Originally Posted by Roo

There is concrete and continually mounting evidence that physical bonding, holding, mirroring, gazing, etc. (or lack thereof) will have a major impact on the infant's developing brain and immune/endocrine systems. I've recently studied two excellent books that you might want to look into: A General Theory of Love, by Lewis Thomas MD et. al, and The Trauma Spectrum: Hidden Wounds and Human Resiliency, by Robert Scaer.

The depression, PTSD, and other "mental" symptoms in my case have, in part, a definite physiological root. Later abuse that I experienced just seemed to cement the earlier patterns.

I can't see the body and the mind as entirely separate -- everything in us is connected with everything else. Our culture is still struggling to arise from centuries of mistaken beliefs about illness that is primarily of the mind. Demonic possession ... fallen moral character ... witchcraft ... laziness ... you name it, the label's been slapped on. Unfortunately, many people still choose to remain ignorant, and that's where the nasty judgments come in. I've been called every name in the book, from lazy to crazy, stupid, filthy, etc. ... by people who didn't know any better, and didn't want to know any better.

It's been pointed out in many ways that every thought and emotion has a biochemical equivalent (Candace Pert writes about this in her book, Molecules of Emotion). Likewise, every physical experience or symptom is marked on the brain and interpreted by the mind. Illness that people think of as only "mental" has its physical corelations.