Integrative Health is a state of total well-being in mind, body, and spirit which exhibits several aspects of the patient’s, family, community, and population. It is influenced by a patient’s personal beliefs, values, societal perspectives, and personal biological needs; the physical environment, cultural norms, and interpersonal relationships; a comprehensive integrated health approach; and an integrative health approach to treatment.
Integrative Health Treatment
A well-rounded approach to therapy and treatment, which includes traditional medical interventions with naturopathic practitioners, psychologists, chiropractors, nutritionists, physical therapists, massage therapists, homeopaths, psychotherapists, life coaches, sports-oriented therapists, along with complementary therapies is needed for optimal integrative health. This approach helps address the full spectrum of wellness and disease from psychological, emotional, mental, economic, spiritual, & physical levels. To maintain wellness, most practitioners of conventional medicine must be included in the care team.
Naturopathic Medicine
Naturopathic medicine is an important part of an integrative health approach. The practitioner educates patients about nutrition, health, psychology, acupuncture, meditation, lifestyle counseling, complementary medicine, homeopathy, natural and therapeutic supplements, detoxification methods, disease prevention, disease treatment protocols, healthy dieting and fitness, basic medical services treatments (especially those not used by conventional medicine), culture and lifestyle counseling, physical exercise, healthy relationships, self-healing, stress management, and bioenergetic balance. The entire well-being of patients and families is at risk if alternative medicines and therapies are not part of the healing process. When we fail to heal our bodies, we are bound to fail to heal our minds and spirits as well.
The primary goal of integrative health is to promote wellness beyond the illness or condition being treated, promoting health-related quality of life (HQL), as well as achieving optimal health. Healing incorporates both preventative and curative care, including the care model which targets prevention of disease before it starts. Most health disorders begin as subtle imbalances within the mind and body.
Holistic Health Care
Holistic approaches to health care are based on a belief that the body is capable of maintaining its own equilibrium and can heal itself. Practitioners of holistic medicine believe that all illness is due to a loss of balance, regardless of cause. Therefore, all illness is preventable and that there is a natural healing process that restores equilibrium. This means that most illnesses can be successfully treated through integrative health approaches. While practicing integrative health, doctors and other health care providers may offer complementary medicine or encourage their patients to focus on traditional medical treatments along with the holistic approach.
Holistic health approaches go beyond preventing and treating disease, but also provide support and relief from the emotional and physical symptoms that often accompany illness. Integrative medicine and holistic medicine go beyond addressing the illness itself but helps to find healing from within the illness, allowing it to better meet the needs of the body. This type of care model is very important to those who have been struggling for years with one type of illness or another. Those with an illness should never turn to traditional medicine until they are certain that traditional medicine has done everything possible to treat the illness and has failed to find ways to maintain optimal health.
Advantages Of Alternative Medicine
Alternative medicine, or integrative health, practice also has some advantages. Patients are less likely to feel intimidated by a physician that offers a non-traditional alternative to conventional medicine. Physicians who adopt an integrative health philosophy are less likely to prescribe pharmaceutical drugs, believing that their patients will achieve optimal health with a holistic approach. Patients are also more likely to take advantage of a non-traditional treatment when the physician has taken an interest in alternative medicine as well. Many patients prefer a treatment option that is not being offered by the medical community. Physicians who embrace alternative medicine are generally willing to accept that their patients want a treatment option that does not conform to conventional standards for diagnosis and treatment. Here are some advantages of alternative medicine:
- Using alternative therapies to help you feel better – People often use complementary treatments to make them feel healthier to deal with having cancer and recovery. How you feel takes a role in how you cope.
- Reducing symptoms or side effects – There is growing evidence that such complementary therapies can help control certain cancer symptoms and side effects of treatment.
- Feeling more in control – It can also feel as though the doctor made all of the medical decisions. It can sound like you have no influence on what’s going to happen to you.
- Natural and healing therapies – With particular symptoms or side effects, certain alternative treatments may improve. But we don’t know a lot about how traditional therapies such as cancer medications or radiotherapy could interfere with them.
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- Comfort from touch, talk, and time – Some people may get a lot of support and happiness from the touch, talk, and time normally provided by a complementary therapist.
- Staying Positive – For most patients, maintaining a good attitude is a vital aspect of dealing with cancer. Wanting and wishing for a solution is natural, even though the doctor says that this may be impossible.
- Boosting your immune system – Any alternative treatments are believed to be able to improve their immune response and help fight cancer.
- Looking for a cure – Some people claim that it could help control or heal their cancer by using specific alternative treatments instead of traditional cancer therapy.
Holistic health care and integrative medicine go beyond providing treatments that fall short of treating and eradicating the disease. In order for these approaches to be effective, patients need to believe that they can reach optimal wellness. Individuals who have been battling a life-threatening illness or disease may not feel capable of doing so on their own. A holistic physician understands the need for patients with the tools and information necessary to make holistic solutions in their daily lives.
