Some thoughts on Integrative Medicine

Integrative Medicine has its origins in the whole system concepts of Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine.  These non-western approaches do not separate the body into parts, but rather look at the patient as an integrated whole including mind, body, spirit and community.  The Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona defines Integrative Medicine as healing-oriented medicine that takes account of the whole person, including all aspects of lifestyle.  It emphasizes the therapeutic relationship between practitioner and patient, is informed by evidence, and makes use of all appropriate therapies.  This approach intuitively understands that humans don’t exist in a vacuum, and neither do their parts.  Everything in our lives—what we think, how we feel, what we believe, our habits, our movement, our diet, our environment, our jobs, our relationships, our community, our spirituality—everything affects our health and well being.  I am waiting for the day when medical culture really acknowledges this fact.  It is the key to not only achieving individual wellness, but also the key to societal change in the health patterns currently taking their toll like obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

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