Help Dan Go Beyond Parkinson's

Daniel P. Brown passed from this world on April 4th 2022.

Thanks to all who sent their love and support during the time of his illness.

Wishing you peace and joy,

As ever

Our beloved mentor, Daniel P. Brown, Ph.D, has made major contributions to the fields of psychology and meditation in the West. My husband Scott and I are just two of the thousands of students who have benefited profoundly from his innovative and unique adaptation of the “pointing out” style of teaching from Tibet, and there are thousands of others who have been healed, taught, or protected by him over the last four decades--including the clinical patients suffering psychologically, or athletes and judges benefiting from his ongoing education in peak performance, stress management and focus, or children and others who may have been abused, even tortured, who received the benefit of Dan’s expert witness testimony on the subject of trauma and childhood memory in courtrooms in the US and in the war crimes tribunals in Europe. 

 Only recently did Dan send out an email letting us all know that he has Parkinson’s disease. Even though his symptoms were showing in his gait and posture and facial expression for a few years, it took all that time to know for sure because there is no definitive test for it. And it turns out that he also has Lyme disease and extremely high levels of heavy metals in his blood. Then, in addition to all that, there are the side effects now manifesting daily from the medication Dan takes for the Parkinson’s, including almost constant pain that he characterized as feeling like muscles are being “stripped from the bones.”   

 He wrote, “Now at the age of 71, I can't call myself the 'energizer bunny' anymore.” That’s a rather small, if humorous, image for depicting the truly extraordinary level of energy and dedication he has demonstrated for the cause of others for decades. Personally, I think the image of an 18-wheeler roaring across highways is a bit more apt. If you’d like to get a more complete view of Dan’s work over a lifetime, please click the link at the end of this page.

Here are just a few pictures showing (in order from the top) Dan (with white hair and beard seated on the right below a painting) at a retreat with Chongtul Rinpoche in Newton, MA; then Dan translating with Geshe Sonam Gurung in Nepal; scoping out a school for children where otherwise there would have been no schooling; one of the radiant kids at her new school; and Dan at the school greeting the children.

                                       

                           

Giving back

 Dan is an example of someone who gives back on many fronts, a lot, and for that reason he is not exactly a “man of means,” and doesn’t have the funds to pay for the supportive care so critical in managing the symptoms and progress of Parkinson’s. In fact we learned that he often gave some or all of the fees he received for teaching retreats to support the causes highest on his list. 

Most recently, for ten years Dan became a close, heart-to-heart student of the leader of the Bon tradition at that time, His Holiness the 33rd Menri Trizin, now deceased. Dan promised he’d translate some precious texts and build a monastery and teaching center in Nepal, without which the most profound teachings and lineage exemplars of that tradition could die out in their country of origin. Collaborating with Geshe Sonam Gurung, the translations of the texts are almost complete and on board for publishing. But the monastery has barely begun. It will take a huge amount of money and we think that’s a big reason why he can’t stop. 

This project is clearly especially meaningful to him, and even as Parkinson’s disease impinges on his life, he is working overtime on this one important, final campaign, giving back to his spiritual Friend.   

        Pictured above, Dan sitting with HH the 33rd Menri Trizin in 2017.                                                                                  

In that same grateful spirit, we want to give back, too. We want Dan to receive all the care he needs and see him return to a level of bodily comfort and peace—not just for us, but for so many people who rely on him for guidance, and who find in him an inspirational example of “the dedicated life.”

What Does Dan Need Now?

For the remainder of this year and 2020, he still needs to pay for $50,000 worth of dental work to remove all the mercury fillings from his mouth plus $10,000 for other specialized medical treatments not covered by Medicare or medical insurance. These are critical in identifying and treating other underlying causes of a variety of symptoms. Managing those things will then enable Dan to concentrate on and benefit from treatments specifically targeting Parkinson’s. High on Dan’s 2020 treatment list is stem cell therapy. Other likely therapies and supplements could cost nearly $500 per month, and, of course, medical providers will be needed to monitor and adjust therapies as needed over time because Parkinson’s doesn’t get cured. But, there are some who have good clinical evidence that the progression can be stopped. That is our goal.

 We believe $150,000 may be needed over the next year or two for the kind of care Dan needs in order for him to continue his beloved work and relationships. But, right now, to pay for the outstanding bills and treatments we know about that are planned for early 2020 we hope to raise $60,000. All funds donated will go directly and only to Dan.

Obviously, there are no guarantees of a perfect outcome, but we believe there’s a great chance for a good one, where the diminishing quality of life associated with Parkinson’s can be stopped—especially combining medical support with Dan’s extraordinary will!  

 If you are moved to help in any, that is wonderful. And, for whatever you might be able to give, whether money, prayer or loving regard, we thank you with all our hearts.

 p.s. To learn more about Dan’s work, please see this:

https://www.pointingoutaustralia.org/about/the-teachers/daniel-brown/