Different Holistic Modalities for Healing
This article is intended to give a brief description of some of the holistic modalities which are available for nutritive, medicinal and therapeutic uses. As you study and learn how to apply and use each of these incredible modalities, you are able to add another piece to a beautiful puzzle. I often run across people who claim that one of these modalities can be a cure-all and although each of these can be powerful modalities by themselves, my personal opinion is that they are even more effective when combined with some of the others. For many years I have taught that you have to be as aggressive as what you are fighting or it wins – the more pieces you have to the puzzle, the better your chances are of being able to bring the body back into balance where it can heal and thrive. These modalities work in harmony with the body.
Herbs
Herbs is a broad term which takes in all of the trees, flowers, seaweeds, grasses, and other living plants which we use for medicinal, nutritive or culinary purposes. In botany, the word ‘herb’ is used as a synonym for ‘herbaceous plant’. According to Wikipedia, herbs are plants with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal purposes, or for fragrances; excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients.
Herbs can be used in many different forms such as: fresh, dried, teas, tinctures (liquid forms where the plant has been distilled into alcohol), glycerites (liquid form where herb has been distilled into vegetable glycerin), ointments, salves, syrups, encapsulated, poultices, fomentations, etc.
Herbs have been used since the beginning of time. In Genesis 1:11 it reads, “And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth and it was so.” They are an extremely effective form of medicine without all of the side-effects of pharmaceuticals. We have been using herbs in our family in all of their different forms for over thirty years very successfully.
Essential Oils
Essential oils are known and used mainly for their aromatic properties. However, they can also be used for their powerful therapeutic properties. According to Gary Young, ND, “In their pure state, essential oils are some of the most concentrated natural extracts known, exhibiting significant and immediate antiviral, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, hormone-balancing effects. In clinical practice, they have been shown to have a profound influence on the central nervous system, helping to reduce or eliminate pain, release muscle tension and provide strong emotional uplift. The chemical structure of an essential oil is such that it can rapidly penetrate cell membranes, travel throughout the blood and tissues and enhance cellular function.” Essential oils can be used in so many different ways and are a beautiful part of our medicine cabinet.
Homeopathic
The ‘medicines’ used in homeopathy are called remedies. They can be made from just about any substance known to man, including plants, minerals, animal products, and energy fields. More than 5,000 substances have been prepared and “proven." Homeopathy is a medical system which was developed in Germany more than 200 years ago. It is based on two theories:
“like cures like” - the idea that a disease can be treated with minute doses of a substance which is capable of producing in healthy people the same symptoms as those of the disease being treated. Hahnemann, considered the father of homeopathy, took cinchona bark (quinine) and discovered that it would produce the symptoms of malaria – chills, sweats and body pains - in a healthy person.
“law of minimum dose” - the idea that the lower the dose of the medication, the greater its effectiveness. Many homeopathic products are so diluted that no molecules of the original substance remain. Their effectiveness is based on energy rather than cellular matter.
These remedies are often administered in the form of sugar pellets to be placed under the tongue or in other forms, such as ointments, gels, drops or creams. Substances become remedies through a very specific process called ‘potentization’ which involves sequential dilution and succussion, which is a hard pounding or shaking. Remedies are labeled by the ratio of dilution and the number of times diluted. The more diluted they are, the stronger they are.
Homeopathics can be gentle enough to use for a baby’s teething pain and powerful enough to help a woman get her labor going.
Flower Essences
Flower essences are subtle liquid extracts, generally taken in oral form, which are used to address issues of emotional well-being, soul development and mind-body health. Like homeopathic remedies, flower essences are vibrational in nature. They are highly diluted from a physical point of view, but have subtle power as potentized substances, embodying the specific energetic patterns of each flower. According to the Flower Essence Repertory, “. . . flower essences work through the various human energy fields, which in turn influence mental, emotional, and physical well-being.” We have often used these when someone is feeling overwhelmed or panicked – much like essential oils – they can have a very strong impact on emotional and mental well-being.
Massage Therapy
Massage therapy is used to help manage a health condition or enhance wellness. It involves manipulating the soft tissues of the body. Massage has been practiced in most cultures, both Eastern and Western, throughout human history, and was one of the earliest tools that people used to try to relieve pain.
Massage therapy can help to relax muscles, improve circulation, move lymph, relieve pain, reduce stress and help the body to heal. References to massage are found in Chinese medical texts more than 4,000 years old. Hippocrates, the father of medicine, wrote, “The physician must be acquainted with many things and assuredly with rubbing” (the ancient Greek term for massage was rubbing).
Hydrotherapy
Hydrotherapy is the use of water, both internally and externally and at varying temperatures, for health purposes. Also known as water therapy or ‘water cures’, hydrotherapy includes such therapeutic treatments as saunas, steam baths, foot baths, sitz baths and colonic cleansing.
Hydrotherapy is a powerful tool which can be used at home in many ways. Standing in a hot, steamy shower can help to open up the respiratory system to improve breathing and to drain congestion. Implementing a vaporizer in a sick room can add humidity to the room along with the benefit of the steam opening the respiratory passages. We like to add essential oils to the vaporizer to make the steam even more affective. Applying warm, wet compresses to the body can help to reduce pain and swelling. Using a warm poultice is a wonderful way to help get healing medicinal properties into the body.
Enemas and/or colonics can be a good way to eliminate toxins, rehydrate the body and get much needed nutrients into the body when someone is too nauseated to hold anything down. Water can be a powerful tool when it comes to healing and bringing the body back into balance.
Reflexology
Reflexology, also known as zone therapy, is an application of pressure to specific points on the feet and hands. The body has a type of blueprint on the feet and hands which allows a reflexologist to stimulate parts of the body they are unable to normally reach. This is usually done through the application of pressure to specific points on the feet and hands. This is done using thumb, finger and hand massage techniques typically without the use of oil or lotion.
The underlying theory behind reflexology is that there are certain points or "reflex areas" on the feet and hands that are connected energetically to specific organs and body parts through energy channels in the body. By applying pressure to reflex areas, a reflexologist is said to remove energy blockages and promote health in the related body area.
Acupuncture
Acupuncture involves the insertion of very thin needles through your skin at strategic points on the body. A key component of traditional Chinese medicine, it is used for balancing the flow of energy or life force known as chi or qi (pronounced chee). Acupuncture is most commonly used to treat pain and help with stress management. However, it can be used to help balance any part of the body which is suffering. Traditional Chinese medicine practitioners believe the human body has more than 2,000 acupuncture points connected by pathways or meridians. These pathways create an energy flow through the body that is responsible for overall health. Disruption of the energy flow can cause disease.
I consider each of these modalities to be an extremely important tool in my ‘tool box’ when it comes to treating disease, improving health and helping to bring the body back into balance. When used in combination with each other, they become even more effective and powerful. By learning how to implement these modalities into your own home and lifestyle, you not only can begin to take greater responsibility for your own health and the health of your family, but you will be able to avoid many of the harmful side-effects which can come through the use of pharmaceuticals and medical interventions.