‘The theory or doctrine that life processes arise from or contain a non-material vital principle and cannot be explained as physical and chemical phenomena’ (“Vitalism (philosophy) - definition of Vitalism (philosophy) by The Free Dictionary,” n.d.). By exploring and discussing the philosophy of vitalism, one will be able to see how it relates to CAM practitioners today and the significance vitalism has in relation to Naturopathy. Vitalism, otherwise known as the vital force, can be interpreted in many ways. Every practitioner and CAM modality has their own expression and view. For example, the Chinese call it ‘Chi’, the Japanese call it ‘Qi’ & the Indians in Ayurveda medicine call it ‘prana’. These traditional civilisations didn’t know about …show more content…
A practitioner should be able to recognize when they have a patient showing low vitality. By addressing the patient as a whole, and not only looking at symptoms or disease, but also their general wellbeing such as stress, lifestyle, diet, exercise, relationships and many other contributing factors, a CAM practitioner can help the patient with a symptom more appropriately. By addressing the core of the problem and working on subsiding the symptoms long term, in itself will create a better vitality for the patient, as they are working on their symptoms and not only covering them with modern day medicine. Although the patient may not understand what their vitality is, they will come to understand how amazing there body is once some of their physical or mental ailments become better through some naturopathic care. Randa Karzon N.D states that every illness has a frequency, every thought has a frequency, every aspect about a living thing has a form of frequency and it can either be in a favorable form or an unfavorable form. Favorable such as love, laughter, children, joy, sunshine, which is all high frequency and will raise a person’s vitality (“Vital Force Documentary, Rediscovering Health the Natural Way. - YouTube,” n.d.). Justin Sinclair’ contribution in the Vital Force documentary describes vitality similar to that of a car. The car being the physical thing, …show more content…
Vitalism being the first, ‘which holds that we are animated by a coherent life force that regulates and governs the growth, repair and regeneration of the body and its diverse systems (Di stephano,2006, p.107). Vis Medicatrix Naturae- The healing power nature, can be interpreted in a way that our body has its own natural ability to heal itself, providing it is given the chance. A naturopath can help give the patient’s body a push to be able to kick start its ability to heal itself in the way it knows how to, this may be by providing supplements, herbal medicines and dietary/exercise changes. The second principle is toxicity, whether it’s from a dietary source or environmental source, toxins can have an adverse effect on one’s health, by clearing out toxins from the body, it also enables the body to help heal itself and detoxify. The third principle is that of regeneration, which suggests that the body can be actively renewed, both physiologically and biochemically (Di stephano,2006, p.107). By strengthening the body’s organs and natural detoxification pathway, along with massage, yoga, dietary changes and the use of herbal medicines, the body can regenerate with great strength. It is with these three principles that naturopathy can greatly help the body and improve a patient’s vitality and life force, by addressing the root cause of un-wellness. When the cause is properly addressed and not masked from modern day medicines,
...are still many obstacles to be overcome, but this is an opportunity to help patients have a sense of whole body well-being through the use of alternative medicines such as Native American healing traditions, and hopefully more physicians and patients will be willing to consider it as an acceptable form of treatment for their medical needs.
Sleigh, Charlotte. ‘Life, Death and Galvanism.’ Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and biomedical Sciences 29 (1998): 219-248
Alternative medicine could attractiveness to metaphysical beliefs so will the medical care however on milder and additional scientifically primarily based approach. nonetheless the information applied in medical care still cannot hide the actual fact that it tends to take hold non-scientific
Reynolds, D. (1989). On being natural: Two Japanese approaches to healing, In A. Sheikh & S. Shiekh's Eastern and western approaches to healing: Ancient wisdom & modern knowledge, NY: John Wiley.
CAMs can be divided into various categories. These include natural products, mind-body medicine, manipulative and body-based practices, and whole medical systems (National Center, 2011, para.4). Each of these categories include a variety of practices, medicine, and medical treatments.
William Collinge quotes Chuang Tzu in his American Holistic Health Association Complete Guide to Alternative Medicine saying, "Heaven, Earth and I are living together, and all things and I form an inseparable unity" (13). Tzu's comment contrasts the traditional American dream of individualistic power and solidarity, but no matter how ethnocentric or arrogant the Western society can be at times, the influence of the world is still present. The health care system is a prime example of how the unification between world cultures brings benefits to society. The Western culture has been developing and refining scientific methods of health care for centuries. Illnesses that were incurable in the past are now treatable with drug medications and by complex surgeries. But along with the absence of the old illnesses, come new ones. People are living longer and chronic and degenerative illnesses are more common. Due to the development of new illnesses, Western medicine has been consulting the traditions and treatments from other cultures for aid in diagnosis and health care. In The American Holistic Health Association Complete Guide to Alternative Medicine, William Collinge states that, "the joining together of conventional and alternative traditions may well permit us to have a more balanced quality of life. At the least, it has helped to bring the concept of health back to medicine" (Collinge xxi). Collinge's use the word "balance" in his description of the quality of life is interesting, because a form of alternative medicine whose central focus is on the balance of the body is Chinese medicine. Due to the onslaught of new chronic and degenerative illnesses, Western culture initiated the search for ...
