T. Rajiv Juneja, M.D., M.S., is double board-certified in Adult Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine. Recently he completed a fellowship at the University of Arizona, studying Integrative and Alternative Medicine under Dr. Andrew Weil. He begins our conversation by describing what is meant by an “integrative psychiatrist.” Dr. Raj then discusses the title of this new book, You are More Than That: A Guide to Embracing the Spiritual Being Within and Becoming Fully Human. His interest in this topic was the result of messages received in his childhood that he needed to become someone rather than that he already was someone. This misperception motivated his tremendous drive to achieve a graduate degree, and later, a medical degree. Upon graduation, however, he realized despite his accomplishments, he was still the same person inside. He now says “We are all more than what we limit ourselves to believe.”

Limiting beliefs can cause us to be reactive rather than reflective. To counter reactive behavior, he suggests developing more self-awareness, the first step of recognizing “we are more.” Self-awareness enables us to get to root cause of our behaviors to determine where our actions are coming from. The second step is identify themes or patterns in relationships. Our minds create “past unresolved conflicts” and this can trigger conflicts within our relationships. Dr. Raj also explains how his approach is particularly helpful for people dealing with addictions. For example, connecting with one’s higher power enables a person to connect with his or her own wholeness.

To live fully, we need to find a more “purpose-driven highway” in our personal and professional lives. Dr. Raj believes our internal purpose is to self-actualize, in part, by finding our “signature strength.” For more information, please visit www.thedrraj.com