The Natural Path to Healing
Every indigenous culture has its own language of medicine which is holistically based. This holistic approach to healing generally incorporated religion, family, community, medicinal plants and diet. From ancient times, communities have used the knowledge available to them to treat their sick and wounded. Many practices from all over the world are still in use today. Ayurveda, Traditional Chinese medicine, hydrotherapy chiropractic, counseling, mind-body therapy, color and sound therapy, aromatherapy and homeopathy are among the most popular today. Although some individuals use these therapies in conjunction with their traditional Western method, these therapies have proven themselves to be quite effective when used alone.
The healing practice in the Indian subcontinent is called Ayurveda, and predates most written forms of knowledge. The name Ayurveda, in fact, translates to “the knowledge of life”. Dating back to approximately 3000 B.C. the healing in this tradition involved the examination of all facets of a person’s life, and the application of appropriate herbal medicines, meditation and exercise (often in the form of yogic practices), and lifestyle changes. While this healing practice was almost wiped out by the British colonization and their Western medicine, it has made resurgence in the last century, and is now recognized as a valid form of treatment by the Central Council of Indian Medicine.
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is another healing methodology. The central treatise was first published in about 2650 B.C., although the practice had been in place for as many as 2000 years earlier. TCM uses many modalities to treat mental and physical illness. Treatments rely heavily on herbal and natural medicines concocted from plant, animal and mineral elements, as well as treatments like acupuncture, massage therapy, meditation, exercise (such as the many branches of martial arts), cupping, and dietary restrictions. Feng Shui and Chinese astrology were also an integral part of wellness. TCM relies on very sophisticated physiological knowledge and is now practiced all over the world.
Hydrotherapy has been credited to the Greeks and Romans and their development of the communal baths, but the practice can be traced back historically to Chinese and Japanese medicine. This treatment of bathing in mineral springs, and natural hot springs was also later taken up by the Western Europeans during the Victorian age. Generally this treatment is used as therapy for musculoskeletal disorders, burns, strokes and paralysis; although in modern use the procedures are usually preformed in swimming pools and hot tubs.
Color therapy was used by the ancient Egyptians. They used the sun’s rays for healing by isolating various colors within the sun spectrum. Darius Dinshah also began experimenting with color therapy with excellent, repeatable results. Darius created Spectro Chrome therapy in 1920. Color therapy has been used successfully with burn victims, asthma, seasonal affective disorder, bleeding disorders, and much more. These various light frequencies can have a profound effect on individuals who use them.
When one hears the term homeopathy, the name Samuel Hahnemann should come to mind. He is considered the father of homeopathy. He experimented with various natural substances and came up the theory that “like treats like.” You can understand his philosophy by understanding how vaccinations work. In vaccinations, a small amount of the “poison” is injected into you. Your body then builds up antibodies to strengthen your response against that poison or illness. So if your body is exposed to that toxin at a later time, your system is already immune. Hahnemann’s theory worked on the same principle. So in a nutshell, if you are bitten by a snake, you find that snake and use its own venom to create an anti-venom.
Alternative medicine is almost a misnomer for the practices developed by people over the last 5000 years. It is really the historical basis of what is now referred to as conventional medicine. The former editor-in-chief of the New England Journal of Medicine, Marcia Angell, has been quoted as saying,
"...since many alternative remedies have recently found their way into the medical mainstream [there] cannot be two kinds of medicine - conventional and alternative. There is only medicine that has been adequately tested and medicine that has not, medicine that works and medicine that may or may not work. Once a treatment has been tested rigorously, it no longer matters whether it was considered alternative at the outset. If it is found to be reasonably safe and effective, it will be accepted.”
And with the evidence collected by people all around the globe over thousands of years, these practices can have their place in medical treatment today and for years to come.
