The mind-body connection
TV show airs on cable channels

Published 04/17/08 Stowe Reporter
By Eileen Day McKusick

First in a series of interviews with local wellness providers and practitioners.

For those of you wishing to learn more about holistic wellness, a great new educational resource is available on local cable access. "Connect with Amy Miller" is a new TV show that explores the mind-body connection.

While Amy is the one usually doing the interviewing, I turned the tables to find out more about how and why this show came about.

Question: When I found out about your television show, I thought it was a great idea. How did it happen?

Miller: It happened as a result of synchronicity. I opened a second office for my practice (therapy, psychopharmacology, and mind-body healing) in Barre, in the Old Fire House, last summer. One of the people in attendance at our open house was Tony Campos. Tony is the executive producer of "New England Cooks" (check him out at newenglandcooks.com).

We began talking about the idea of a show about the mind-body
Amy Miller
connection and personal power. Over the next several weeks, we developed what I would call a mentoring relationship. Tony showed me the ropes and "Connect with Amy Miller: mind, body, soul, spirit" was born.

Tony introduced me to my producer, Joe Amaral, who took a chance in a field that he was not all that familiar with. We started filming three months later. It has been on the air since November 2007. We are presently airing on the local cable-access channels out of Barre, Montpelier and Waterbury. Burlington will be the next to air the show. We will also being airing it from the Website (ConnectwithAmyMiller.com) within the next month or two.

Q: You recently filmed a series of shows at the Barre Opera House. Tell us about that event.

Miller: I will start by saying that my education, though worthwhile, has only been a small percentage of what has made my practice a success. My own journey down the path of enlightenment, personal growth and healing has been much greater contributors.

I watched the movie "What the Bleep Do We Know?" a few years ago and found the information very helpful. Last winter, I was looking for a book to further explain one of the topics in the movie regarding rewiring your brain. On the shelf at Borders was the newly released book by Joe Dispenza, DC (who just happened to be the practitioner featured in the movie), called "Evolve Your Brain." After reading his book, my personal life took a huge leap in the healing process and I wanted to spread the word.

After meeting Joe at Kripalu (a yoga and health center in Massachusetts), I asked him to come to Vermont and be a guest on the show. I liked the idea of offering an event that was about self-healing and empowerment. It was a huge success and Joe was an inspiration.

Q: You have an event planned for April 19 with Thomas Moore and Wendy Halley at the Barre Opera House. What will you be discussing?

Miller: Thomas Moore is the New York Times best-selling author of "Care of the Soul" (and "Soul Mates," "Dark Night of the Soul," "The Soul of Sex" and more). I first read Thomas Moore during a pretty significant dark night of my own soul, in 2002. His work was a significant part of my recovery. His writing opens your heart and teaches you new ways to look at your life. I am so excited to sit with him and speak with him.

Wendy contacted me around January of this year. I read her book "Slaying the Mouse" (a personal journey in spirit medicine) and found it fascinating. We met several times. I watched her lecture at the Kellogg-Hubbard Library in Montpelier. I really liked her energy and her message and asked her to be the opening act for Thomas Moore. My idea is to ask a local, less well-known practitioner to join the events and spread their important information to the community.

Q: What can we expect from "Connect with Amy Miller" in the future?

Miller: We will continue to air our weekly show. One of the goals of the show is to expose people to a variety of information and resources that they may not otherwise know about. Many people think that you are either a believer in Eastern and more ancient healing practices or Western and more technological interventions. My work is a combination of the two, the most recent technological advances (I prescribe medication when appropriate, as an example) and more ancient, holistic interventions (mind-body healing). The two combined can have incredible outcomes that either alone may not produce.

Like anything else, keep the good aspects of modern medicine and ancient healing and discard those aspects that do not serve you.

...

Jon Katz, the author of "Katz on Dogs" and several other books discussing the relationship between dog and human will be at the Barre Opera House in October 2008. His books are insightful and a common-sense approach to training and being with dogs. He is one of my partner's favorite authors and I am really enjoying his work. I think that many people will connect with this topic. It's all very interesting.

Eileen McKusick is the originator of Harmonic Balancing Sound Therapy, with a practice in Lamoille County. She welcomes feedback and can be reached at this email.

Amy Miller's interview with Eileen McKusick about her Sound Therapy practice will air Monday, May 5.