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mind-body-spirit problem.
    For me the breakthrough in seeing medical problems as mind-body-spirit problems was exciting and productive. I learned howgood it felt to be centered and relaxed, to feel comfortable within myself all the time. You value something more when you know you can reach it. Empty dreams are lulling, but once you find that mind-body-spirit is real, nothing is more enticing. At last you get to fulfill your deepest yearnings. The secret is revealed:
Life is about fulfillment.
    Once this secret is no longer hidden, everything changes. You see with sudden clarity that all kinds of things aren’t fulfilling. Some are distractions, like having a martini at five o’clock or getting hooked on video games. Some are obstacles, like ignoring your negative feelings and letting them fester. It feels good to think you have no issues with anger, fear, guilt, and shame, but your body can’t be fooled. It feels everything you try so desperately to avoid.
    I had no deeper wish than to show others the way out. Years of sending away patients to feel discouraged and frustrated needed to be turned around. For people who struggle with their weight, the body they see in the mirror is a mask. Behind it lie bad habits, distorted beliefs, low expectations, and every variety of discouragement. The cruelest form of starvation is to tie someone up and put a banquet before them, inches out of reach. Fulfillment is such a banquet, and for countless people it is being held out of reach. They are starved for fulfillment and don’t know why they can’t reach it.
    Getting a fulfilling life isn’t as easy as watching the Super Bowl with a plate of nachos in your lap or enjoying a nice lunch with a friend while the waiter brings an extra dessert fork “just in case.” But I promise you that the journey to fulfillment is the most exciting project you could possibly undertake. Let’s be companions in the spirit of hope, trust, and joy.
    Making It Personal:
A Commitment, Just Between Us
    There’s much more to say in the following pages, but now you know where our journey is taking us—toward a holistic solution. I’d like you to pause here and make a commitment. It’s your side of a silent contract between us.
    Your side:
You agree to follow the mind-body program outlined in the following pages for 30 days. You will not go on a diet. You will not indulge in negative judgments against your body. You will live in the present and disregard the old conditioning that has led only to frustration and disappointment. With an open mind, you will focus on walking the path of fulfillment.
    My side:
I agree to guide you to holistic change, giving you tested principles and action steps that have proven effective at the Chopra Center for years. Together, you and I are going to get your brain’s messages back into balance by giving you what you really want. Fulfillment must exist physically, emotionally, and mentally. You’ll know how to measure your success on each level.
    Body:
Your body will feel lighter, more energetic, and increasingly vital.
    Emotions:
Your mood will be happier, more uplifting, and increasingly positive.
    Mind:
Your decisions and choices will add to your vision of a better life and make the vision come true.
    Your brain is meant to take care of you, which is what its amazing complexity is designed for. The mind-body approach fills an aching gap in every program for weight loss that I’ve encountered. The pounds always come back after they’re lost because what needed to change—the person who uses food to fill invisibleholes—remains the same. Here is a chance to transform yourself. When that happens you’ll see a change not only in the way you look but in the way you work at your job, the way you see your surroundings, and the way you love the people in your life, including yourself.

PART ONE
THE CHOPRA SOLUTION

Change Your Story,
Change Your Body
    Power Points
    •  You are writing your own life story. Your body