Interview With Cristian Enescu, M.D.

We are pleased to be able to bring you a special interview with Dr. Cristian Enescu. Dr. Enescu is a highly regarded neurologist with his own practice in New Jersey. For several years now, Dr. Enescu has been sharing InnerTalk with his patients and periodically would call us to share some of his amazing stories. We are thrilled that he managed to find time in his busy schedule to work on this interview with us.

Why did you choose to become a doctor?
Mathematics was my best subject in high school and I had thought that I would become a mathematician or engineer. However, during my last year of high school there was an "inner voice" telling me that I should choose a career where I could "help" people. It was because of this "inner voice" that I started pursuing medicine as a career.

Where did you get your training?
I graduated with honors from medical school in Bucharest, Romania in 1983. Six years later I moved to Greece for just under a year, where I worked as a researcher. In 1990 I moved to the United States and after working as a research associate in the neurology department at the City of Hope Medical Center in CA , I entered an internship program at Brookdale University Center in Brooklyn, NY. I then went on to do my neurology training at St. Vincent's hospital in Manhatten.

Why did you become a Neurologist?
During my year in Greece I had the privilege of meeting a prominent Greek Neurologist, Spyros Skarpalezos. We spent a great deal of time discussing neurology. Then during my 1st year as an intern, I met another neurologist, Miran Salgado, who explained to me the spiritual aspect of neurology. You see, neurology deals directly with the brain, the brain and the mind are inseparable, and the mind plays an important role in all healing. So, while as a doctor I could help people, as a neurologist I could maybe discover how my patients could use their own minds to help in their own healings. Neurology allows me not only to understand how my patient's brain is functioning, but also gives me the opportunity to study and experiment with my own brain.

How did you first hear about InnerTalk?
During my first year as an intern my life was busy - too busy! I needed to find ways to relax and to speed up my own recovery process so that I could function better. I searched the internet and came across InnerTalk. I was amazed by what I read. If the information were really true, then InnerTalk had to be really important for all mankind. Of course I had to try this technology for myself. The first programs I tried were I Am Relaxed, Using Both Halves of the Brain, and Synchronicity. What I found was that previously I had known nothing about relaxation. The InnerTalk programs helped me to relax more deeply and made me aware of a much greater reality. My InnerTalk programs became my personal oasis of quietude. I went on to get many more programs and I benefitted from all of them. I find the Passport Series particularly powerful and I recommend these to everyone.

What were the benefits you gained from InnerTalk?
I am an avid reader and had learned about deeper states of relaxation which lead to a heightened awareness of reality but I had been unable to achieve this. With InnerTalk I was finally able to put into practice what I previously had only heard about. I then started exploring the more spiritual programs such as Opening Up To A Higher Power and Using The Force, and I worked through the Self Hypnosis course. However, it was the Path To Mastership library that truly changed my life. You see, before using InnerTalk, I was a successful doctor but there was no depth or real meaning to my life, there was no spiritual connection. I felt that there had to be something else in this life - there was something missing. Since using InnerTalk my life changed dramatically. I found new joy in living and my life became a fascinating adventure, like a huge jigsaw puzzle with pieces falling into the right places one by one.

In my practice everyone noticed the change in the message I was delivering to my patients. The financial aspects of my practice, even though still important, became completely eclipsed by the daily search to find ways to awaken my patients' minds. My purpose for becoming a doctor was not just to be successful but to truly help people, and now I feel I am doing just that.

When and how did you start introducing your patients to InnerTalk?
I had experienced so many personal gains from using InnerTalk that I wanted to teach my patients about this wonderful tool. Of course this is not promoted by the main stream medical system, which want to preserve itself. Physicians are expected to prescribe only drugs. All other alternative ways of healing are discouraged. In my case, I provide my patients the standard neurological care and then I offer my own insights about mind healing. I had already made the observation in my own patients, that those patients who were optimistic simply got better quicker, and depressed patients got worse regardless of the treatment protocols used.

Behind my desk, my patients see a large sign that reads "Every day, in every way, I am getting better and better." During each exam, I make sure I am playing an Innertalk program with gentle music. My patients feel more relaxed and I explain to them the importance of being in a healing atmosphere. I then explain the importance of the mind in self healing. The sign on my wall is there because of some work done by a French hypnotist. He found that patients who repeated this affirmation every night got physically better while those in the control group did not experience the same gains. I tell all my patients about this research and other such studies. I then go on to explain to my patients that InnerTalk is one of the most powerful tools to access the power of their own minds. Most people have no idea how much control their subconscious minds have over their lives.