Contemporary approaches in understanding health, illness and its treatment largely differ from the traditional way of treating people’s health conditions. For instance, before the “Age of Reason” beliefs about vindictive spirits, evil and divine intervention, and practices of sorcery and witchcraft were widely held (Porter 1997 as cited in Williams, 2003). Another example is the practice of Greek medicine; a more naturalistic approach used by the practitioner to tune the body through humoral theories of balance and lifestyle modification. Similarly, during this age, the combination of physical, emotional, and spiritual factors contributed to the development of the “sick man” (Williams, 2003). These medical teachings were authoritative until the eighteenth century. However, towards the nineteenth century, numerous discoveries such as Vesalius’ anatomical atlas and Harvey’s process of blood circulation challenged mainstream medicine, which paved the way for the rise of a newer and more systematic form of medicine (Williams, 2003, p. 11), marking the growth and supremacy of scientific medicine. The evolution of scientific medicine is well documented in several literature (Gabe, Keheller, & Williams, 1994; Longino, 1998; Marcum, 2008; Morris, 2000; Quirke & Gaudilliere, 2008; Williams, 2003). A progressive shift from preference of either licensed or unlicensed healers to the legitimization of the medical profession and medicalisation of natural life experiences had occurred (Gabe, et al., 1994). With this, scientific medicine, commonly known as biomedicine, continued to dominate the discourse of health and illness from the end of the 18th century up to the present (Williams, 2003). Despite this perceived supremacy, scientific medicine...
The direct relationship between one's body and the ability to restore one's body to its original state of health may never be fully comprehended. The fields of medicine and health are two of the most paramount features affecting the daily lives of all beings. Throughout recorded history, various cultures concoct their own methods of alternative medicine for treatment and therapy which is then relied on by todays nations. Medicine in its earliest times began with the ancient civilizations' assimilation with the world around them and their beliefs on how things function. Ancient Greek medicine may have begun with spiritual beliefs, but Greek practitioners have steered the medical profession in the right direction for modern times.
For many centuries, humanity has been on an eternal quest for cures and treatments for many chronic conditions. At the present time, conventional medicine is mostly performed by doctors and other health care professionals, with the extensive use of pharmaceutical drugs, surgery or radiation treatments for disease treatment. Conversely, even though not as popular, complementary and alternative medicine and treatment options are slowly gaining popularity and becoming an addition to traditional medicine.
Ross defines and differentiates between the terms healing and curing. She recognizes the fact that healing and curing are very intertwined and it can be hard to distinguish between the two terms. There are differences between the definitions in scholarly and general settings. She references an ethnographic study of healing versus curing conducted by anthropologists Andrew Strathern and Pamela Stewart in 1999 with native groups in New Guinea. The results of the study looked at how energy used by the different types of tribal healers to either cure or heal a patient. Eastern medicine focuses on how energy interacts with the healing process in connection within the mind. Whereas Western medicine is focused on the mind and the body separately. The practice is considered a holistic approach to finding cures. According to Ross (2013), healing is more a therapeutic process targeting the whole body and specific illness including emotional, mental, and social aspects in the treatment. The act of curing is a pragmatic approach that focuses on removing the problem all together. The life experiences of a person playing into how well certain treatments will heal or cure what is ailing them. These aspects can not be defined with textbook definitions. The interaction that the healing process has with energy is a variable in the success rate. Uncontrolled emotions can have a greater impact on the inside the body than a person can realize. The exploration of energy interaction within the body can be used for greater analysis of health care systems. (21-22). Are Western healthcare facilities purposely “curing” patients just so that they return are few years later? Is Western Medicine built upon a negative feedback loop? The terminolo...
During my observership, my clinic intern mentor was Shiyama Hassan. Overall it was an enjoyable, less stressful academic experience.I got a chance to take patient histories, examination and patient’s vital sign monitoring and charting. I didn’t feel much difference in observing my mentor taking the history and when I was taking the history, it could be related to my past experience. However, every time I was curious to know what is happening with the patients and what caused him to seek naturopathic medical advice. During this clinic shadowing, I saw genuine interest of my mentor and supervisor to help patients concerns, unlike to allopathic model of prescribing medication. It helped me to improve my interviewing skills to look root cause for
Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is slowly becoming better known all over the world. CAM encompasses various types of therapies, such as yoga, reflexology, chiropractic therapy, herbal therapy, ayurveda, meditation, biofeedback, hypnosis, homeopathy, acupuncture, etc. The evidenced-based research, recognition of disconnect between patients and also the positive and negative aspects of CAM modalities are reasons behind the increased attention it has gained in medicals schools all over the United States. (Hart, 2009, p. 287).
Crumbie, A. (2007) Caring for the patient with a cardiovascular disorder In: Wash, M. & Crumbie, A. Watson’s Clinical Nursing and Related Sciences. 7th Ed. Bailliere Tindall Elsevier. London pg 244 – 324.
As a first way to heal, when people use alternative medicine, they take fewer drugs and chemicals in to their bodies and there are fewer side effects for them and if people protect themselves before they sicken, they do not need any pills. This means that, when people caught in any kind of disease if they use herbal therapies to heal their illnesses, they do not harm their organs or systems. They...
http://www.susantannermd.com/articles/benefits-of-natural-medicine.html#.VivAwH6rS00 In a perfect world, alternative medicine and conventional medicine would find ways to co-exist. Helping people balance the benefits of using both. If the world we live in could only find the proper remedy in using both approaches to overall healing, we would have longer life spans. However, today’s society does not allow these medical treatments to co-exist and Americans tend to pick one form of treatment over the other. WORKS CITED Harter, Leona.