http://www.hakomiinstitute.com, offers information, refer-
rals, and training.
hatha yoga See YOGA.
Hay, Louise American metaphysical teacher and
author of 18 books, including You Can Heal Your Life
(Carson, Calif.: Hay House, 1987); The Power Is
Within You (Hay House, 2003) and Heal Your Body:
The Mental Causes for Physical Illness and the Meta-
physical Ways to Overcome Them(Hay House, 1994).
Since beginning her career as a Science of Mind
minister in 1981, Hay has developed the reputation
of helping people discover and affirm their ability
to heal and grow toward daily well-being through
meditation and positive thinking. Her affirmation
“I deserve love,” among her earliest work that
drew public acclaim, provided a landmark for the
beneficial effects of mind-body philosophy. Hay’s
works have been translated into 25 different lan-
guages in 33 countries around the world, and she
operates Hay House, Inc. publishing company in
Carson, California, at (800) 654-5126.
See also HOLMES, ERNEST.
heat therapy See HYPERTHERMIA.
Hellerwork Named for the aerospace engineer
Joseph Heller, this is a type of bodywork similar to
Rolfing involving deep tissue massage and “move-
ment reeducation,” geared toward relieving muscu-
lar tension; stress, back, neck, and shoulder pain;
sports injuries; and respiratory ailments. Heller was
born in Poland in 1940, was educated in Europe,
and immigrated to Los Angeles, California, at age 16.
In 1962 he earned a degree in engineering from Cal
Tech. Eventually he left engineering and turned to
the field of structural bodywork and bioenergetics,
which led him to serve as director of Kairos, the Los
Angeles Center for Human Development, and as the
first president of the Rolf Institute. Coauthor with
William Henkin of Bodywise (Berkeley, Calif.: Wing-
bow Press, 1991), Heller believed that as the body
became realigned with the Earth’s natural gravita-
tional field, the emotional impact of unconsciously
harboring tension and impairing optimal breathing
needed also to be addressed. He felt that chronic ten-
sion in the muscles caused the body to fall out of
vertical alignment and lose flexibility and energy.
By “relearning” to sit, stand, walk, run, and lift
more efficiently, one can regain good posture and
range of motion. The Hellerwork program consists
of eleven 90-minute sessions, each of which focuses
on a combination of physical movement and
manipulation to reduce stress and foster energy and
mind-body awareness to correct imbalances from
prolonged stress or trauma. Hellerwork is not rec-
ommended for individuals with cancer, rheumatoid
arthritis, or other inflammatory conditions. More
information is available by contacting The Body of
Knowledge/Hellerwork organization, 406 Berry
Street, Mount Shasta, CA 96067, or (530) 926-2500.
Heller’s website is josephheller.com\bio.html.
See also ROLFING.herbalism The practice of using plants as a
source of medicine for a multitude of illnesses.
Herbalism spans many cultures, but it began in
most of them as traditional remedies and preven-
tive medicines, especially in regions in which
physicians and hospitals were not readily avail-
able. Many well-known modern pharmaceuticals
originate from herbal remedies, among them
digoxin, a vital cardiac drug from the common gar-
den flower foxglove (Digitalis purpurea). Herbs
have always been recognized for their various
effects on health. Mint, for example, is perhaps the
most common remedy for digestive problems and
is often an ingredient in preparations for indiges-
tion and other gastrointestinal disturbances, and
echinacea is known to have potent immune-stim-
ulating properties. Although herbal medicine lost
much favor for many years in the United States
after the 20th-century development of antibiotics,
it is a thriving business today, with hundreds of
herbal preparations available over the counter in
health food stores, pharmacies, and supermarkets.
Although the federal Food and Drug Administra-
tion (FDA) does not regulate the production of
herbal remedies and at one time threatened to
remove all supplements from public access, Con-
gress responded to the public’s clamoring for
herbals by passing the Dietary Supplement Health
and Education Act (DSHEA) of 1994, which limits
what herbal-preparation manufacturers can claim
about their products’ scope and efficacy. Herbalism54 hatha yoga