Mindfulness, Grief, and Medical Illustrations

An Incredible Opportunity

On June 3rd, our multi-faceted leader, Ronald Mathias, added “podcast guest” to his repertoire. As an avid podcast listener, he enthusiastically accepted the invitation to be featured on the Mindfulness & Grief podcast. Podcast host, Heather Stang, sat down with Ron to elaborate on the unlikely relationship between medical illustrations and processing grief.

“You’re Not Really Artists, You’re Translators.”

In this episode, Ron discussed Anatomical Justice’s unique position. As certified medical illustrators, we transmute biology into empathy. He explained how our team combines patient anatomy with classical design theory to both educate and evoke an emotional response to their pain. A picture is worth a thousand words. Medical illustrations help individuals understand complex medical terminology, and therefore the gravity of the injuries incurred within a personal injury case.

The medical illustration process surprisingly involves a considerable amount of geometry. Our illustrators utilize the golden ratio theory to indicate movement within an image. Changing the focal point’s position in relation to the canvas can alter where a person’s eye is drawn to and what they observe next. Illustrations with different sight paths can help to evoke emotional responses. This is the key to humanising clinical topics such as fractures and soft tissue injuries.

We apply this theory to more than just medical illustrations. The cover of Superhero Grief: The Transformative Power of Loss also uses the golden ratio to convey emotion. The image depicts a superhero kneeling at a grave at night. Ron created a path of movement between the components in the illustration using a grid based on the golden ratio. The path is continuous and always leads back to the focal point: the mourning superhero.

Listen to Mindfulness & Grief for Yourself

Heather Stang is the host of the Mindfulness & Grief Podcast and author of several books including the guided journal From Grief to Peace. She and Ron crossed paths as a result of their contributions to Jill Harrington and Robert Neimeyer’s book, Superhero Grief: The Transformative Power of Loss. Heather penned the chapter titled “Mindfulness as Your Grief Superpower” while Ron produced the cover art for the book.

Do you want to learn more about the grief process, and how our team uses it in a med-legal setting? Listen to episode #48 of the Mindfulness & Grief Podcast “The Art of Visualizing Grief: Translating Pain Into Pictures with Ronald Mathias”. The podcast is accessible from all major platforms including iTunes, Castbox, Audible, and Spotify. You can also ask Alexa or Google Home to “play The Mindfulness & Grief Podcast.” You can also browse additional episodes and Heather’s other ventures at her website, mindfulnessandgrief.com .