A-Z Alternative Health and Medicine Information for Your Family

From Acupressure to Yoga & Everything in Between!

Acupressure

Acupressure is a Oriental healing art based on ancient Japanese and Chinese medicine.

A practitioner puts pressure on specific points on the body to promote self healing of the body.

Acupressure is based on the same points and meridians as acupuncture and a practitioner of Acupressure uses the fingers or hands to press or heat certain points on the body in order to relieve ailments.

The pressure is designed to release energy blocks in the meridians of the body in order to treat ailments such as tension and stress, aches and pains, or arthritis.

The system is also used for general preventive health care.

Acupuncture

Acupuncture is a more technologically advanced method of acupressure created by the Chinese over five thousand years ago.

The Chinese practice of Acupuncture is defined as a procedure that nourishes and aids the body’s natural healing processes. Ancient Chinese practitioners identified more than 2,000 points.

Often used for pain relief, acupuncture is also used to improve well-being and treat acute, chronic, and degenerative conditions.

Allopathy

Modern allopathic medicine heals with the use of agents such as drugs or surgery.

The theoretical basis of allopathic medicine is that a single agent causes a single type of disease (Pasteur’s findings regarding infectious illness) and a specific therapy or surgery can be used to treat that disease.

This is called the doctrine of specific etiology.

This simple doctrine, the rapid symptom-relieving effects of synthetic drugs, and modern-day surgery concisely describe allopathic medicine.

Allopathy is a term first coined by Samuel Christian Hahnemann to refer to mainstream medicine and to differentiate it from his creation of homeopathy.

Alternative Healing

Alternative healing or medicine is seen by the general public and some healthcare practitioners to refer to medical techniques which are not known or accepted by the majority of conventional medical practitioners.

Some of these techniques would include the use of herbs, acupuncture, homeopathy,and other non-invasive, non-pharmaceutical techniques.

However, the term Alternative Medicine can also refer to any experimental drug or non-drug technique that is not currently accepted by conventional medical practitioners.

Alternative Medicine

Alternative medicine is used in place of conventional medicine. Alternative medical systems are built upon complete systems of theory and practice.

Examples of alternative medical systems include homeopathic medicine, naturopathic medicine, Chinese medicine, and Ayurveda.

It can also refer to any experimental drug or non-drug technique that is not currently accepted by conventional medical practitioners.

Amma Therapy

Amma therapy is a Chinese massage which involves stretching, kneading, stroking, and percussion.

It is an integrative form of massage therapy that combines Oriental Medical principles based on the balance and flow of energy with a Western approach for assessing organ dysfunction such as blood tests, MRI, and others.

Treatment can also include the use of dietary therapy, herbs, nutritional supplements and the external application of herbal preparations.

In early Chinese history this therapy was primarily practiced by the blind.

Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy is the use and blending of undiluted, pure essential oils extracted from specific aromatic plants.

It involves specialized knowledge of how various essences affect the body and psyche and was used in ancient Egypt and other cultures to promote healing by altering brain activity.

Astrology

Astrology interprets the influence of heavenly bodies on human affairs. It is the science of the placement of the planets and stars.

Natal charts, based upon how the planets and stars are positioned around you at the time and place of your birth, are used to describe your personality strengths and areas of growth.

Auras

The Aura is a vibration surrounding living objects. All living creatures have energy fields surrounding them.

Auras have colors flowing from then which reflect emotions and experiences.

Aura readers perceive these colors and can determine physical, emotional, and spiritual conditions from the colors.

Ayurveda

In Ayurveda, balance and health are the natural order; imbalance and disease are disorder.

Within the body there is a constant interaction between order and disorder but by understanding the nature and structure of disorder, one can re-establish order and health.

Ayurveda identifies three basic types of energy or functional principles that are present in everyone by the original Sanskrit words vata, pitta, and kapha.

In Sanskrit, Ayurveda means The Science of Life.

Ayurvedic Medicine is a comprehensive system of medicine combining natural therapies with a highly personalized approach to the treatment of disease.

The oldest healing art on the planet, it has been practiced in India for over five thousand years. Placing equal emphasis on body, mind, and spirit, Ayurveda endeavors to restore the innate harmony of the individual with the primary goals of prevention and longevity.

