Holistic therapy, what it is
With the binomial "holistic therapy" means a method of total care of the person, considered in the unity of body, mind, emotions and spirit. Holistic therapies bring the subject's physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects back to the same level, contrary to what happens in traditional medicine, where each of these aspects is isolated due to priorities.
An introduction should be made. Whoever is not a practitioner of alternative medicine and holistic therapies, often considers these methods as circumscribed to a mystic / religious circle of beliefs and faiths. In reality, the holistic approach is for everyone. We all need to relax, as we all experience difficulties. Whether or not we practice meditation, there is no doubt that anyone wants to feel good about their body and mind, regardless of cultural, religious and social orientations. Once the field has been cleared of fraud and the encroachment of fortune-tellers and self-styled healers, let us try to propose a description of holistic therapy.
Holistic foundations
"Do no harm" . It is Hippocrates, the father of medicine, who sets a balance for holistic therapies. His is a warning that the body's ability to heal itself will not be altered or disturbed. Attention should be paid solely to the cause of the disorder, and not to the single symptom . We must consider the whole system and not the single piece that breaks. It is useful to start from the basics, from the understanding of the mechanism, to review it, detoxify it and bring it to normal. A holistic approach must always be oriented towards the awareness that health is not a goal, but the normality of everyday life .
Edgard Cayce, considered by many to be the father of holistic medicine, believed that being in the world means being responsible for his health in a vigilant and constant way. If the state of health is in any case altered and the symptom has already manifested itself, it means that the body has revealed its request, its discomfort unheard. In that case, the doctor who has adopted a holistic approach will not leave his patient at the mercy of doubts and medicines, but will guide him through the long course of treatment and stimulate him to self-healing, through listening, becoming aware, and moments of reflection on the experiences that preceded the pathological state.
The natural ability of the human body to self-regenerate is another fundamental axiom in holistic therapy. It is only necessary to start this process, gently accompanying its developments. Every type of holistic therapy is based on this assumption.
Some examples of holistic therapy
Many of the so-called natural therapies are among the holistic therapies .
Aromatherapy is distinguished by the use of substances, the so-called essential oils, with scientifically proven biochemical active ingredients.
The use of energy vibration is a very present factor among holistic therapies: crystal therapy, chromotherapy, Reiki and even Bach flowers. The removal of energy blocks, often emotional, allows a return to the normal state of well-being, to the natural psychophysical balance of the individual person.
The great oriental medical traditions, such as traditional Chinese medicine, ayurvedic medicine and Tibetan medicine, contain in their medical corpus a wide range of holistic therapies. Here the vision of energy is fundamental, just as the spiritual aspect, which leads to more or less specialized meditation, is of considerable importance.
There is another series of disciplines, such as chiropractic, osteopathy and cranio-sacral, which mainly focus on the patient's physical-structural component . Applied kinesiology would seem more holistic among these disciplines. Although there is no trace of spirituality.