There are some older people, maybe because of their mental decline, who are not as open to these ideas so I do not go into these new ideas in much depth. However, their families invariably are interested so I do discuss it with them. The fact is the mind is powerful and the mind is capable of healing the body. Health care is a team effort. As the doctor I can run the test and prescribe the medicine but the patient must take responsibility for being positive and for creating their own health. I teach all my patients how to use guided imagery to picture themselves well. This technique is cheap, has no side effects and is incredibly powerful.

With everything I teach my patients I explain the importance of being consistent and patient. Some of my patients tell me that they will try these new techniques and I tell them not to "try", but to "do." Some of my patients want to know exactly how quickly they will see the results of these techniques. I tell them that it all depends on how much effort they put into it. Not that playing InnerTalk programs takes effort as you simply play it in the background. But you do need to put the program in your player and turn it on! I recommend that they use the nature format at night while they sleep and the music as much as possible during the day.

I should tell you too, as I tell all of my patients, that I have no financial incentive to tell people about InnerTalk. I do not do it for money - I do it because I believe in InnerTalk and its ability to access the power of the mind.

How responsive were your patients to these new ideas?
Some patients are very responsive to these ideas. They put into practice all I have taught them and they get better. When they want to thank me for the benefits they have realized I have to explain to them that the merits go to them. It is the power of their own minds that has led to their health improvements.

In some instances, the patient may be afraid to even own up to the power of the mind. They simply do not want to deal with the possibility that they may be able to heal themselves. To acknowledge that is to acknowledge that maybe they created the sickness in the first place. You have to be honest with yourself before you can access the power of your own mind. In these instances I tell my patients to watch for the signs. The fact is, we all encounter instances when what we expected to happen did in fact happen. If we expect the worse, we often receive just that. If we expect the best then that is often what we get. I will also suggest some books or movies that may help them to become more open to the ideas I am trying to teach them.

For most people, life is like going to the theater where they are merely spectators. When you learn meditation, you will find that you are a part of the movie and that you have more control over how your story unfolds. I believe that meditation and spiritual awareness can help all of us live much more fulfilling lives. I also emphasize the fact that it is one thing to read about spirituality and meditation, and quite another to actually experience it for yourself. I tell me patients not just to talk about it, but to actually go and do it. This way they can become part of the action themselves.

However, I do have to respect my patient's time. Some people simply are not ready for such radical thinking. For these patients I simply treat them with "traditional" methods, and while I am able to help them, they do not see the same gains as the other patients.

You obviously see spirituality as an integral part in self healing. How do you explain these ideas to an atheist?
There has been much scientific work done that has demonstrated the power of the mind. Many experiments in physics have shown that the outcome of experiments is dependent on the expectations of the observer. You simply cannot reject the practical role of the mind. If someone does not believe in a higher power, then I approach them from a very scientific point of view. The studies on the mind are reproducible and therefore totally scientific. It is therefore easy for me to change my approach from that of mysticism to hard science.

What advice do you have for our readers?
Don't just believe me - do it for yourself! Once you have your own proof, then no one can take it away from you.

How do your colleagues respond to your approach?
I knew that I was doing something right so it did not matter to me what my colleagues thought. My colleagues are afraid to bring spirituality into their work, they are afraid of bringing in new ideas as they may fail and so lose patients. Doctors are generally financially secure and if they were to believe in InnerTalk and in the power of the mind, then they would have to change. Change means taking a risk and generally doctors do not want to take risks with their own security. Very few doctors are open to the power of the mind. I have had a few patients who were not open to these new teachings and some of my colleagues say that I should stop teaching it as I could lose these patients. But I am not a doctor so that I can keep patients, I am a doctor so that I can help people. The fact is, if an American president is elected with 60% of the popular vote, that is considered a landslide victory. If I can get 60% of my patients to take some responsibility for their own health, then I have been successful! As it is, my approach is not losing me any patients. On the contrary, I am doing even better than before!

Do you have any specific stories you can share with us?
One patient I was seeing had been suffering from migraines. Ten different doctors had given her the same medications and they had never worked. When I saw her, I prescribed the same pills. This time they worked. She was surprised. I had to ask her if it was possible that it was not the medications she had taken but rather the other changes I had asked her to implement. I then suggested that she discontinue the medications but continue with the other practices. She is now free of migraines and free of medications. The InnerTalk programs I had her use were, Forgiving and Letting Go, Headache Relief, Healing and Releasing Emotional Pain and Freedom From Fear, Doubt, Helplessness, Hopelessness.

