Alternative Medicine is Holistic, Western Medicine is Reductionist

The major difference between alternative medicine, or what I'll call holistic health, and Western medicine, is in approach.

A Western doctor, or MD, sees his duty as searching out disease, diagnosing it, and treating it. If he does that correctly and effectively, he's done his job. Most often, this means the doctor prescribing a pharmaceutical drug or a surgical procedure to remedy the situation. The patients is passive in all of this.

A holistic health practitioner sees her duty as an educator and a facilitator. She feels that the body can heal itself, and it doesn't necessarily need outside influences (drugs, surgery) to heal from an illness or to prevent an illness. In holistic health, the patient is an active participant.

This is the best and the worst thing about holistic health! The patient is actively involved in the healing process. Everything you know about your body says that this is the right approach. It makes so much sense. That's the good part. The bad thing about this is that it is HARD WORK for the patient. In most cases, the patient must make changes to their lifestyle. Change your diet, do more exercise, stop using sugar, do these stretches, stop negative thoughts, meditate twice a day, etc.

Making lifestyle changes is immensely difficult. The only time it's easy is when you are faced with a life-threatening disease. When you find out you have lung cancer, it's pretty easy to quit smoking. However, it's far too late by that time. Lifestyle changes need to come before the illness becomes manifest.

Let's examine one of the big differences between holistic health and Western medicine: holism versus reductionism.

Holistic versus Reductionist

This is a major shift in perspective. Taking a holistic perspective means that you cannot understand a single problem with a single part of the human body without looking at the whole person. We use the short-hand "mind, body, spirit" to refer to the whole person.

This is not how a Western doctor is taught to see a patient. He sees the patient as the disease. "This is an epileptic," it is not a whole person who has epilepsy. He feels that he can administer a drug or perform a surgery that will cure a person's liver without making any difference to the rest of the person. Of course, this is never possible, so when the inevitable "complications" arise, the Western doctor deals with those one at a time, often causing additional problems for the person, whether in body, mind or spirit.

Even those three parts of the person are treated by separate people in Western society. The body is the domain of the medical doctor. The mind is the domain of the psychiatrist. Spirit is left to the priest, rabbi or pastor. There is no overlap in roles, except for referrals from one to the other. In our bodies, of course, there is tremendous overlap. A loss of connection to God or the universe will cause no end of mental and physical problems. Mental stress causes many physical diseases, as we well know. Who can coordinate between these in the Western system? No one. Problems falling "through the cracks" between mind, body and spirit is a common failure of Western medicine.

A holistic practitioner understands the interconnections between mind, body and spirit. They work on the connections, and, although the practitioner may not be an expert in all three, they focus on the overlaps rather than ignoring them.

In my opinion, a holistic approach is better in almost every case for almost every person. Understanding the linkages between mind, body and spirit is essential to understanding how to stay well and how to heal. Western medicine can play a part within the scope of holistic health by offering emergency solutions to problems that arise quickly and need to be fixed immediately.

Daryl Kulak is the author of Health Insurance Off the Grid, a book that explores how a combination of holistic health and the new Health Savings Account (HSA) can make an enormous difference in the budget and health of the self-employed.

---

Homemade Bath Products...the Pros and Cons

When you surf the Internet to find proper bath products... Read More

How To Cure Your Incurable Nasal Allergy

Immunoglobulin E is an antibody, which is secreted from the... Read More

Get Hemorrhoid Relief from Herbal Remedies

Here are four different herbs that can give you hemorrhoid... Read More

Getting into The Zone with The Alexander Technique

Have you ever attempted to perform a simple act and... Read More

Working with an Intuitive Counselor: Opening the Door to Yourself

"Oh, I've had a psychic reading before. They read some... Read More

How to Use the Subconscious to Cope with Lifestyle Triggers of Your Pain

Emotions, food and lack of sleep can all be potent... Read More

5 Ways to Deal With ADHD

With an increasing number of our youths suffering ADHD, stress... Read More

Snoring - A Small Change Can Make A Big Difference

We all know how annoying snoring can be, both for... Read More

Improving Your Body Immune System

The immune system in your body is an amazing functionality... Read More

An Udderly Ricidulous Home Remedy

Home Remedies - Facts or Quacks?That's what I recently asked... Read More

Not Now, I Have A Headache

Home Remedies - Facts or Quacks?That's what I recently asked... Read More

Natural Sleep Aid Tips and Remedies

This article is a summary of some of the sleep... Read More

My Search for Happiness in the First Year of Sobriety

DAY 1: HOUR BY HOURHappiness in sobriety? Could this really... Read More

How to Avoid Potentially Harmful Chemicals in Your Area Rugs and Other Home Furnishings

You purchase a beautiful area rug. You know just where... Read More

Learn How to Do A Successful Gall Bladder Flush

To do a Gall Bladder Flush you will need the... Read More

Constipation Remedy Using Citrus Juice

Citrus JuicesCitrus juices are a constipation remedy that is an... Read More

Shemale Breast Enlargement - Transgender Breast Development

Shemales, or transgender males who strive to achieve more feminine... Read More

Alternative Treatments For Arthritis Pain Relief

Natural, herbal remedies can help arthritis sufferers who have tried... Read More

More Sinus Headaches Home Remedies

One of the best sinus headaches home remedies, is called... Read More

Anal Warts Treatment (Finally, a Medicine for Anal Warts Which Removes Them Completely!)

Anal warts treatmentAnal warts, otherwise known as genital warts or... Read More

What is Homeopathy?

Homeopathy is a non-toxic system of medicine used to treat... Read More

With A Little Help From Our Friends

The quality of one's life to a large extent is... Read More

Health - Its All in the Mind

Do you ever listen to other people's conversations? I mean... Read More

Storing, Handling And Using Essential Oils

Pure Essential Oils are a natural product and contain no... Read More

The Sense of Smell

Disturbed vibrations occur in the body as a precursor of... Read More

Roundworm and Parasitic Infections

A parasite is an organism that lives off, and generally... Read More

Some Tips on Stopping Smoking

Are you looking for tips on stopping smoking? And would... Read More

Reiki Energy Balance

Here's a simple exercise that anyone can do, even if... Read More

Pa-Kua Feng Shui Basics

FENG SHUI BASICSFeng Shui (literally "Wind and Water" in Chinese),... Read More

So What is Organic?

With allergies on the increase and sensitivities to synthetics becoming... Read More

Hypnosis for Change

Change is what we want. Change is what we fear.... Read More

Endorphins ? Strong Painkillers Your Subconscious May Be Able to Provide

The sources of the original "natural high," endorphins and ekephalins... Read More

Can I Be Hypnotised?

If you are conscious, have an IQ higher than about... Read More