Naturopathic Medicine
Washington State offers some of the nations top Naturopathic Doctors and clinics, Green Wellness being one of them! Naturopathic medicine is a holistic treatment, focusing on the patient’s wellness as a whole as opposed to one specific problem, and includes a wide range of medical practices.
It is commonly confused with Homeopathic medicine which, while also holistic, it doesn’t hold clinical validity within the medical community. The goal of naturopathy is to provide complete care for the patient and addressing the spiritual, emotional and metaphysical aspects of health without the use of pharmaceutical drugs Working with Naturopath Doctors (N.D.) may require minor or even major lifestyle changes that will ultimately improve the patient’s quality of life.
There are basic principles that Naturopathy follows to give patients the highest quality of care and treatment. The first is to let nature heal. Our bodies have a powerful instinct for healing itself without the interference of medication. By finding and removing and preventing barriers to self healing, such as poor diet or unhealthy habits, naturopathic physicians can promote a balanced foundation for the patient’s health.
To identify and treat causes is another principle, Naturopathic physicians understand that symptoms will only return unless the root illness is addressed. Rather than cover up the symptoms they seek to find and treat the cause of these symptoms. Naturopathic physicians strive to, before all, do no harm.
Three ideas are followed to ensure this:
Use low-risk procedures and healing techniques—such as supplements, herbal extracts and homeopathy—yielding little to no side effects. When possible, do not suppress symptoms, which are the body’s efforts to self-heal.
Fevers, coughs, et cetera are exit channels for the root illness, and the naturopathic medicines help to extract and treat the root, rather than the symptoms it produces. Adapt each diagnosis and treatment plan to fit each patient. We all heal in different ways and the naturopathic physician is very mindful of that. Naturopathic medicine follows the idea that doctors must be educators, as well as physicians, and to provide parents, our youth, and our communities with valuable knowledge.
That’s why naturopathic physicians teach patients proper nutrition, active exercise plans, how to full relax the body and mind, as well as nurture themselves physically and emotionally. Naturopathic physicians understand each individual has a unique physical, mental, emotional, environmental, social, sexual and spiritual makeup, and that these factors all have impact on our health. This understanding allows for consultations and treatments that are similarly unique.
Lastly, a naturopathic physician works to prevent illness through proactive medicine. This reduces patient cost, pain, and ultimately saves lives. This feeds into the holistic principle, that by treating the patient as a whole entity in a proactive manner, we experience greater wellness and are less likely to need treatment in the future.