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Glossary of Alternative Therapies and Medical Systems

Art Therapy

Art therapy is the use of art as a therapeutic approach to healing. It is a means for the patient to reconcile emotional conflicts, foster self-awareness, and express unspoken and frequently unconscious concerns about his or her disease. In addition to its use in treatment, it can be used to assess individuals, couples, families, and groups. It is particularly valuable with children who often cannot talk about their real concerns. Studies on art therapy have been conducted in many areas, including burn recovery in adolescent and young patients, eating disorders, emotional impairment in young children, reading performance, chemical addiction, and sexual abuse in adolescents. For more information visit http://www.artheals.org and http://www.arttherapy.org.

Chiropractic

Chiropractic care involves diagnosing spinal misalignments and correcting them by adjusting the spine. A slight pressure is most commonly used with children rather than the more forceful manipulation sometimes used with adults. Chiropractors attempt to get to the root cause of a health problem rather than just treat the symptoms. Misalignments of the spine (also called subluxations) can occur during childbirth, from tumbles or falls, or from any other normal activity. Chiropractors maintain that misalignments left untreated can irritate the nerves and eventually disrupt the body’s ability to function properly. The purpose of a chiropractic adjustment is to help to restore the normal functioning of the nervous system so the body can heal itself without the use of drugs or surgery. For more information, visit http://www.icpa4kids.com, http://www.amerchiro.org and http://www.chiropractic.org.

Conventional Medicine

Also called allopathic medicine, conventional medicine is the current mainstream medical system of diagnosis and treatment of disease. Conventional medical doctors focus heavily on the use of specific pharmaceutical drugs and surgeries for specific problems. Medical doctors (M.D.) typically do not take a child’s mental, emotional, or spiritual health into consideration when prescribing treatment, unless they are integrative or holistic. Conventional medicine’s strongest capabilities are in emergency medicine (broken bones and other major bodily injuries) and serious acute diseases like bacterial meningitis or pneumonia.

Environmental Medicine

Practitioners of environmental medicine recognize that illness can be caused by a broad range of substances, including chemicals found at home, in the workplace, and in the air, water, and food. There are multiple approaches to treatment, including changes in lifestyle, diet and environment. New techniques such as provocation/neutralization can not only pinpoint the causes but also provide fast and effective relief of the symptoms. Studies have supported the use of the approaches of environmental medicine in treating arthritis, asthma, chemical sensitivity, allergies, colitis, depression, eczema, fatigue, and hyperactivity. For more information, visit

www.interlog.com/~environ/medicine.html and www.aaem.com.

Guided Imagery

Guided Imagery is both a mental process (as in imagining) and a wide variety of procedures used in therapy to encourage changes in attitudes, behavior, or physiological reactions. As a mental process, it is often defined as “any thought representing a sensory quality.” Imagery includes all the senses. It has been successfully tested as a strategy for alleviating nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy in cancer patients, to relieve stress, and to facilitate weight gain in cancer patients. It has been successfully used and tested for pain control in a variety of settings; as adjunctive therapy for several diseases, including diabetes; and with geriatric patients to enhance immunity. For more information, visit http://www.healthjourneys.com and www.holistic-online.com/guided-imagery.htm

Herbal Medicine

Also known as botanical or phytomedicine, herbal medicine is the medicinal use of plant substances. Because these substances are in their natural state rather than being chemically derived, they are more easily assimilated and integrated into the body’s own chemistry. This results in fewer side effects than pharmaceuticals. (see the Herbal Medicine article in the healthychild.com searchable database)

Homeopathic Medicine

Based on the concept that “like cures like”, homeopathic remedies (a minute dose of a substance normally toxic in larger quantities) specifically match different symptom patterns of illness and act to stimulate the body’s natural healing response. Homeopathic remedies, which are made from naturally occurring plant, animal, or mineral substances, are recognized and regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and are manufactured by established pharmaceutical companies under strict guidelines. Homeopathy has a good record of success, especially with children. In its early history, it proved far more effective than conventional medicine for some of the most serious diseases of the time. In addition to disease prevention and health promotion, homeopathy is used to treat acute and chronic health problems. Since the remedies must be carefully chosen to match the unique symptoms of an individual child, it’s best to consult a trained practitioner for all but minor complaints. For more information see the article Homeopathic Medicines for Children in the healthychild.com searchable database, and go to Dr. Neustaedter’s website:

www.cure-guide.com

Music Therapy

Music therapy is the use of music as a therapeutic approach to healing. Studies have found music therapy effective as an analgesic, relaxant, and anxiety reducer for infants and children, and as an adjunctive treatment with burn patients, cancer patients, cerebral palsy patients, and stroke, brain injury, or Parkinson’s disease patients. Earth Songs, a wonderful music CD for helping to calm and relax children and parents is available at http://www.healthychild.com. For more information about music therapy, visit

www.musictherapy.org.

