Deepak Chopra

Biography

Deepak Chopra was born on October 22, 1947 in New Delhi, India. The son of an eminent cardiologist, Krishnan Chopra, Deepak at first decided against following his father's career path, wanting instead to pursue a career as a journalist. Eventually, however, he became enthralled with the subject of medicine and enrolled at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in his native city. Chopra envisioned a career in Western medicine, and in 1970 moved to the United States, leaving his home country with just $25 in his pocket and the promise of a residency at a hospital in New Jersey. Following the residency, Chopra landed in Boston, where he quickly rose to chief of medicine at New England Memorial Hospital. Despite his rising career, Chopra became disenchanted with Western medicine and its reliance on prescription drugs. The work began to wear on the promising doctor, who would later claim that he smoked up to a pack of cigarettes a day and drank consistently. "Very unhappy people, physicians," he has said. "The relatives of patients with whom they deal are demanding, litigious, intimidating. That's the environment of medicine. Most of my fellow colleagues were very stressed; a lot of them were addicts. I used to experience the most extraordinary frustration and tightness. My great fear was getting into trouble. Malpractice suits are a big deal in the United States."

Research Interest

Medical