Alternate Therapy Reiki Acupuncture Accupressure Magnet Therapy Naturopathy

Reiki is a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing. It is administered by "laying on hands" and is based on the idea that an unseen "life force energy" flows through us and is what causes us to be alive. If one's "life force energy" is low, then we are more likely to get sick or feel stress, and if it is high, we are more capable of being happy and healthy. Reiki's initial stages can be learned by anyone regardless of their personal philosophy and/or spiritual belief system. Through the initiations of Reiki comes a "re-awakening", a re-opening of the stronger healing potential that lies within us all.

Reiki is believed to have begun in Tibet several thousand years ago. Seers in the Orient studied energies and developed a system of sounds and symbols for universal healing energies. Various healing systems, which crossed many different cultures, emerged from this single root system. Unfortunately, the original source itself was forgotten.

Reiki is a simple, natural and safe method of spiritual healing and self-improvement that everyone can use. It has been effective in helping virtually every known illness and malady and always creates a beneficial effect. It also works in conjunction with all other medical or therapeutic techniques to relieve side effects and promote recovery.

A client remains dressed while receiving a Reiki treatment, as Reiki will go through the material, including plaster casts. The person being treated is not "healed" by the Reiki practitioner. The client's healing comes from the "universal life force" that flows through the practitioner. The person giving Reiki is not drained of their own life energy, but actually is replenished in the process. Reiki also protects the practitioner from taking on the pain and dysfunction of another person.

Its use is not dependent on one's intellectual capacity or spiritual development and therefore is available to everyone. It has been successfully taught to thousands of people of all ages and backgrounds.

Acupuncture is one of the oldest, most commonly used medical procedures in the world. Originating in China more than 2,000 years ago, acupuncture began to become better known in the United States in 1971, when New York Times reporter James Reston wrote about how doctors in China used needles to ease his pain after surgery.

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Acupuncture
Acupuncture literally means 'needle piercing,". It is a Chinese medical treatment for unblocking chi (ch'i or qi) by the insertion of very fine sterile needles into the body at specific points according to a mapping of "energy pathways"; Chi is an energy that allegedly permeates all things. It is believed to flow through the body along 14 main pathways called "meridians". Historically, acupuncture is one component of an overall program of Chinese medicine that includes theory, practice, diagnosis, physiology, and the use of herbal preparations. It is used to control pain and to treat other conditions such as allergies or addiction withdrawal. When yin and yang are in harmony, chi flows freely within the body and a person is healthy. When a person is sick, diseased, or injured, there is an obstruction of chi along one of the meridians. Traditional Chinese medicine has identified some 500 specific points where needles are to be inserted for specific effects.

The acupuncturist is able to influence health and sickness by stimulating certain areas along these "meridians". Traditionally these areas or "acupoints" were stimulated by fine, slender needles. Along with the usual method of puncturing the skin with the fine needles, the practitioners of acupuncture also use heat, pressure, friction, suction, or impulses of electromagnetic energy to stimulate the points. The acupoints (acupuncture points) are stimulated to balance the movement of energy (qi) in the body to restore health.

Acupuncture is just one form of therapy used within the coherent system of healing known as Oriental Medicine. Oriental Medicine includes herbology, physical therapy, dietetics and special exercises (such as Tai Chi and Qi Gong), and is a complete medical system unto itself and is not another branch of modern Western medicine. Acupuncture evolved from principles and philosophies unique to Oriental thinking and Oriental Medicine, and is most effectively applied when done in accordance with those principles.

Is acupuncture safe?

In general, acupuncture is safe when done by a certified acupuncturist. A state license ensures that the acupuncturist has a certain level of training and follows certain practice guidelines. The sterile, nontoxic needles be used and that they be labeled for single use by qualified practitioners only. Practitioners should use a new set of disposable needles taken from a sealed package for each patient and should swab treatment sites with alcohol or another disinfectant before inserting needles. When not delivered properly, acupuncture can cause serious adverse effects, including infections and punctured organs.

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Accupressure

Acupressure has been around in this world for an unknown number of years now. It is a science that has been exists in different parts of the world for many years, but as of today, it exists mainly in Asian countries like India, China, Japan, and Korea.

