Is Naturopathic Medicine the Future of the U.S. Healthcare System?

Is Naturopathic Medicine the Future of The U.S. Medical System?
Why? …Because “Knowledge Is Power” – Sir Francis Bacon

Has our conventional medical system been one where “The Doctor is God,” with the “magic bullet,” or pill, disguised as a Rx that you take to the pharmacy to get your “quick fix” in the form of a daily medication that will take all your problems away?

Do we as a majority public in this country like this approach? Do we, maybe even subconsciously, enjoy being able to eat, drink, smoke, party, stay up late like we do at times, knowing that some of these behaviors may not be supportive of our health? Do we sometimes feel that the enjoyment we receive out of these behaviors is worth feeling worse the next day, for example? Sure we do, and it’s safe to say that we are all human, and that we all go through these moments throughout our lifetime.

Our general conventional medical approach up until now, for the most part, has been one of giving away our power to some other human being, who somehow has a magical, wizard-like ability of writing down the name of a medication that is going to fix everything for us, and make us all better again.

There are at least five significant issues with this current medical model:

1. It disempowers the patient, making them feel as though they cannot get well within their body’s own inherent wisdom and knowing.
2. It makes the doctor “God” and “All-Knowing,” making the patient feel as though they in fact do not know themselves better than anyone else (including their provider); i.e. being told statements like, “it’s all just in your head” or “that isn’t medically relevant”).
3. It puts a huge burden of responsibility onto the provider to “make the patient well”.
4. It can contribute to the mindset of, “nothing I do matters anyway because they [my doctors] are making me well”; therefore, poor dietary habits and lifestyle routines can continue without inner reflection or accountability.
5. It is a very short-sighted medical approach, with symptoms that have been ongoing for years being essentially “fixed overnight”.

The ways in which Naturopathic Medicine differs in the above-listed points:

1. It empowers the patient by the provider acting as “Doctor As Teacher” (i.e. Docere; one of the Six Principles of Naturopathic Medicine), where, if you allow us, we can be your guiding hand. It is true that patients may not always be ready to hear that some of their lifestyle habits may be harmful to them; however, the information that we share is rooted in researched medicine, and does in fact correlate to the abnormalities that are reflected throughout their diagnostic lab testing. In other words, once patients start to see how much their health can improve with just changes that they themselves can make to their day-to-day lives, it empowers them to understand the deeply rooted strength of their own “Vital Force” (i.e. Vis Medicatrix Naturae) within.
   1. The Six Principles of Naturopathic Medicine are: First, Do No Harm; The Healing Power of Nature; Doctor As Teacher; Identify & Treat the Root Cause; Treat the Whole Person; Prevention.
2. It takes the power differential in the “doctor-patient” relationship away, so that the patient can feel safe sharing openly about their symptoms and health challenges. This is because we as NDs know that the answer always lies within the story itself, and that truly nobody knows the patient as well as they know themselves. We as providers just need to spend the time to listen, and sometimes external factor make this difficult; however, most patients already intuitively know what is going on with themselves. Another important differentiating factor is that NDs are also aware that we are truly doing nothing to fix the patient, and that they are the ones doing all the hard work and heavy lifting within themselves. We are just there alongside to support and guide individuals to keep them moving in the most health-promoting / healing direction.
3. It shifts some of the burden of responsibility onto the patient, which can be difficult for some who might be used to their doctors “waving a magic wand,” or “prescribing a magic bullet or pill”. Although naturopathic root-cause medicine does tend to be more in line with treating the patient as a whole, it does also typically take longer to see improvements, effects, or results. Additionally, it also tends to take up more of the patient’s time, conscious awareness, attention, and mindfulness because it begins to shine a light on some of the habits, behaviors, and patterns that we may have been mindlessly looping through, which may need to be broken and shifted, for example. Therefore, sometimes, if you are not fully ready to take this medical approach, naturopathic medicine can feel like “too much” or “a bit overwhelming”.
4. It completely reverses the mindset of “nothing I do matters anyway,” because it shows you all of the ways that the very basic and foundational aspects of health (e.g. diet, hydration, sleep, stress management, movement, opening up pathways of elimination) can all synergistically support the well-being of our organism as a whole.
   1.  I.e. We have seen ANA’s (i.e. anti-nuclear antibody / autoimmune titers) improve and go from positive to negative with no other change than cutting alcohol out of the diet. This is not surprising, given the inflammatory insult that we know alcohol to be to the entirety of the gut; however, this one single change was the most difficult aspect of the treatment plan to comply to. I do not state this to pass any judgment; however, the reason I share this is because we tend to forget just how much power and knowledge we have about ourselves and our body’s own innate ability to heal; oftentimes, our “gut” does speak to us; it is just a matter of us being able to tune-in and listen.
5. There is truly no medicine that is more long-sighted than Naturopathic Medicine. Please do not seek out an ND if you are looking for a “quick fix” or a “one-and-done” to your healthcare approach. Most of the time, you did not get sick or compile the numerous health issues you have overnight; therefore, please do not expect to get better overnight either. If you are ready to roll your sleeves up and take a good hard look at all of the contributing factors, we will do our best to guide you away from what may be harming you, and toward what will support to heal you; however, it will be ultimately up to you to implement the changes and work on making daily habits to improve your health.

If you are ready to learn more about how Naturopathic Medicine can support you in your healing journey and process toward optimal health, please schedule your complimentary call today!