According to Ayurvedic medicine, each person has a particular pattern of energy—an individual combination of physical, mental and emotional characteristics—which comprises his/her own constitution.

This constitution is determined at conception by a number of factors and remains the same throughout one’s life.

As a total system of health care, Ayurvedic practitioners:

  • First seek to keep the individual healthy and balanced.
  • Teach that ill health is an imbalance of the three vital energies: Vata, Pitta, Kapha, known as doshas.
  • Treat each person individually.
  • Realize what works for one person may not work for another.
  • Treat diseases with natural therapies.

A person who practices Ayurvedic Medicine will first diagnose the exact imbalance, then prescribe some combination of diet, exercise, herbal products, and purification procedures to rebalance the patient’s dosha.

Biomagnetics

Biomagnetics uses magnetic products to relieve pain from muscle spasms, tension, and injuries.

The use of biomagnets is a form of energy medicine. When currents are induced in living creatures, the currents will tend to follow the paths of least resistance.

The paths of least resistance have been quantified and characterized extensively and they correspond with the acupuncture points and meridians.

Chakras

The word chakra is Sanskrit for wheel or disk and signifies one of seven basic energy centers in the body.

Each of these centers correlates to major nerve ganglia branching forth from the spinal column and corresponds to and governs specific parts of the physical body.

In addition, the chakras correlate to levels of consciousness, elements, developmental stages of life, colors, sounds, body functions, and more.

These chakras, or energy centers, function as pumps or valves, regulating the flow of energy through our energy system.

The physiological roles of the chakras are generally considered:

  • The root and belly chakras are related to generative and sexual functions.
  • The solar plexus chakra is related to digestion.
  • The heart chakra is related to the heart and circulation.
  • The throat chakra is related to the lungs, voice, ears, nose, and throat.
  • The third eye chakra is related to vision, the eyes, and the pituitary gland.
  • The crown chakra is related to the brain and the pituitary and pineal glands.

The chakras are precise monitors of our physical and mental well-being. Each is said to spin at a different frequency.

When each chakra spins at its perfect frequency the systems of the body radiate perfect health. Imbalances occur when there is too much or too little energy flowing through a person’s chakras.

Various techniques are used to balance the chakra system and restore individual health physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.

Channeling

Channeling is the activity of bringing forth information that was previously beyond one’s conscious awareness.

It is the ability to communicate with your higher self or with nonphysical beings in order to bring forth needed or desired information.

There are many different types of channeling, such as automatic writing or spontaneous channeling, but the interest in channeling is usually prompted by a desire to understand death and what lies beyond this life.

Chelation Therapy

As a method for ridding the body of toxins, metabolic wastes, and unnecessary toxic metals from the blood stream, chelation therapy is often used to reverse the process of arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) and/or as an alternative to bypass surgery and angioplasty.

It is accomplished by administering chelating agents into the bloodstream to increase blood flow and remove arterial plaque.

Chi=Qi=Energy

Chi has been translated as energy, ether, vital force, life force, and more. It is the energy or natural force which fills the universe.

The definition of Chi actually changes according to different situations. The Chinese philosopher Lao-Tse regarded this as a fundamental principle more than 2,000 years ago.

The idea of Chii is fundamental to Chinese medical thinking, yet no one English word or phrase can adequately capture it’s meaning.

Consideration of Chi as cellular information which travels along specific routes or meridians, offers another clue for understanding the body.

In Chinese medical thinking, Chi is the information net of the body and associated with every biological function. The concept that information alone is sufficient to handle complex organization is just beginning to scientifically accepted in the West.

Qi is a fundamental concept of everyday Chinese often defined as breath. It is a vital force that underlies functioning of body, mind, and spirit.

This concept of life force is fundamental to various Chinese practices, including architecture, art, health practices, magic, and martial arts.

Philosophical conceptions of qi date from the earliest recorded times in Chinese thinking and have been very important within all Chinese philosophies and also within traditional Chinese Medicine.

Chi Nei Tsang

Chi Nei Tsang, also known as CNT, means energy flow through visceral blockages or internal organs chi transformation.

It is an entire system of Chinese healing that increases the energy flow of the five major systems in the body–acupuncture meridians, lymphatic, nervous, tendon/muscle, and vascular–through massaging and freeing energy blockages in the navel, then guiding that energy into other parts of the body.

Chi Nei Tsang was brought to America by Master Mantak Chia.

Chiropractic

Chiropractic is a therapeutic system that focuses on the structure of the body.

Central to chiropractic technique is the adjustment of the specific spinal vertebra that are out of alignment and are considered a primary cause of nerve dysfunction.

It is based upon the premise that interference with nervous system function predisposes the body to a disease state and that maintaining proper body structure can help the body function well.

This system focuses on restoring health and normal conditions by correcting the vertebral segments of the spinal column.

Clairvoyant

One who has the ability to obtain information without involving any of the known human senses.

One who has the ability to see objects or actions beyond the range of natural vision.

Many believe children are naturally clairvoyant until about the age of 12.

Collective Unconscious

The collective unconscious is part of the psyche. It can be distinguished from a personal unconscious by the fact that it does not owe its existence to personal experience and consequently is not a personal acquisition.

The content of the collective unconscious is made up of archetypes which seem to be present always and everywhere.

The archetype is a hypothetical and irrepresentable model–something like the pattern of behavior in biology.

Complementary Medicine

Complementary medicine is used together with conventional (allopathic) medicine.

The term complementary medicine refers to non-invasive, non-pharmaceutical techniques which are used in conjunction with medical treatments such as drugs and surgery.

The term implies that allopathic medicine is used as a primary tool and the non-invasive, non-pharmaceutical techniques are used as a supplemental tool when needed.

Counseling

Counseling is advice given in directing the judgment or behavior of another.

There are many types of counseling available in the alternative medicine and holistic health arenas, although the term counseling is most often used for psychotherapy.

Psychotherapy is the remedial treatment of a disorder. It is a technical term defined in the mental health field as any form of communication between a psychotherapist and a patient which involves a relationship between them for the purpose of remedying whatever disturbance, physical or psychic, the patient brings for treatment.

Psychotherapy can be given to individuals, couples, families, and groups. There are many types of therapy available. Also known as counseling.

Doulas

Doulas are birthing assistants.

They first support parents from the planning of the birth through labor and delivery. Doulas then assist new parents in learning how to care for their infant.

Dowsing

Dowsing is one method of the art of divining.

Dowsing develops one’s intuitive awareness outside 3D concepts and allows the person dowsing to access his/her entire brain potential. Pendulums are often used for dowsing. Other tools are Y-rods and L-rods.

At one time in history dowsing was referred to as water witching.

Dream Interpretation or Analysis

Personal dreams can relay messages from the subconscious mind.

Those messages can inform you of a health problem, your emotional state, or remind you of something important that your conscious mind has forgotten

Jung considered the dream a fundamental natural expression of the unconscious psychic process. According to Jungian theory, some dream symbols are universal, allowing dream interpretation and dream analysis.

Ear Candling

Ear candling or coning involves the use of hollow beeswax candles and cotton. These materials are rolled into a long tube, placed in the ear, and lit.

Through convection, softer waxes and toxins are drawn out of the ear, oxidized and turned into vapors while the cone is burining.

Ancient cultures, including the Egyptians, used this painless procedure to draw ear wax, fungus, and toxins from the ear.

Environment

One definition of health is a state of equilibrium between humans and the physical, biological and social environment.

Our environment, from the air we breathe to the soil that grows our food ot the food we eat directly affects our health, energy, and ability to breath.

There is increasing evidence of interaction among large-scale environmental, development, and demographic changes.

What we eat is directly related to our environment. Man’s pollution of air, water, and soil takes a tremendous toll on the health of all earthly creatures.

Essential Oils

Essential oils are very light and non-greasy. They either quickly evaporate or absorb readily into the skin.

Essential oils are products of the secondary metabolism of plants. They are generally fragrant, volatile materials.

Essential oils are used in aromatherapy, cosmetics, perfumery, pharmaceuticals and many other applications.

These oils are geared more towards enhancing and maintaining health than curing diseases.

Feng Shui

Feng Shui (actually pronounced as ‘Fung Shway’ in Chinese) is the ancient science of balancing the elements within the environment.

It is the practice of intuitive adjustments of visible and invisible elements to realign the energy of an environment.

Feng means wind and Shui means water.

Ancient Chinese scholars discovered that wind and water affect our environment and well being. By adding, subtracting, or repositioning items in our surroundings according to Feng Shui principles, harmony and balance is created in our environment and thus, our lives.

By mapping the chi path as it flows through a home or business, the Feng Shui consultant locates corresponding life areas that relate to career, finances, relationships, fame, creativity, knowledge, travel, and health and other aspects of life.

Although mainly used in business and home environments, Feng Shui can also be applied to the person.

Herbalists

Herbology is the study of herbs and plants which aid in curing illnesses and preventing disease.

Herbs have provided humans with medicine from the beginning of civilization. Herbalists use an ancient approach to healing to treat a wide range of illnesses or to improve health.

Herbalists actually use other sources–fungi, lichens, roots, vegetables–in addtion to plants that are formally defined as herbs.

Holistic Dentistry

Holistic dentistry treats the teeth, jaw, and related structures with special focus on how that treatment will affect the entire body.

It stresses the use of nontoxic restoration materials for dental work, and focuses on the impact that hidden dental infections and other dental problems can have on overall health.

Other holistic health practices may be used in conjunction with dentistry.

Holistic Health

Holistic health is best defined as an approach to life. In addition to preventing and treating illness, holistic health focuses on reaching higher levels of wellness.

Holistic health, then, is an ongoing process. Even when no illness is present, the individual is making lifestyle choices–physical, mental, environmental, social, nutritional, and spiritual choices–that lead to even better health.

With holistic health, no matter what the present health of a person, and regardless of health setbacks, the goal is to move toward better health in body, mind, and spirit.

When illness or chronic conditions do occur, holistic principles are applied. The term used then is Holistic Medicine.

Holistic Medicine

Holistic medicine approaches healing by recognizing that the emotional, mental, spiritual and physical elements of each person comprise a system that is determined by relationships of all elements within that system.

It looks at the whole person–the physical, mental, nutritional, environmental, emotional, social, spiritual, and lifestyle values of the person.

Holistic Medicine is defined by the Canadian Holistic Medical Association as follows:

“Holistic medicine is a system of health care which fosters a cooperative relationship among all those involved, leading towards optimal attainment of the physical, mental emotional, social and spiritual aspects of health.

It emphasizes the need to look at the whole person, including analysis of physical, nutritional, environmental, emotional, social, spiritual and lifestyle values. It encompasses all stated modalities of diagnosis and treatment including drugs and surgery if no safe alternative exists.

Holistic medicine focuses on education and responsibility for personal efforts to achieve balance and well being.”

Holistic Veterinary

In holistic veterinary medicine, the principles of alternative medicine are applicable to animals.

Just as with humans, acupuncture, homeopathy, chiropractic manipulations and other alternative treatments are used to treat symptoms of animals and to cure their underlying conditions.

Homeopathic Medicine

Homeopathic Medicine is a medical system that uses minute doses of natural substances-called remedies-to stimulate a person’s immune and defense system.

Based on the principle of “like cures like”, these remedies specifically match different symptom patterns of illness, and act to stimulate the body’s natural healing response.

Samuel Hahneman, a German physician in the late 18th century believed symptoms of disease were our body’s way of restoring balance.

Hahneman determined that producing ‘like’ symptoms would allow the body to induce a natural healing response using three basic principles: prescription by the law of similar, minimum dosage, and singular dosage.

Common conditions homeopathy addresses are infections, fatigue, allergies, and chronic illnesses, such as arthritis.

Hydrotherapy

Hydrotherapy is the use of water in any of its three forms (solid, liquid, or gas), internally or externally, for the treatment of disease and trauma or for cleansing purposes.

Hypnotherapy

Hypnotherapy is the induction of a state of consciousness in which normal critical powers are suspended and the mind becomes highly suggestible and able to consciously influence the body.

Indigenous Medicine

Indigenous Medicine generally refers to a body of knowledge that is concerned with healing as it is practiced in a particular country or region.

