had become very greedy and we had lived under the illusion that the material world would provide us with all that we needed to exist. And now we are realising that we need spiritual nourishment as much, if not more than material nourishment. If this global recession results in a society that nourishes our spirituality and makes us more caring people, then it will have brought some good with it.
Many of us are fed up of doom and gloom and would have expected to have seen an end to the recession at this time. How do you feel about the future?
I would be optimistic for the future. I am always optimistic - the universe exists in an infinite dynamic - it is an enormous intelligent universe and we are part of that as enormously complex beings. We are just beginning to grasp that now and are starting to recognise our potential. There is a lot of new information coming through, there is a new language, a new understanding about who we are, how we function and where we are going, irrespective of our status and our material wealth. I believe in the old saying what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and I believe that this applies to these times and we will come out of this better people. The enormous investment we made in the material world has forced us to distance ourselves from ourselves and from nature, and from the real purpose of our existence in this world. We are starting to see the folly of our ways, and I believe the future will see us return to ourselves, to our spirituality and to nature. So that when we come through this tunnel of change I believe we will be better people with stronger love, compassion and understanding.
It was reported in the media that you had advised women not to check their breasts for lumps, and you came in for criticism for those comments. Can you understand how you must have shocked people who work with breast cancer patients?
I could understand it if it was true. But it wasn't true. My comments were distorted. I never for one minute suggested that women shouldn't check their breasts or any part of their body. What I did say in a book that I wrote two years ago, and I fully stand over it today, is that women should not check their breast looking for lumps. Instead they should check their breasts in the belief that they are healthy. Science has established that our mindset plays a role and influences our body in the actions that we carry out. We know that placebo trials show this very well. For example, if we give a sugar pill to somebody and they believe it to be a prescribed drug, then 35-60% of people tested will respond positively and will start to feel better. Such is the power of the mind. So based on that scientific reality, I believe we should check our bodies with a healthy mindset rather than a sick mindset. A spin was put on my comments to discredit me, for reasons best known to those individuals and institutions who find my work a threat to theirs.
Your wife Tina is with you today and she also runs the business with you. You must have very hectic lives between your clinics in London, Cork, Clare and the US?
Yes we are always on the go. We are always talking about reducing our workload, but these days we are busier than ever. Thankfully, we have a great team of therapists who are well-trained in all aspects of family health care and bio-energy management. So it is not as if either myself or Tina has to see every patient that comes to our clinics. Tina is a fully-qualified therapist and we have worked together for 20 years, so I think it is fair to say that having worked together and been together as a couple for that length of time must say something in our favour! While we spend so much time together, neither of us has lost our individuality. Yes we have really hectic schedules, but we make an effort to keep time for ourselves as a couple as well as time as individuals, and I think that makes all the difference.
You suggest that people who want to improve their energy flow and their well-being can do so through shifting their thought process, diet, exercise and meditation. When could a convert to your way of thinking expect to see a change for the better in their life ?
Well we ran a programme in Cork with 40 listeners to the Neil Prendeville show on 96FM and after five weekly sessions, the vast majority of those attending reporting significant improvements in their lives. I can't deliver a quick fix, I am not peddling a miracle cure. I am trying to make people understand that the body is made up of energy, and if that energy is imbalanced it becomes ill and brings all sorts of negative consequences. Good health and well-being requires an investment of time and effort. The keys are belief in ourselves, commitment to change and a willingness to sacrifice your old ways.
