The use of the word Holistic, sometimes spelled Wholistic, to describe a type of thinking or healing, has been around in its present usage since the early 20th Century. The concepts we usually associate with holistic healing are ideas that were part of 19th Century alternative medicine.

These were the “grandfather” techniques such as hydropathy (water cure), herbal medicine (Thomson, Physiomedical, Eclectic), diet cure (Graham), hands-on healing (Chiropractic, Osteopathy, massage), magnetic healing (energy healing), and electrotherapy. The importation of ancient systems of healing like Ayurveda from India and Oriental Medicine from Japan and China in the late 20th Century added a new range of techniques that easily fit into the holistic world view. Because of this it could be said that holistic philosophy has been with us thousands of years.

Holistic healing is our natural and historic heritage. Some of the ideas of holistic healing can be found all the way back in Egypt, Greece and Rome. Only in the last two centuries has science and medicine in the West began to ignore the human psyche and spirit. Today in our country, we really have two systems of medicine being practiced side by side. There is very little communication between them.

The differences between them goes something like this:

Holistic Medicine looks at the body, but also the mind, emotions, and spirit of the person!

How the person interacts with his or her world, what they eat, how the structure of their body is aligned, their level of activity, their thoughts and emotions, and their purpose in life, all factor into what we call “health,” and why one person gets sick or well and another doesn’t.

In Holistic thinking, each person is an individual and needs individualized health care. There is a vital force inside the person that is “intelligent” and knows how to heal if unobstructed. The body is network of interconnected parts that affect each other. The mind (and emotions and attitudes) can affect the body.

Scientific Medicine looks at the body only, except in the case of psychiatry, which tries to affect the psyche through medication.

In Scientific Medical thinking the body is an interrelated group of structural units (cells, tissues), chemical reactions, and physiological events. There is no vital force in the body. The body is not looked at as a network of interconnected parts. Consciousness, mind, and emotions are chemical events in the brain, or hormonal secretions, not evidence of a “soul.” It’s not clear why people get sick or get well. In the actual practice, diet doesn’t seem to have anything to do with “health.” Everyone receives the same treatment for the same diagnosis. Energy, mind-body, interactions, attidtudes, or spiritual inspiration either are ignored or delegated to religion.

In all honesty, we need Scientific Medicine for it’s expertise in trauma, and life-saving abilities for emergencies. But it is clear that it doesn’t have all the answers for human health and disease, and that the public is waking up and asking for more. To us, as well as a growing number of Americans, it makes sense to use healing methods that take into the account the “whole person.”

When we look at the wide variety of therapies, activities, services and techniques that make up the wholistic scene, we can find a number of common denominators:

• The Life Force Philosophy: blockage or imbalance in the life is an underlying cause of disease
• Simple cures, such as folk healing, are the best
• Human beings are part of nature and nature is part of human beings
• Illness can originate at the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual levels of experience
• Structure affects function and function affects structure
• Toxins or metabolic wastes act as impediments to the life force or normal physiological processes
• Diet and nutrition can help cure the body
• Transformation of the person and their character, and appropriate mental, emotional and spiritual changes can lead to healing
• Wholistic healing techniques can be combined together for a more powerful, syergistic effect

Wholistic healers generally have a high level of personal and professional ethics, and are service oriented–they are interested in helping people.

They find their rewards in the expression of a philosophy of healing because the monetary compensation in their field is much less than regular medicine. This is in no way meant to say that regular medical practitioners do not have ethics or integrity, but there is a general impression with alternative practitioners and the public that Scientific Medicine as a system puts profits before people. Overall, the holistic movement is about healing power, not money power.

While there are many “wholistic” practices offered in the marketplace, what really makes a therapy wholistic is the rationale of the treatment, its philosophy and the intent of the practitioner. As a patient you can also judge by your experience. Holistic treatments and their aftermath are usually positive, uplifting, and healing.

When you come to our clinic you will receive the best wholistic therapy in these specialties:

• Massage & Manual Therapy
• East West Herbalism
• Energy Medicine
• Nutrition

Continue exploring our site by clicking on the buttons on the left or the links below to learn about:

Your Health Matters to Us!
Health Care vs. Disease Care
The Real Wellness Model
Wholistic Health
Integrative Natural Healing
The Vital Force
The Laws of Healing

Also check out our Learn More section for the nuts and bolts of how our treatments work.