The preparation and dispensing of herbal medicines form one of the most common forms of indigenous medicine practiced in different ways in different parts of the world.

An example might be the use of local herbs and plants prepared as drinks, salves or inhalants in a particular region of India.

Intergrative Medicine

Integrative Medicine does not have a commonly accepted definition at this time.

Integrative medicine can also be considered synonymous with complementary medicine. In fact, the term has been used interchangeably with alternative and complementary medicine.

However, the term integrative medicine might refer to a single medical practitioner who is trained in allopathic medicine and at least one form of alternative medicine.

An example would be an MD or DO trained in Ayurvedic Medicine.

The patient would receive intergrated treatment. The term would also be appropriate for a clinic in which a patient is treated by both allopathic and alternative medical practitioners.

Iridology

Iridology is the analysis of the iris to determine a person’s level of health including specific areas of nutritional deficiency.

Lifestyles

Lifestyle is a way of life or style of living that reflects the attitudes and values of a person or group.

We all make lifestyle choices and those choices greatly affect our health in both positive and negative manners.

The decisions people make about lifestyles are by far the most important determining factors of their health.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that the key factors influencing an individual’s state of health are

  • Quality of Medical Care 10%
  • Heredity 18%
  • Environment 19%
  • Lifestyle Choices 53%

Medical treatment of any kind, then, does not hold a candle to a person’s own lifestyle choices.

Macrobiotics

Macrobiotics is a lifestyle involving an awareness that humans are connected to nature, and therefore, what is best for physical bodies are those things from the earth.

This includes special ways of selecting, preparing and eating organically grown, whole, and mostly vegetarian foods to maximize the energy derived from their consumption.

The diet consists of mostly a variety of grains, beans, vegetables, sea vegetables, Japanese condiments, and a little fish and seafood.

The lifestyle stresses the importance of fresh air, breathing, moderate exercise, balance in life, use of natural products in the home and on the skin, and orderliness and organization in all things.

The macrobiotic diet may be tailored to each person’s own needs and condition.

Massage

Massage is the manipulation of the superficial tissues of the human body in order to promote deep relaxation, and release tension.

Recent research has proven that massage is therapeutic, and can soothe injured muscles, stimulate blood and lymphatic circulation, improve structure and function of the body, increase toxic elimination, and more.

Massage therapy involves the healing art of touch.

Meditation

To meditate is to contemplate. Meditation is the steady, continuous, and patient application of separating oneself from one’s own thoughts–simply watching the mind without any expectations.

There are many ways to meditate, each requiring the deliberate use of attention, but the effect is the same: a centeredness and a stillness within.

Meditation generally includes avoiding random thought processes and fantasies, and a calming and focusing of the mind. Both the purposes and the practices of meditation vary.

Mental Health

Mental Illness Mental health, as defined by the Surgeon General’s Report on Mental Health, “refers to the successful performance of mental function, resulting in productive activities, fulfilling relationships with other people, and the ability to adapt to change and cope with adversity.”

Mental health can be seen as successful mental functioning compared to mental illness when seen as impaired mental functioning.

Mental illness refers to all mental disorders. Some see that those disorders are characterized by alterations in thinking, mood, or behavior (or some combination thereof) associated with distress and/or impaired functioning.

Meridians

Meridians are energy pathways which run along twelve major routes in the body.

Each meridian is linked to specific internal organs and organ systems in the body. CHI/Qi is the vital life energy present in all living organisms and is the energy which circulates in the meridians of the body.

Metaphysics

Metaphysics is that branch of philosophy which includes ontology, the science of being, and cosmology, or the science of the fundamental causes and processes in things.

In a looser sense, all of the more abstruse philosophical disciplines, in a narrower sense, ontology alone.

It is also defined as the science of the principles and causes of all things existing; the philosophy of mind as distinguished from that of matter.

Mind-Body Medicine

Mind-body medicine uses a variety of techniques to enhance the mind’s capacity to affect bodily function and symptoms.

Some techniques are patient support groups cognitive-behavioral therapy, meditation, prayer, and therapies that use creative outlets such as art, music, or dance.

Myofascial Release

Myofascial release therapy is a hands-on therapeutic technique that applies a light, stretching pressure with specific directions into the fascia to release the fascia from surrounding tissue to which it may have become fastened.