Acupressure is an ancient healing art developed in Asia over 5,000 years ago. It is a branch of traditional Chinese medicine which emphasizes preventing illness, dealing with underlying causes in depth and treating the whole person. An acupressurist works with the same points used in acupuncture - called acupoints - stimulating these healing sites with finger pressure, rather than inserting fine needles.

Acupressure uses the power and sensitivity of human touch to eliminate stress, relieve pain and alleviate acute and chronic conditions. It is a science that deals with the human body and the flow of natural energy within the body. It is a science, and there is nothing supernatural or magical about acupressure. This medical science is practiced with the use of only one human tool: the thumb. Pressure is applied on different 'pressure points' on the body, stimulating the corresponding glands of the body.

Acupressure once was a very common science that everybody used to treat medical problems, but with the invasion of western medicine and fast working pills, a vast majority of the people switched from acupressure to allopathy. Today, very few people in the world use this science as a source of curing medical problems.

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Magnet Therapy

Magnet therapy, or Magnetic therapy, or Magnotherapy is an alternative medicine claiming that certain medical disorders can be effectively treated by exposure to magnetic fields. Some believe that magnetic fields emanating from permanent magnets placed close to the body can cause bones to heal faster, relieve pain, and perform other forms of healing to the body. It is most commonly recommended by practitioners as a cure for joint disorders and back problems.

Practitioners of this therapy use negative magnetic fields which have a beneficial effect on health. By placing magnets near or on an injury site, a force field is created that encourages muscle relaxation and increased blood flow, while reducing inflammation. Devices range from small, simple magnets to large machines capable of generating high magnitudes of field strength.

The claim that magnets help "circulate blood" is a common one among supporters of magnet therapy, but there is no scientific evidence that magnets do anything to the blood. Even though the evidence is lacking that magnets have anything other than a placebo effect, theories abound as to how they work. Some say magnets are like a shiatsu massage; some claim magnets affect the iron in red blood cells; still others claim that magnets create an alkaline reaction in the body (Collie).

Scientific tests of magnet therapy

Scientific tests of magnetic therapy for the treatment of wrist pain from carpal tunnel syndrome and chronic low back pain have concluded that there is no health benefit from magnetic fields in those cases.

It is a safe, drug free, cost effective and easy to use method of self-treatment, without any of the side effects associated with conventional methods of pain relief. Magnet therapy, which involves placing small magnets close to the skin in order to relieve muscle or joint pain, has interested many patients who want to avoid pain medications or who seek alternative treatments.

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Naturopathy

Naturopathy is the technique of treatment of human disease which emphasizes assisting nature. It can embrace minor surgery and the use of nature's agencies, forces, processes, and products, introducing them to the human body by any means that will produce health-yielding results. Naturopathy is based upon the tendency of the body to maintain a balance and to heal itself. The purpose of naturopathic medicine is to further this process by using natural remedies. It is a holistic approach to health care based on a belief in the healing power of nature. It is a system of therapy and treatment which relies exclusively on natural remedies, such as sunlight, air, water, supplemented with diet and therapies such as massage. Naturopaths work closely with you to improve your health by making lifestyle such as improving your diet and reducing stress. They also employ alternative therapies, including herbal remedies, homeopathy, and hands-on techniques such as massage to stimulate your body's ability to heal itself. Naturopathy is organized around three fundamental principles:

1. The physician should strive to aid the body's natural healing abilities;
2. The root cause of an illness should be addressed rather than its symptoms;
3. And above all, only therapies that cause no harm should be used (which means that toxic drugs and surgery are avoided whenever possible).

Naturopathy is based on the belief that the body is self-healing. The body will repair itself and recover from illness spontaneously if it is in a healthy environment. Naturopaths have many remedies and recommendations for creating a healthy environment so the body can spontaneously heal itself. In treating patients, the naturopathic practitioner may use a number of alternative therapies, including homeopathy, herbal remedies, traditional Chinese medicine, spinal manipulation, nutrition, hydrotherapy, massage and exercise.

With the discovery of penicillin and synthetic drugs, suddenly we found that there could be a faster way to cure illness. Hence, naturopathy went into a decline - not because it is ineffective, but rather because synthetic drugs give a much faster relief. But today, naturopathy is revived, and many people are turning back to it.

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