Another patient came to me suffering from multiple sclerosis. I told her that in order to get better, she needed not only to continue with her medications, but also to pay attention to everything else that I had taught her. She started working with Powerful Immune, Self Heal-ing Is Natural, Freedom From Depression and I Am Relaxed. I think that the depression program is particularly important. Patients are often depressed and expect their condition to get worse. I believe that self healing must start with the expectation that you can get well. This particular patient worked hard to implement all I had taught her. She tried to think positive even while she did not feel any better. Eventually it paid off. She no longer uses her cane and is optimistic about her future. She knows that she will get better and she tells everyone this. She even went back to dancing and the quality of her life has improved immensely. Now she tells everyone about the power of the mind!

I am also seeing great results with stroke patients. One of my patients, with left sided weakness, experienced significant improvements in his walking and speech after using the InnerTalk programs in conjunction with his "traditional" treatment. His condition improved sooner than similar patients who had not used InnerTalk.

I get similar results with patients with Parkinsons. When they use InnerTalk while taking their medications, they get better faster, their tremors improve and their anxiety levels are reduced.

Basically my patients get better faster when they use InnerTalk in addition to the rest of their treatments, as compared with similar patients who use only the "traditional" treatment methods.

Do you find that it is the doctors or the nurses who are more open to the concept of the power of the mind?
Nurses are definitely more open to the power of the mind. They deal with the patients from the practical side. They see that the patients who are happier get better faster. They hear me explaining the power of the mind to my patients and it makes sense to them. Doctors, however, start practicing after a very long training and they are already mentally tired and want to finally relax. Because of this, they are less inclined to embark on another type of training, a training that is totally different, the training into spirituality, even though this may be the most important training of their lives.

There is an increasing pressure on the medical profession coming from insurance companies and the malpractice crisis. The system has become so complex and so sophisticated and is drawing all the energies towards the material aspects of their lives. As a result, physicians are less and less inclined to focus on the spiritual aspects of their lives. Also, physicians do not have a clear understanding of what meditation even is. They perceive meditation as just another way to relax, the same as having a drink by the pool with friends and family. They simply do not see the training of the mind as being important. They have no idea what they are missing.

Why do you believe meditation to be so important?
We cannot progress with spirituality without learning about meditation. Meditation is so much more that just relaxing and it is different to praying. I was brought up as a Greek Orthodox Christian and they believe in praying a lot. However, I see praying as "speaking to God" whereas meditation is "listening to God." Most people simply do not want to spend time working on something which seems so ambiguous, but the rewards are there for those who try.

Which programs do you think everyone should have in their personal libraries?
I think everyone should learn the true meaning of relaxation. Once you learn this you can turn to the deeper levels of spirituality. I would therefore start everyone with the Deep Relaxation Collection and then follow up with titles such as Opening Up To A Higher Power and Connecting With The Force. I really like the Platinum Plus collection, especially Manifesting Your Vision and Dream Petitioning. I think that the Path To Mastership is the crown jewel in the InnerTalk line. This should definitely be in everyone's library. It is the most powerful program and works so well for the busy lives we all now live. I also use Energy Meditation and Conscious Expansion and I think Hyperemperia is a must for everyone.

Are you saying that everyone should work with the spirituality programs regardless of what their major issues are?
Most of my patients want specific results right away but I believe that the true solutions lie in spirituality. I therefore use a combination of programs, some that are specific to a particular problem and some that deal with spirituality. This way they can see the immediate results while they work on the long term solution that prevents the problem coming back. It is only by reestablishing the mind/body connection that we can prevent the problems from reoccurring.

Are there any other titles you think we should carry in our line?
Your library is so extensive that I can always find a program that fits my and my patients needs. I do not think you need to add to the line. What we need to do is tell more people about this technology. I truly believe that InnerTalk has the capability to change human civilization. It is so powerful and so needed that I think it should be in every hospital. The doctors would be able to relax so much more and the patients would all recover faster. There is no one who cannot benefit from Innertalk. InnerTalk truly is the tool for self realization and it is the best investment you could ever make. It is the best investment I have every made as it has changed my family life, my patients and my professional life. I tell everyone about InnerTalk but I am also very aware that I can only plant the seeds. I am not responsible for the germination.

Thank you, Dr. Enescu. I am sure that, like me, all of our readers have found your interview inspiring, enlightening and educational. I wish more doctors had your dedication to truly helping their patients. I for one would be more comfortable about going to see a doctor who lived by your philosophy.

In an e-newsletter earlier this year, we ran an article by yourself which outlined some of your viewpoints. As a response to this newsletter, we received an e-mail from one of your patients. Her story really highlights the value of your approach to medicine and the impact it has on your patients. (See page 9 for Dr. Enescu's patient's testimonial). Hopefully your story will inspire other doctors to follow your approach. Thank you for your contribution.