Fascia, a basic component of the muscular-skeletal system of the body, is a tough connective tissue which contains a substance that is normally gelatinous-like and slippery.

Over time and through trauma, inflammatory processes or poor posture, cross restrictions can occur within the fascia which can cause this substance to become solidified, thus, shortening the fascia fibers and pulling on pain sensitive areas.

This creates symptoms of pain and restriction of movement.

Myofascial Trigger Point Therapy

Myofascial trigger points are tiny knots that develop in a muscle when it is injured or overworked.

They are an area of hyperirritability within soft tissue structures and characterized by local tenderness and sometimes referred sensations such as pain, tingling, numbness burning, or itching.

An active trigger point is the cause of the immediate pain. It prevents muscle from fully lengthening and sometimes weakens. A latent trigger point is not actively painful until pressure is applied.

In trigger point therapy, the source of the referred pain, perpetuating factors, and dysfunctional postural patterning are identified.

Through the use of trigger point pressure release and stretching exercises, the therapist quickly eliminates and/or reduces the irritability of the dysfunctional muscle through massage.

Natural Medicine

Natural medicine or healing is the use of non-invasive and non-pharmaceutical techniques for providing wellness.

Natural medicine is a medical system, which cares for and treats individuals, not disease entities.

Applying the laws of the universe to human physiology forms the foundation principles for the practice, teaching and research of natural medicine.

Naturopathic Medicine

Naturopathic medicine incorporates a variety of methods to utilize the body’s inherent ability to heal.

These methods include nutrition, herbal medicine, homeopathy, acupuncture, hydrotherapy, physical medicine, counselling and lifestyle modification, even minor surgery.

Naturopathic physicians promote health rather than confronting disease and allow patients to participate in the treatment.

Nuad Bo Rarn

The traditional Thai medical massage is based upon an integration of Indian Buddhist medicine and traditional Chinese Medicine while incorporating a spiritual dimension in its hand techniques and gentle approach to tension.

Thai medical massage is based upon an integration of Indian Buddhist medicine and traditional Chinese Medicine while incorporating a spiritual dimension in its hand techniques, meditation, and gentle approach to tension.

Nuad Boran, as is it called in Thailand, correctly translates only as Ancient Massage or Traditional Massage but it is now also known as Thai massage or Thai Bodyworks. It is one of the world’s oldest healing modalities and originated in India over 2500 years ago during the Buddha’s lifetime.

Thai massage is an interactive form of body therapy which combines yoga stretching, meditation, and acupressure along energy or Sen lines.

Osteopathic Medicine

Osteopathic Medicine is a holistic discipline which emphasizes prevention and the individual, not just disease.

Osteopath philosophy is based on the belief that the body cures itself, and doctors should see the relationship between structure and function, with a special emphasis on holistic medicine, the musculo-skeletal system, proper nutrition and environmental factors.

Osteopaths are licensed to adjust the bones of the body manipulate the body, prescribe medications, give injections, and perform surgery.

Dr. Andrew Taylor Still established Osteopathic medicine in 1874.

Orthomolecular Medicine

Orthomolecular medicine is the theory that the molecules normally present in the body are the best prevention and treatment for any disease condition. These molecules are available as part of our nutrition.

“Orthomolecular” means “right” or “proper molecule.” All molecules that enter our bodies have the potential to react in multiple pathways. Thus, most drugs have side effects. Whenever the chemicals of this chemical body are out of balance, health suffers.

Dr. Pauling defined orthomolecular medicine as “the preservation of good health and the treatment of disease by varying the concentrations in the human body of substances that are normally present in the body and are required for health.”

Although additional research is needed to determine the optimum nutrition for every human illness, it is important to use the best information we have to maintain optimum nutrition throughout life.

The essence of Orthmolecular practice is “put nutrition first” and teach the patient that health is not merely the absence of disease but the positive attainment of optimal function and well being.

Orthomolecular medicine treats disease but it also preserves health.

In orthomolecular medicine, diseases are assumed to originate from multiple nonspecific causes, congenital and acquired. These causes give rise to biochemical aberrations, the accumulation of which results in symptoms and signs, from which the perception of a disease state follows.

