Awhile back I did a webinar with Dr. Sara Gottfried about my next book Mind Over Medicine, Pink Medicine, and self-healing, and according to Sara, “It was epic!”

Many years ago my great grandfather told me of the persecution he experienced in Russia which led him to come to this country. He said the Cossacks would pursue him at night, when he was out teaching, and slash him with their sabers. One night he was on the hill above his village with his rabbi, the Baal Shem Tov. As they looked down they could see the Cossacks riding down and killing their Jewish brethren. They might have felt the same had they seen their loved ones being taken away to become slaves in a foreign land.

I am currently writing the hardest chapter in my book Mind Over Medicine: Scientific Proof You Can Heal Yourself.  Any time you write about self-healing, one painful issue comes up for any sick person. “If I can heal myself and I’m still sick, is it my fault?”

As a healer at heart, I think blame, guilt and shame have no place in the therapeutic relationship, but how should I address the fact that we have the power to heal ourselves without blaming sick people for their illnesses?

This is the fourth time I’ve started this column over in an attempt to keep my objective voice out and leave the subjective to speak for itself. It’s not working very well.

I’ll start with the facts: A controversial ad campaign sponsored by the Strong4Life campaign and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta is pointing the finger of fat shame directly at our children and getting plenty of tongues wagging. “Warning: It’s hard to be a little girl if you’re not” reads one message under the photo of a chubby girl. Her eyes, just like the eyes of the other children featured in the ads, are accusatory. More text included in the campaign reads "Being fat takes the fun out of being a kid" and "My fat may be funny to you, but it’s killing me.”