Alternative or Integrative Medicine
For hundreds of years people all over the world have used alternative methods to help aide in their overall prevention, treatment and recovery from illness, injury, and disease. It’s only been in recent years that Western medicine has had an open mind to incorporating such practices. Alternative medicine includes (but is not limited to) acupuncture, massage, meditation, hypnosis, the use of herbs, bio-feedback and more. Each of these modalities have real medical benefits. If you are still not sold on the idea of using holistic and alternative medicine to help your ailments, speak with your doctor to see why more American MDs are adding alternative treatments to their Rx pad.
The good news is – it’s not an either or when it comes to using Eastern or Western Medicine. People often think – “Oh, I have a headache”…this means I can only take pills (from a Western Philosophy) or I can “ohm” my way through the headache with meditation and breathing exercises (Eastern Philosophy) – well it doesn’t have to be either or. But, growing healthcare trends in America say there is an option C – a combination of the two practices & it is surprisingly beneficial. This combination of treatments is often called Integrative Medicine (IM).
Integrative Medicine combines the Western and Eastern therapies to deliver a powerful healing punch to your ailments. There are many research institutes in the USA which also study the effects of using Integrative Medicine when it comes to evidence-based practice for our quality of care.
Nearly 40% of all adults in the USA embrace IM for treatment. For example, if you have nagging aches and pains in your joints – maybe try acupuncture before you try a cortisone shot. Not only is acupuncture less invasive, many studies have shown the effectiveness of acupuncture for alleviating everything from headaches, joint aches, backaches, PMS, infertility, anxiety, and even post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Interestingly, acupuncture has been used for thousands of years with great success and new research says it may help with chronic pain, not just acute pain.
There are many alternative therapies – hypnosis, music therapy, art therapy, massage, using herbs. While many herbs most likely have some sort of healing power, the ones listed here are backed by science:
» St. John’s Wart – seems to be about as effective for mild to moderate depression as many traditional anti-depressants.
» Turmeric – combats inflammation
» Garlic – can help lower blood pressure (though only short-term)
» Milk thistle – may promote liver health and lower blood sugar in people with Type 2 diabetes
» Horse-chestnut seed – can help battle bulging varicose veins
» Melatonin – might help those with sleep issues get some shut-eye
» Butterbur & Feverfew – may be effective at preventing migraines.
Meditation is a widely ‘prescribed’ IM. And there are literally 100’s of benefits to using Meditation: physiological benefits, psychological benefits, and spiritual benefits.
Physiological benefits:
· It lowers oxygen consumption
· It decreases respiratory rate
· It increases blood flow and slows the heart rate
· Increases exercise tolerance
· Leads to a deeper level of physical relaxation
· Good for people with high blood pressure
· Reduces anxiety attacks by lowering the levels of blood lactate
· Decreases muscle tension
· Helps in chronic diseases like allergies, arthritis etc
· Reduces Pre-menstrual Syndrome symptoms
· Helps in post-operative healing
· Enhances the immune system
· Reduces activity of viruses and emotional distress
· Enhances energy, strength and vigor
· Helps with weight loss
· Reduction of free radicals, less tissue damage
· Higher skin resistance
· Drop in cholesterol levels, lowers risk of cardiovascular disease
· Improved flow of air to the lungs resulting in easier breathing
· Decreases the aging process
· Higher levels of DHEAS (Dehydroepiandrosterone)
· prevented, slowed or controlled pain of chronic diseases
· Makes you sweat less
· Cure headaches & migraines
· Greater Orderliness of Brain Functioning
· Reduced Need for Medical Care
· Less energy wasted
· More inclined to sports, activities
· Significant relief from asthma
· improved performance in athletic events
· Normalizes to your ideal weight
· harmonizes our endocrine system
· relaxes our nervous system
· produce lasting beneficial changes in brain electrical activity
· Cure infertility (the stresses of infertility can interfere with the release of hormones that regulate ovulation).
Psychological benefits:
- Builds self-confidence
- Increases serotonin level, influences mood and behavior
- Resolve phobias & fears
- Helps control own thoughts
- Helps with focus & concentration
- Increase creativity
- Increased brain wave coherence
- Improved learning ability and memory
- Increased feelings of vitality and rejuvenation
- Increased emotional stability
- improved relationships
- Mind ages at slower rate
- Easier to remove bad habits
- Develops intuition
- Increased Productivity
- Improved relations at home & at work
- Able to see the larger picture in a given situation
- Helps ignore petty issues
- Increased ability to solve complex problems
- Purifies your character
- Develop will power
- greater communication between the two brain hemispheres
- React more quickly and more effectively to a stressful event.
- Increases one’s perceptual ability and motor performance
- higher intelligence growth rate
- Increased job satisfaction
- increase in the capacity for intimate contact with loved ones
- decrease in potential mental illness
- Better, more sociable behavior
- Less aggressiveness
- Helps in quitting smoking, alcohol addiction
- Reduces need and dependency on drugs, pills & pharmaceuticals
- Need less sleep to recover from sleep deprivation
- Require less time to fall asleep, helps cure insomnia
- Increases sense of responsibility
- Reduces road rage
- Decrease in restless thinking
- Decreased tendency to worry
- Increases listening skills and empathy
- Helps make more accurate judgments
- Greater tolerance
- Gives composure to act in considered & constructive ways
- Grows a stable, more balanced personality
- Develops emotional maturity
Spiritual benefits:
· Helps keep things in perspective
· Provides peace of mind, happiness
· Helps you discover your purpose
· Increased self-actualization
· Increased compassion
· Growing wisdom
· Deeper understanding of yourself and others
· Brings body, mind, spirit in harmony
· Deeper Level of spiritual relaxation
· Increased acceptance of oneself
· helps learn forgiveness
· Changes attitude toward life
· Creates a deeper relationship with your God
· Attain enlightenment
· greater inner-directedness
· Helps living in the present moment
· Creates a widening, deepening capacity for love
· Discovery of the power and consciousness beyond the ego
· Experience an inner sense of “Assurance or Knowingness”
· Experience a sense of “Oneness”
· Increases the synchronicity in your life
Even if you are not ready to get stuck with tiny needles, drink an herbal brew, or breathe deeply while clearing your mind to get to that transcendental level – at least have the conversation with your healthcare provider. Maybe your GP can recommend someone in your local area who specializes in IM treatments which can be used in conjunction to the methods used by your family doc. Also, depending on your insurance policy – some insurance providers will actually cover Acupuncture, Chiropractic procedures, Hypnosis or Bio-feedback (under supervision of a licensed psychologist) and more.
What do you have to lose? Pain, lack of sleep, a little bit of weight? Do the research and see where how East and West treatments can help you become happier and healthier.