In contrast, clinical diagnosis conventionally rests on the assumption that signs, symptoms and anomalous laboratory findings follow from specific diseases, each of which in turn follows from unique causes.

The treatment of diabetes by the injection of insulin and the prevention of goiter with iodine are instances of orthomolecular medicine.

Oxygen Therapy

Oxygen therapies alter the body’s chemistry to help overcome disease, promote repair, and improve overall function.

These therapies have been found to be effective in treating a wide variety of conditions, including infections (viral, fungal, parasitic, bacterial), circulatory problems, chronic fatigue syndrome, arthritis, allergies, cancer, and multiple sclerosis.

Qigong

According to Qigong theory, Qi encompasses air and internal Qi, or true Qi, which includes essential Qi or vital energy.

Qigong combines movement, meditation, and breath regulation to enhance the flow of vital energy in the body, improve blood circulation, and enhance immune function. It is the practice of refining the body through special exercises and meditation.

One view of qigong is a set of breathing and movement exercises, with health benefits through stress reduction and exercise.

Another view is in more metaphysical terms, claiming that breathing and movement exercises can influence the fundamental forces of the universe.

In China, it is estimated that 200 million people practice qigong everyday.

Because qigong can be used by the healthy as well as the severely ill, it is one of the most broadly applicable systems of self-care in the world.

Reconstructive Therapy

Reconstructive therapy uses injection of natural substances to stimulate the growth of connective tissue in order to strengthen weak or damaged tendons or ligaments.

Reconstructive therapy is used for degenerative arthritis, low back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, migraine headaches, and torn ligaments and cartilage.

It is a simple, low-cost alternative to drug and surgical treatments.

Reflexology

Reflexology is the systematic, manual stimulation of the reflex maps located on the feet, hands and outer ears that resemble a shape of the human body.

It is based on the premise that there are reflexes in our hands, feet and ears that relate to every organ and part of our body.

Reflexology teaches that every part of the body has a direct line of communication to a reference point on the foot, hand and ear. By massaging these points, reflexologists help to restore nerve function and blood supply–aiding the corresponding body part to heal itself by stimulating energy in that area.

Tuina utilizes soft tissue manipulation, acupoints, external herbal medicines, therapeutic exercise, and structural realignment methods to treat a wide variety of musculoskeletal and internal organ disorders.

Tuina massage is usually performed with the ball of the thumb. Its techniques are also applied to the soles of feet in a specialized branch of Chinese foot massage known in the west as reflexology.

Reiki

Reiki means Universal Life Force Energy. It is a method of natural healing based on the application of this energy.

Reiki is commonly used to treat emotional and mental distress as well as chronic and acute physical problems.

Practitioners of this ancient Tibetan healing system use light hand placements to channel healing energies of the universe to the recipient.

Tai Chi

Tai Chi is form of Chinese exercise that uses slow and deliberate movement as well as meditation. It is sometimes described as “meditation in motion”.

Tai Chi is used to calm the nerves, tone muscles, and balance one’s internal energy.

Health benefits include increased flexibility, greater balance and reduced stress. Originally developed in China as a form of self-defense, this graceful form of exercise has existed for about 2,000 years.

This low impact exercise can be done anywhere as it requires no equipment or special clothing.

It is a method of aligning the energies of the body which has close relationships with Ayurveda, Yoga, Traditional Chinese Medicine and Japanese Shiatsu, although the roots of Thai Massage lie in Buddhism.

Therapeutic Touch

Therapeutic touch involves a healer passing his/her hands over a person’s body in order to feel the energy imbalances, then redirecting the energy at will.

This contemporary interpretation of several ancient healing practices consists of learned skills for consciously directing or modulating human energies by the “laying on of hands” above the body and moving the hands over the body without actual contact while working the energy field surrounding the body.

Therapeutic touch is derived from an ancient technique called laying-on of hands.

It is based on the premise that it is the healing force of the therapist that affects the patient’s recovery; healing is promoted when the body’s energies are in balance; and, by passing their hands over the patient, healers can identify energy imbalances.

Traditional Chinese Medicine

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is an ancient method of health care that combines the use of medicinal herbs, acupuncture, food therapy, massage, and therapeutic exercise.

