posted May 07, 2003 01:34 AM         

Saw in your response to Divinia that you'd also tried a holistic centre student option -- would you care to share your story?

Lunargirl

posted May 09, 2003 05:55 PM         

The holistic centre I mentioned is a college where students can do courses in massage, naturopathy, chinese medicine etc. They have a clinic there where last year students can practice what they have learnt in their courses. They are strictly supervised by their lecturers and they can't give you any herbs/potions until they have spoken to their lecturers first. I usually go to the naturopathy students - they are very good and insightful. They have helped me heal a stomach ulcer I had, and they also have helped me with my IBS.

I don't have to pay for the consultation, just the herbs/potions. If I get a massage done, it costs $25 per hour which is pretty good. The College is called The Australian College of Natural Medicine and it is in Brisbane here.

Hope that all helps!! Take care.

posted May 11, 2003 05:19 PM         

Sunmeadow, that is fantastic that they helped with an ulcer. Is IBS 'irritable bowel syndrome'? Your college sounds wonderful! The one I went to is in Montreal, and teaches several holistic practices too - I forget the name, it's in French.

I went there for homeopathy, so maybe Sunmeadow could fill Ruby in on naturopathy. Homeopathy deals in giving people miniscule amounts of an element or herb that matches the condition, in order to trigger a response to wellness. Echinacea's a perfect example, as it in fact slightly irritates the immune system, thus triggering it to respond more strongly to, say, combat a cold (although it is contraindicated for people with compromised immune systems, such as people living with HIV or AIDS). Some of the theories and practices of both healing systems are similar, but the approach is quite different... more than that I do not know. Sunmeadow?

But definitely either a naturopath or homeopath could help with your anxiety/panic, RRR. An honest practitioner (and most have very high ethical standards!) will advise you on whether nat. or hom. would be more appropriate for you. Like Sunmeadow says, these people are good and insightful - very intuitive, and dedicated to healing the whole person.

My experience was that I went about 5 years ago because I had migraines and back problems, referred by a good pal who'd tried the place with great results (ongoing pain in her feet - quite corrected!). I could either have a consultation with a finishing student (for about $20), who would then consult with their teacher before suggesting a remedy, or I could go before an entire class, and the teacher and students would diagnose and suggest a remedy (free). I chose the latter (it was free and I wanted the benefit of an experienced homeopath), which was videotaped (!) (the school has a very fair policy about privacy; I had many options about how the tape would be used - as a class exercise, or exam - and if/when I wanted to withdraw it and have the tape destroyed). The remedies themselves were reasonably priced, from what I remember. You could buy them from the school, or elsewhere from a holistic shop or herbalist.

Needless to say, many health problems are emotional in origin, or stem from physical trauma that creates emotional imbalance, so what emerged was an exploration of my mind/body history. The teacher took a liking to me, and given that I was quite broke at the time, offered to keep seeing me one-on-one for free and she even supplied the remedies for free (she has a very lucrative private practice in the Caribbean, with rich clients!). I saw her for about a year. Part of my "cure" was opening up on repressed emotions, so I took one remedy that did just that, but since I was also searching for my birth family at the time, and life was _very_ emotional (<--understatement), at one point the emotions were too much and she was able to give me something that calmed them down. How nice to be able to do this without _chemicals_!! Ultimately I took a short series of remedies that had a gradual healing for a few conditions, and they helped a lot.

Since my underlying problem was emotional, and I like to go deep - as you might imagine my particular diagnosing experience was intense - typical I confront this stuff head on, but I could have stopped at any time I was uncomfortable. You don't have to be such a hardhead like me or have an audience like I did. Just find a person, or persons you like and trust, and with whom you can work as closely as you need for follow-up. You might find a student you like, and keep seeing them as they graduate into their own practice.

Also I have tried homeopathy with my cat, and have seen clear results - and with a cat there is zero chance of a placebo effect.

Wow, what a chatty post. carried away a little.

posted May 13, 2003 05:51 PM         

I think RRR would benefit greatly through going to a naturopath. As you say, Lunargirl a lot of people's health problems are deeply rooted in emotions which cause an imbalance in the physical body.

The students asked me questions about my diet, work, stress etc. They looked into eyes and looked at my tongue. It was very thorough. I benefitted a lot going to the students.

Lunargirl, I think you were very brave discussing your health problems in front of a class. Good on you!!

Hope this helps RRR a little bit.