1:46 a.m. - 2002-10-12
Healing
When I was taking physiotherapy in university, there were a lot of restrictions with respect to the use of "new age" albeit ancient treatments, such as acupuncture, even though they had long, documented histories of their effectiveness. To even use the terminology in a hospital setting was to risk losing one's accreditation.
It was the insistence of patients, voting with their feet, that convinced the medical profession that they either had to change or go the way of the dinosaur. Even so, there is still a great reluctance on the part of the governing medical bodies to admit that western allopathic methods aren't the only or even the best form of care for a lot of health issues.
I first go to a chiropractor when I need care because he has respected my assessment of what is happening with my body - I've had the owner's manual a long time - then worked within the parameters of his own skills to help me. None of the therapies he uses are invasive in any way. He is also very clear when he feels I need other forms of care.
After six babies,some major illnesses and the major stress of raising six sons on my own I find I have to work very hard to keep myself healthy. Some of the long term problems I have had to cope with have been the direct result of negligence or ignorance on the part of western doctors. That included not treating a couple of problems each for more than two years then acting surprised at the amount of damage that had accrued in the interim. At one point, I had to write letters of appeal to the health minister of the time to get the treatment I needed. Fortunately, she both listened and acted - not only for me but in a way that helped a lot of other women as well.
One of the treatments that my chiropractor uses is called active release therapy which uses the principles of both accupressure and deep tissue massage. Quite frankly it really hurts at the time it is undertaken. However, the results can be quite spectacular if the timing is correct for the body's own cycle of healing. That was the case this week. A session that worked on one of my hips released a block that had my lower back locked up and painful for quite some time. The reason it was effective now was that some of the other damage that had existed as a result of some of the conditions I mentioned above had been addressed first in a sequence that was in tune with the needs of the body. The chiropractor's treatments have always helped me with pain control, but this is the first time in many years that that part of the lower back had absolutely no pain. The timing was finally right.
It made a real difference in my walk up the north escarpment the day after. I cut 15 minutes off my time and I didn't have to stop to rest on the way up. I admit it did take a couple of minutes to catch my breath, but that was because I forgot to take the herbs I use for asthma before I left.
Wellness is a series of small constant steps that add up to a healthy life. Mindfulness and respect for the body and mind are critical to optimizing the circumstances one has to deal with. The Hippocratic Oath which doctors take when they receive their certification states "First do no harm." I wish they would respect that. I'm glad there are people like my chiropractor who are willing to risk the disapproval and pressure of the mainstream medical establishment and who truly respect that oath in order to meet my needs.
�
�
