Women's Rights: Déborah OM, Khmer from France, Adept of “A Sound Mind in a Sound Body”
- Chantha R
- 10 hours ago
- 4 min read
Native to Toulouse, the city where her parents settled in the 1980s after fleeing the Khmer Rouge regime, Déborah OM is today a doctor in medical physics (in oncology) at Paris's Georges POMPIDOU hospital. Discover today for Cambodge Mag the portrait of this young woman who affirms that a mind must be “disciplined, tough but flexible so as not to break.”
For a few years now, we've seen you particularly engaged in various humanitarian causes, mainly in Cambodia. Tell us especially about your mission with amputee children.
Strongly inspired by a friend who is herself an amputee—but also by my father, who once had to cross anti-personnel minefields with my older sister on his shoulders—I took advantage of this stay in Srok in 2019 to contact the HANDICAP INTERNATIONAL branch in Siem Reap.
This field mission marked me deeply. I then carried out a fundraiser that allowed me, with the help of a 3D printer, to create prostheses better suited to their condition.
Last year, I had the privilege of accompanying you on one of your “Physicienne sans frontières” days at the Khmer-Soviet Friendship Hospital in Phnom Penh. Describe this mission for us.
This hospital is at the origin of my current vocation. The vision of distress and the obvious lack of resources available that I discovered there during my first visit (I was 19 then) was a real emotional shock.
My goal in this mission was therefore the technical and practical improvement of the methods in place.
Your profile is, however, atypical. You're a great athlete. What disciplines do you practice?
I started with classical dance, then karate, and then boxing, a passion. But following a ligament tear, I now devote myself to hiking and of course Yoga.
We can indeed find you on certain social networks for yoga. How did it enter your life?
Through one of my older sisters.
A dedicated practitioner, you have now become a teacher in the field. How did that happen?
I became a true adept by practicing daily in the studio that my sister had introduced me to. And working in radiotherapy, an inherently anxiety-inducing environment (permanent exposure to nuclear requires us to perform our duties in sorts of bunkers), it occurred to me to share the well-being provided by yoga... and my request was approved by the hospital.
What advice or guidance would you give to those who want to get started in this discipline?
“Do it body and soul, go for it and be diligent! Discipline is the key to everything.”
You also turn out to be a fervent adept of meditation. What are the reasons?
The meditative approach is for me a lesson in life but also a way of living one's life.
A sound mind in a sound body: a few words on this adage?
I remain convinced that to free oneself from all emotional constraints, one must first free oneself from our physical constraints as well. The two are closely linked.
Your curiosity also extends to reading. What are your current books or authors?
With a book always in my lab coat, I'm currently immersing myself in the writings of Bokar Rimpoché and Tenzin Wagyal-Rimpoché (Yoga of Dream and Sleep) and Pema Wangyal (Boddhicitta) and Lucas Menget (free dives).
Are there schools of thought that you particularly favor?
I especially like Lucas Menget (free dives), a work that is exceptional in my eyes and which focuses on TUMMO (Tibetan meditation on fire).
Also Vajrayana Buddhism and Dzogchen Buddhism, from Tibetan schools.
A great traveler, you combine passions and destinations. Can you tell us about your next big trip?
I'm going to Nepal, which is one of my dream destinations. This desire was particularly accentuated after watching an ARTE documentary on a boarding school—Snowland—located in the isolated DOLPO region and only accessible on foot. The children aged 4 to 16 will no longer see their parents during their schooling. The wish to sponsor one has become dear to my heart.
You often talk to me about Shaolin monks. How do they inspire you and do you have any perspectives or projects on this subject?
They simply represent for me the quintessence of discipline. They are the perfect archetype of “a sound mind in a sound body.”
So upon my return from Nepal, I'm going to Germany this time for a retreat in a Shaolin temple.
The work of the mind and discipline thus take a great place in your life. Do you see a correlation with medicine?
Absolutely! Without discipline, performance declines and that directly impacts our patients. And cancer doesn't wait. Everything is therefore linked: our minds as well as the results that will follow.
In your daily life at Georges Pompidou hospital, do you integrate your philosophy of life into your approach with your patients?
The combination of kindness—peace of body and mind—yoga classes at the hospital is, in my eyes, a winning trio.
“Peace brings peace”
Do you often meet patients open to a “meditative” approach or simply fans of this practice to cope with their condition?
The approach often surprises, I admit.
Do you think it could be a point to work on systematically?
Patients sense our states and the meditative approach is now one of my priority approaches.
Finally, professionally speaking, what are the projects closest to your heart?
I'm an unconditional fan of innovative techniques, which represent a large part of my research.
I focus, among other things, on optimizing the sparing of toxicity for breast cancer patients. Sophrology, meditation, or even good mastery of breathing are means that I would like to propose systematically because I now consider them indispensable in achieving all my objectives.
I also plan to resume conferences to share my viewpoints and discover others.
By Chantha R (Françoise Framboise)
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