--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A story-a true story-can heal as much as…" description: "\"A story-a true story-can heal as much as medicine can.\" — Eben Alexander" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36b/eben-alexander-18167_heal_a-story-a-true-story-can-heal-as-much-as_1446809.jpg" --- # A story-a true story-can heal as much as medicine can. ![“A story-a true story-can heal as much as medicine can.” quote by Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36b/eben-alexander-18167_heal_a-story-a-true-story-can-heal-as-much-as_1446809.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36b/eben-alexander-18167_heal_a-story-a-true-story-can-heal-as-much-as_1446809.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36b/eben-alexander-18167_heal_a-story-a-true-story-can-heal-as-much-as_1446809.jpg) > “A story-a true story-can heal as much as medicine can.” [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True narratives can heal as power as medicine by restoring meaning and hope. **In simple terms:** Stories can heal like medicine. Key Takeaway Share authentic stories for healing. Themes healing storytelling medicine Mood hopeful empathetic Type therapeutic inspirational When to use this quote - therapy sessions - support groups - personal recovery Key Concepts Neurobiology psychology Questions to Reflect On - How has a story helped you recover? - When can storytelling be harmful? A Different Perspective Stories may not replace medical treatment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [True story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-story/) ## Related quotes > [People can help us heal, can give us medicine, advice, many forms of help, but nobody can manage our minds for us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-lozowick/people-can-help-us-heal-can-give-us-medicine-advice-many-forms-of/) Lee Lozowick > [“The story, the true story, is the one that the audience members create in their minds... transformed, elucidated, expanded, edited, and clarified by their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/the-story-the-true-story-is-the-one-that-the-audience-members-create/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“They said, “let me tell you a story, a true story, a story about good and evil, … a story that lives inside of you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-sotelo/they-said-let-me-tell-you-a-story-a-true-story-a-story-about-good-and/) Mano Sotelo > [The story itself, the true story, is the one that the audience members create in their minds, guided and shaped by my text, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/the-story-itself-the-true-story-is-the-one-that-the-audience-members/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“What is wrong with story is that it is not a true story. Men have in their minds a picture of how the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/what-is-wrong-with-story-is-that-it-is-not-a-true-story-men-have-in/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [“To call a story a true story is an insult to both art and truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/to-call-a-story-a-true-story-is-an-insult-to-both-art-and-truth/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [The true story of every person in this world is not the story you see, the external story. The true story of each person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-true-story-of-every-person-in-this-world-is-not-the-story-you-see/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you stand and share your story in an empowering way, your story will heal you and your story will heal somebody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iyanla-vanzant/when-you-stand-and-share-your-story-in-an-empowering-way-your-story/) [Iyanla Vanzant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iyanla-vanzant/) > [Tell your story because your story will heal you and it will heal someone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iyanla-vanzant/tell-your-story-because-your-story-will-heal-you-and-it-will-heal/) [Iyanla Vanzant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iyanla-vanzant/) > [It's important that we share our experiences with other people. Your story will heal you and your story will heal somebody else. When you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iyanla-vanzant/it-s-important-that-we-share-our-experiences-with-other-people-your/) [Iyanla Vanzant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iyanla-vanzant/) > [Anything in which you're playing someone real does make you feel responsible for making the story as true as it can be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgina-campbell/anything-in-which-you-re-playing-someone-real-does-make-you-feel/) [Georgina Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgina-campbell/) > [“there is a French version of the story, and a true one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-clarke/there-is-a-french-version-of-the-story-and-a-true-one/) [Stephen Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-clarke/) > [“Only half the story is true. The rest is necessary.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yau/only-half-the-story-is-true-the-rest-is-necessary/) [John Yau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yau/) > [“You have information for us? No, you have all the information you need in your head, what you want, what you need, is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v/you-have-information-for-us-no-you-have-all-the-information-you-need/) V > [As long as there's one person to believe it, there's no story that can't be true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/as-long-as-there-s-one-person-to-believe-it-there-s-no-story-that-can/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) ## More by Eben Alexander > [My journey deep into coma, outside this lowly physical realm and into the loftiest dwelling place of the almighty Creator, revealed the indescribably immense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/my-journey-deep-into-coma-outside-this-lowly-physical-realm-and-into/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [Communicating with God is the most extraordinary experience imaginable, yet at the same time it's the most natural one of all, because God is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/communicating-with-god-is-the-most-extraordinary-experience/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [I understand what happens to the brain when people are near death, and I had always believed there were good scientific explanations for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/i-understand-what-happens-to-the-brain-when-people-are-near-death-and/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [“My experience showed me that the death of the body and the brain are not the end of consciousness, that human experience continues beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/my-experience-showed-me-that-the-death-of-the-body-and-the-brain-are/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [“Death: It is the greatest adventure. It is stunning that in western civilization we deny it to the degree that we do. Perhaps that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/death-it-is-the-greatest-adventure-it-is-stunning-that-in-western/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [I had a foretaste of another, larger kind of knowledge: one I believe human beings will be able to access in ever larger numbers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/i-had-a-foretaste-of-another-larger-kind-of-knowledge-one-i-believe/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [I grew up in a scientific world, the son of a neurosurgeon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/i-grew-up-in-a-scientific-world-the-son-of-a-neurosurgeon/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [“Dogmatic religion is not open to people having direct access to those higher realms.