Nambudripad’s Allergy Elimination Technique (NAET)

NAET is a synthesis of various medical disciplines such as allopathy, acupuncture, chiropractic, kinesiology and nutrition. By reprogramming the brain and removing the blockages from the energy pathways of the body, NAET can completely eliminate an allergy and allow the body to regain balance and function normally. NAET’s allergy testing technique uses muscle response testing (MRT) which indicates the kinetic imbalance in the body caused by allergens. Pressure points along the spine are stimulated from the neck to the sacrum while the patient is holding the allergen. Specific acupuncture points are then massaged or acupuncture needles may be inserted for 20 minutes to stabilize the treatment. The substance must then be completely avoided for 25 hours following the treatment for best results. Thousands of doctors of acupuncture, allopathy, chiropractic and various other licensed practitioners have been trained in this technique. For more information and to find a practitioner in your area, visit http://www.naet.com.

Naturopathic Medicine

Naturopathic medicine integrates traditional natural therapies—including herbal medicine, clinical nutrition, homeopathy, acupuncture, traditional oriental medicine, hydrotherapy, and manipulative therapy—with modern scientific medical diagnostics and standards of care. This health system sticks closely to natural health principles, particularly the concept of giving the body’s innate healing capacity as much support as possible. Naturopathic physicians teach their patients to take an active role in maintaining their own health through diet, exercise, eliminating toxins, and other lifestyle changes. For more information, visit www.pandamedicine.com or www.healthy.net/clinic/therapy/naturopathic

Osteopathic Medicine

Doctors of Osteopathy (D.O.) are licensed to perform all aspects of medicine and prescribe drugs. There is nothing that conventional doctors do that osteopaths aren’t also licensed to do. Osteopaths are additionally trained in manual (hands-on) treatments such as cranial osteopathy and myofacial release to make changes in the musculoskeletal system that enhance the body’s own healing potential. They are also educated on the holistic perspective of medicine. More than 60 percent of osteopathic physicians are involved in primary care—family medicine, pediatrics, internal medicine, and obstetrics-gynecology. For more information, visit

http://www.aacom.org.

Reiki, Therapeutic Touch, and Energy Work

Everything is energy in various states of vibration and motion. The body is energy in the form of solid matter. It is made up of many vibrating, interacting energy fields. Each bodily system and all the cells, organs, and tissues are responsive to subtle energies coming from both inside and outside the body. In addition, there are subtle energy fields that extend beyond the physical body. These energy fields expand and contract, depending on a person’s health, particularly the mental and emotional states. Chakras are energy centers within the body that control the energy flow in and out of the body. They are like spinning disks, opening and closing like camera lenses. Healing practitioners work with a flow of energy that is channeled through their hands to the person to promote healing. Feelings of heat and tingling sensations as well as deep relaxation and a sense of peace are common in both healer and healee. There are many published reports of experiments in which healers were able to influence a variety of cellular and other biological systems by directing the flow of energy with their thought and intention. For more information, visit these sites: www.reiki.org

www.integrativemedicalarts.com/noteener.html

www.amfoundation.org/energywork.htm

Traditional Chinese Medicine

Traditional Chinese medicine is a complete medical system of many techniques and methods, including acupuncture, herbal medicine, acupressure, qi gong, and oriental massage. Doctors of Chinese medicine consider the properties of foods, herbs, organs, and lifestyle habits according to their doctrines of yin/yang and five-element theory. The most striking characteristic of Chinese medicine is its emphasis on diagnosing disturbances of chi (vital energy) in health and disease. Diagnosis involves the classical procedures of observation, listening, questioning, and palpation, including feeling pulse quality and sensitivity of body parts. Acupuncture or acupressure is used to regulate or correct the flow of chi (the Chinese word for energy) to restore health by placing needles or light finger pressure on specific points on the body. It is one of the most thoroughly researched and documented alternative medical practices. Chinese medicine views symptoms differently in children than adults. Pediatrics is a specialty of Chinese medicine, so be sure your practitioner has been trained appropriately. For more information, visit these websites: