Are Alternative, Complimentary, Natural and Holistic Medicine All the Same?

There is such a vast amount of information out there in the public domain that it is sometimes very hard for us to make sense of it all or even to make a choice about our health treatments. I am a layperson that got interested in “other” treatments when I left my general practitioner’s office unconvinced by his theories about my ailing health. I did not want to be tired any more, but suspected that I first had to get to the bottom of the despondency that I seemed to drown in.

The first confusing thing I ran into was what were alternative, complementary, natural and holistic medicine – were they all the same thing? I wanted to learn more about the cause of the ailments and not on how to suppress the symptoms. And so I became a strong supporter of the holistic health approach. The adjective "holistic" (often spelled wholistic) spans all four health domains vs. any one of them, spiritual, emotional, physical and mental. Holistic medicine works in harmony with the body’s rhythms and energies, bringing it back as close as possible to its original state. It speaks of “treating the whole person” and harmonizing the person with nature and refers to the various traditional and modern systems of health protection and restoration, which are based on the body's natural healing powers, the many ways the different tissues affect each other and the influence of the external environment. A toxic environment, whether it is family, belief, or relationship, is one which impinges on someone's holistic health. Holistic health looks at life from the perspective that humans function as complete, integrated units rather than as the sum of separate parts.

Alternative medicine is often the term used to describe therapies such as Homeopathy, Acupuncture and Naturopathy and provides a genuine alternative to your family doctor’s surgery. The greatest benefit is achieved when holistic practitioners practice alongside conventional doctors but sadly, in most countries this is still more the exception than the rule!

Some therapies like metamorphic technique, chelation therapy or Hopi ear candles are effective within a limited range of conditions and are quite restricted and so are by definition complementary.

Most people think natural medicine must imply that there is something inherently good about being natural - but not all things natural are beneficial. Arsenic is natural but certainly not beneficial! The biggest challenge is that most of these therapies are certainly not natural, like Homeopathy or Flower Essence. Most therapies involve a concept of natural, vital energy, which provides the driving force for life itself. Asthma inhalers, antibiotics and steroids never actually cure chronic conditions and often leave people dependent on drugs for partial relief. The holistic approach alleviates symptoms while working towards a real cure that removes the need for treatment of any kind. Generally, the more authentically our spiritual, emotional, physical and mental needs are met both locally and chronically, the higher the state of our holistic health.

Lizette le Clus-Fox is an ardent advocate for a holistic approach to health and runs http://www.wellnessthoughts.com and her ezine Wellness Thoughts provides regular in-depth information. To learn more about holistic health visit her web site today!

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