Oriental Health systems like acupuncture, shiatsu, acupressure massage, macrobiotics, Do-In, and sotai are based upon Chinese Medicine.

It has proven effective for many conditions, including chronic degenerative disease, cancer, infections disease, allergies, childhood ailments, heart disease, and AIDS.

At least 3,000 years old, Chinese Medicine is based on the view that humanity is part of the larger creation – the universe.

Therefore, humans are all subject to the same laws that govern nature and the understanding of health, then, must begin with an understanding of natural laws.

Principles include the law of yin and yang, awareness and manipulation of life energy (Qi or Chi) which flows through meridians of the body, and the Five Element Theory.

Qi regulates spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical balance and is influenced by the opposing forces of yin (negative energy) and yang (positive energy). Disease results when the flow of qi being disrupted and yin and yang becoming imbalanced.

Among the components of TCM are herbal and nutritional therapy, restorative physical exercises, meditation, acupuncture, and remedial massage.

Universal Consciousness

Universal Consciousness is the primary quality of the universe and its derivatives.

It is a bridge joining all forms of human endeavour with all states and forms of sentient and non-sentient existance.

The universal consciousness is inborn psychological bedrock–common to all humans–that enables telepathy.

Vegan

Veganism is the way of life which seeks to exclude, as far as possible and practical, anything derived from animals.

A person practicing this custom is often called a strict vegetarian. As vegans eat no animal products, a carefully-formulated vegan diet is generally considered healthy.

Vegetarian

A vegetarian is one who abstains from using meat, fish, fowl or any flesh as food, with or without the use of eggs and dairy products.

Vegetarianism began many thousands of years ago with minds like Pythagoras, Buddha, Plato, and Plutarch. The word vegetarian was coined in 1842 and is derived from the Latin vegetus meaning whole, sound, fresh, and lively.

However, it was not until 1847 that a significant turning point came in Western culture. on September 30, a group of 140 people in England gathered together to express their respect for their own well-being by asserting their unwillingness to eat flesh.

Vegetarians may be ovo-lacto (eat no flesh but eat eggs and dairy), lacto (eat no flesh but eat dairy), ovo (eat no flesh but eat eggs, or vegan (eat nothing derived from animals).

William Castelli, M.D., Director Framingham Heart Study, said, “Vegetarians have the best diet. They have the lowest rates of coronary disease of any group in the country. Some people scoff at vegetarians, but they have a fraction of our heart attack rate and they have only 40 percent of our cancer rate. On the average they outlive other people by about six years now.”

Vibrational Healing

Vibrational medicine seeks to heal the physical body by integrating and balancing the higher energetic systems. It is healing through vibrations which is a synonym for frequency.

Yin and Yang

In Chinese philosophy two principles whose interaction influences healths and destinies:

  • Yin Negative and Feminine
  • Yang Positive and Masculine

Visualization

Visualization is a powerful tool which creates health through imagery.

The technique of visualization consists of creating a mental image of a desired outcome, and repeatedly playing that image in the mind. It involves the use of imagination to produce a desired outcome.

Although visualization can be used in many ways, in alternative medicine visualization sometimes occurs in conjunction with medical treatment.

Yoga

The word yoga means union of body and spirit in Sanskrit.

Yoga is a maintenance tool for the Mind-Body-Spirit as the physical postures and stretches, breathing exercises, and meditation practices are all designed to integrate a person’s mind, body, and spirit.

Yoga can form the basis for an entire physical, mental and spiritual fitness program or it can be the flexibility component of a balanced physical fitness program.

It’s emphasis on good breathing can make meditation more effective. In fact; properly done, yoga is a form of meditation.

Some benefits of yoga are to increase health, vitality, and peace of mind, to lower blood pressure, decrease back pain, decrease menstrual problems, anxieties and stress, decrease and control asthmatic attacks, reduce or omit migraines, and much more. It has been proven to retard the aging process.

Yoga is among the oldest known systems of health practiced in the world today and archaeologists have found 4,000 year-old figurines in what paper to be yoga poses.

Research into yoga practices has and continues to have a strong impact on the fields of stress reduction, mind-body medicine, and energy medicine.

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