What is "Holistic Health?" - Balance & Blessings

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What is “Holistic Health?”

Since I recently changed to “holistic living” blog, I am featuring even more posts about alternative medicine and other forms of healthcare/self-care. But what does it mean to be holistic? I figured a post that explains more about this word that may be new to some of you may be appropriate. You may have heard of “holistic health” or “living a holistic lifestyle,” and wondered what this really means.

How is it different than just trying to be healthy?

How does it apply to or affect healthcare or self-care habits?

During the quarantine I took a course on holistic remedies, that is: using herbs, alternative medicine, and other natural methods to heal and stay healthy. This course started off with a great review of the history and definition of the idea of being “holistic.” It reminded me of the basics of holistic care and alternative medicine that I also learned back in massage school. During the holistic remedies course, I had to write and essay that explained what I learned about Holistic Healthcare. I hope it helps explain some things to you.

Holistic Health Explained

A holistic approach to your health focuses on overall quality of life. It does not totally focus on only the symptoms and disease itself, or one body part. It is a unique healthcare approach that seeks to find underlying causes and problems by analyzing the entirety of a person. Holistic Health healing methods started as early as 5000 years ago in China and India. Today, it is much more widely accepted around the world.

Holistic care treats the patient as a whole, working towards ideal health. It includes caring for the patient’s mind, body, and spirit, and is much more personal with the patient. Holistic Practitioners assess every part of a patient before suggesting treatment options.

There are 10 principles of Holistic Care: Optimal Health, the healing power of love, Whole person, innate healing power, prevention and treatment, integration of healing systems, relationship-centered care, individuality, teaching by example, and learning opportunities. This holistic approach to healthcare has positive benefits for the patient including more patient involvement, reduced side effects, and more humanity as the patient is seen as a person, not just as a disease.

Instead of relying solely on conventional medicine, a holistic approach to health would be to instead use integrative medicine. Integrative medicine means that non-conventional therapies are used alongside conventional medicine. The Non-conventional therapies support the main treatment a patient is undergoing. They may include acupuncture, herbal medicine, and/or yoga.

A holistic practicioner will come up with a treatment plan for each patient that may include several treatments and therapies. These would be from the 5 modalities of Holistic care: whole medical systems, manipulative and body-based practices, mind body medicine, biologically-based practices, and energy medicine. Treatments might also include different forms of counseling besides physical treatments and therapies.

As far as holistic care for children, it is recommended that they begin care at infancy with a MD who practices holistic care. Children should be taken to pediatricians for their checkups, mile-stone checks, and vaccines. Integrative care alongside complementary medicine has great benefits for children as well as adults.

Conclusion:

There is now a growing demand for holistic care, as well as info for personal holistic self-care among the general population. It is more accepted as it is seen to balance the individual in mind, body, and spirit. It can be a much more affordable, convenient, and natural way to take care of your health! Holistic Health/healing/living/lifestyle to you as an individual means you are working to improve your overall health. You may be doing this through a number of ways, whether it means cleaner eating, using essential oils for healing, massage therapy, yoga, seeing a counselor or therapist, converting over to more natural home and body products, etc.