Treatment in Christian Science is distinctly different from treatment given in a medical setting. Christian Science treatment addresses thought alone. It is inspired prayer that corrects and replaces with spiritual Truth faulty beliefs and claims based on material perceptions. It is motivated by deep love for God, Spirit, as well as for those around us.

Here is one description from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy of what happens in Christian Science treatment: “Spirit, God, gathers unformed thoughts into their proper channels, and unfolds these thoughts, even as He opens the petals of a holy purpose in order that the purpose may appear” (p. 506).

The “holy purpose” could be our desire for healing. When we begin to pray specifically to relieve suffering for ourselves or others, even the unformed thoughts—thoughts that haven’t yet occurred to us or that we can’t even put into words—are gathered, identified, and characterized by Spirit, God. Christian Science treatment lets the human ego step back so spiritual inspiration can take center stage in our thought, leading it out of the depths of pain or discouragement and into the light of Truth, God. This happens because Christ, the activity of Truth, which Jesus taught and demonstrated, comes to each of us in ways that we can understand.