An increasing number of people are embracing holistic health services now more than ever. The pandemic has highlighted the need to maintain good health, address certain health issues or generally work on boosting the immune system.

Healthcare needs to move more towards a patient centred approach as opposed to the current symptom centred model that does not address the needs of the patient holistically.

While conventional healthcare practices are essential for acute and in emergency situations, there are other options for long standing and chronic conditions.

Here are some case studies which demonstrate how a holistic approach changed patients’ lives.

Female, aged 32 – upper and lower gastrointestinal symptoms for 6 months. A breath test diagnosed SIBO, an overgrowth of bad bacteria in the small intestine. A course of antibiotics was prescribed, and symptoms ceased for 3 weeks. After 3 weeks, symptoms gradually returned, returning to pre-treatment severity after several weeks. Due to the high strength of the antibiotics, a repeat prescription was not an option. Patient was advised to follow a low FODMAP diet which is a diet low in fermentable carbohydrates and usually prescribed for patients suffering with IBS. The diet made no difference to her symptoms. It’s at this point that the patient searched for a nutritionist who had experience with treating gut conditions and was advised to follow a restricted diet for four weeks, followed by a course of herbal antibiotics and a slow reintroduction of foods under the nutritionist’s guidance to determine which foods aggravated her. Other gut healing supplementswere prescribed and with these and the removal of aggravating foods, patient is now symptom free and feels well again.

Male, aged 51 – lower back pain from a sports injury which was not improving after 3 weeks. GP referred to a physiotherapist who administered treatment and gave some exercises to do at home. Patient wanted quicker results and was recommended an acupuncturist by a friend. Patient had two acupuncture treatments a week alongside the physiotherapy and was pain free after another month of treatment.

Child, aged 4 – eczema since shortly after birth – no improvement from creams/treatments prescribed by the GP or consultant. Sought the support of a homeopath to get to the root of the issue. After an initial consultation and in-depth history from the parents around the birth and health of mother and father, remedies were prescribed and follow up after four weeks was suggested. At the follow-up, 70% of the eczema had cleared up, a further remedy was prescribed which took into consideration the symptoms and temperament of the child at the appointment. After another 4 weeks, the eczema had gone and hasn’t returned to date, child is now 8.

These are just a few examples of when a holistic or integrated approach speeded up the desired result or provided an alternative when conventional treatment failed to provide the desired result. It’s not always as quick and as easy as these cases, but it often doesn’t take long to start seeing improvements when you are receiving the right treatment for your specific needs.

Is holistic health right for you? If you would like further information or suggestions on which practitioners may be able to support you on your journey, search on Holistic Room today or email us at hello@holisticroom.com, let us know what you are struggling with and we will send you relevant links to some practitioners you can connect with.

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Guest Post written by Holistic Room
This blog first appeared on the Holistic Room at holisticroom.com