ABSTRACT
The visibility of meaning-full disease is ultimately dependent on the paradigmatic assumptions of the observer, but beyond these more fundamental elements there are a multitude of influences steering towards one model of illness or another. Ascertaining a relationship between meaning and illness assumes both a willingness to look for such relationships, and an ability to be with the patient in such a way that the meanings and disease correlations can be rendered visible. Throughout the twentieth century hundreds of medical and nonmedical researchers and writers have pointed to clinical phenomena and research studies supporting the effects of the brain or mind on both animal and human immune and endocrine systems as well as disease states. Twentieth century thinking about 'mind/body medicine' has involved concepts far beyond simple notions of 'stress' and two conceptual frameworks have emerged that have proved very useful and enduring.