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/dogmatic-religion-is-not-open-to-people-having-direct-access-to-those/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [“The brain itself does not produce consciousness. That it is, instead, a kind of reducing valve or filter, shifting the larger, nonphysical consciousness that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/the-brain-itself-does-not-produce-consciousness-that-it-is-instead-a/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [How did I gain from not remembering my earthly self? It allowed me to go deep into realms beyond the worldly without having to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/how-did-i-gain-from-not-remembering-my-earthly-self-it-allowed-me-to/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [I'm not the first person to have discovered evidence that consciousness exists beyond the body. Brief, wonderful glimpses of this realm are as old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/i-m-not-the-first-person-to-have-discovered-evidence-that/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [Love is, without a doubt, the basis of everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/love-is-without-a-doubt-the-basis-of-everything/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [Evil was necessary because without it free will was impossible, and without free will there could be no growth—no forward movement, no chance for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/evil-was-necessary-because-without-it-free-will-was-impossible-and/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [“Hallucinogens affect the neocortex, and my neocortex wasn’t available to be affected.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/hallucinogens-affect-the-neocortex-and-my-neocortex-wasn-t-available/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) > [“Our choice is not whether or not to be interested in philosophical questions, but whether or not to become conscious of the fact that,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/our-choice-is-not-whether-or-not-to-be-interested-in-philosophical/) [Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) [Explore all 33 Eben Alexander quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/) ## More Heal quotes > [A poet is wounded into speech, and he examines these wounds, meticulously, to discover how to heal them. The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [ I guarantee you \[Hillary Clinton\] is smoking in humiliation over the idea that she needs to heal and that \[Donald\] Trump's the guy to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/i-guarantee-you-hillary-clinton-is-smoking-in-humiliation-over-the/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [“ving self and others is an every second of every day of every week, of every month, of every year gift that should not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanjo-jendayi/ving-self-and-others-is-an-every-second-of-every-day-of-every-week-of/) [Sanjo Jendayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanjo-jendayi/) > [“Our irises are galaxies; our pupils are black holes if we allow ourselves to bottle up everything inside us instead of allowing ourselves to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaclyn-johnston/our-irises-are-galaxies-our-pupils-are-black-holes-if-we-allow/) Jaclyn Johnston > [Spirituality does not have to be serious. You are spirituality. Fun laughter heal you faster than anything. Introduce fun back into your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anita-moorjani/spirituality-does-not-have-to-be-serious-you-are-spirituality-fun/) [Anita Moorjani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anita-moorjani/) > [What's to become of the morally sound? Left out in the cold, I suppose. We must heal the sick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henrik-ibsen/what-s-to-become-of-the-morally-sound-left-out-in-the-cold-i-suppose/) [Henrik Ibsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henrik-ibsen/) > [There's nothing that the road cannot heal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-oberst/there-s-nothing-that-the-road-cannot-heal/) [Conor Oberst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-oberst/) > [If you don't feel free and be yourself, you can't connect. Find people who accept your quirks. They'll heal your soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/if-you-don-t-feel-free-and-be-yourself-you-can-t-connect-find-people/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [Time does not heal anything, it just teaches us how to live with THE PAIN…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suman-rai/time-does-not-heal-anything-it-just-teaches-us-how-to-live-with-the/) [Suman Rai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suman-rai/) > [“Sleep deeply, the sleep of our people, chosen one of my sister,that you will heal completely and wake refreshed and in full strength.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-feehan/sleep-deeply-the-sleep-of-our-people-chosen-one-of-my-sister-that-you/) [Christine Feehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-feehan/) > [Time doesn't heal, time helps heal and learning helps heal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-izzo/time-doesn-t-heal-time-helps-heal-and-learning-helps-heal/) [Tom Izzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-izzo/) > [“A heart that bleeds instead of beats in thousands of broken bits - pick one up and the sharp shard scrapes your hand; the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-kowalski/a-heart-that-bleeds-instead-of-beats-in-thousands-of-broken-bits-pick/) Martha Kowalski > [We come unbidden into this life, and if we are lucky we find a purpose beyond starvation, misery, and early death which, lest we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/we-come-unbidden-into-this-life-and-if-we-are-lucky-we-find-a-purpose/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [There are some - called 'death fatigue' - people who just grow so tired of death, so they don't want to keep perpetuating death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/there-are-some-called-death-fatigue-people-who-just-grow-so-tired-of/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [Art is love creating the new world and justice is love rolling up its sleeves to heal the old one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-t-wright-2/art-is-love-creating-the-new-world-and-justice-is-love-rolling-up-its/) [N. T. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-t-wright-2/) Browse all 2,227 Heal quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A story-a true story-can heal as much as medicine can.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Eben Alexander" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/a-story-a-true-story-can-heal-as-much-as-medicine-can/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Heal" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/a-story-a-true-story-can-heal-as-much-as-medicine-can/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36b/eben-alexander-18167_heal_a-story-a-true-story-can-heal-as-much-as_1446809.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36b/eben-alexander-18167_heal_a-story-a-true-story-can-heal-as-much-as_1446809.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36b/eben-alexander-18167_heal_a-story-a-true-story-can-heal-as-much-as_1446809.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A story-a true story-can heal as much as medicine can.” — Eben Alexander", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Eben Alexander", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A story-a true story-can heal as...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/a-story-a-true-story-can-heal-as-much-as-medicine-can/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/a-story-a-true-story-can-heal-as-much-as-medicine-can/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```