The soul always knows what to do to heal itself. The challenge is to silence the mind. – Caroline Myss
About a year ago, I began meeting with a pain psychologist hoping I could learn how to manage my pain enough to function reasonably well, and do it without drugs. I didn’t want something that would only cover the symptoms. He told me it would be hard work but I would be learning some valuable tools. I felt relief because it was the first time in a long time I didn’t have drugs pushed towards me. Someone in the healthcare community finally listened to me (I mean really listened), heard me, understood me and supported me. Wow!
At first, I anticipated being coached and refreshed on some deep breathing techniques. Instead, we started with “meditation” – mindfulness meditation. I was surprised because I had never tried meditation before, and I didn’t understand how to do it. I thought, “What does mindfulness really mean?” I pictured myself in nature sitting in the typical meditation fashion, eyes closed and uttering “ommmmm……ommmmm……” More
This butterfly must have quite a story to tell. It seems to have been through a lot, but it’s still pretty. It reminded me of a program I saw recently on monarch butterflies. One of the segments showed a butterfly after a very long migration northward. She had just finished laying her eggs on a milkweed and was trying to fly away. Her wings were tattered and transparent; her colors and design were faded; she was weak and could barely fly. What a journey they have.
I’m interested to know what your general experiences have been. Have any of your doctors ever mentioned alternative treatments to you? I do realize that presenting alternative treatments, or any treatment option, has to be sensible for you, and that it may not even apply to your condition.
Answers may be significantly different depending on what country you live in. The definition of alternative medicine may even be different, but for the purposes of this poll, we’ll divide alternative medicine into three general categories, as used by Dr. Oz (see video in my earlier posting):
Things you put in your mouth – herbs, supplements, foods
Manual body manipulation like acupuncture, massage therapy, etc.
Mind/Body connection – meditation, breathing exercises, etc.
Ichigo Ichie will still be a place where I share my healing experiences. Creativity Aroused will be a place to post my art – photos, photomanipulations, poems, haiku, etc. I’ll call it my “album of creativity.” It will include the art I post in Ichigo Ichie, and more.
Exploring creativity is part of my healing process, but I wanted a separate place just for my creativity attempts, whatever comes to mind, and for whatever reason.
Kites rise highest against the wind – not with it. – Winston Churchill
I came across an interesting three-part video on the Dr. Oz website on Controversial Medicine: Alternative Health where he explores the various sides of the alternative treatment debate and why doctors may be afraid to even mention them. I say kudos to doctors who are open to considering “alternative therapies in their traditional practices.”
There are a small handful of doctors I’ve seen who are open to discussing alternative therapies to complement their treatments for me. More
I am very weary of prescription medications! I don’t even want to be near them if at all possible. Some have been ok, but my experiences with many meds lately have been so horrifying and intolerable that I still shiver when I think about them. The pivotal experiences started last year with the advent of my mysterious symptoms that I talked about in my last posting.
Last year while the doctors were baffled and trying to diagnose my various symptoms, they were also treating me with drugs. It seemed like the focus of using drugs was on symptom suppression since they couldn’t figure out what was wrong. I often told my doctors, “I don’t want anymore drugs. I don’t want anymore side effects.” Some responses I got were, “I can’t help you beyond drugs”, “Don’t worry so much about drugs.” More
“When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.” – Henry Ford
Last year, 2010, can be summed up as a nightmare. What happened to lead me to such desperation? First, I’ll give you a little background.
In late 2009, I had neck surgery after enduring almost a year of intense pain, burning and numbness in my neck down to my fingers. I had tried all the non-surgery offerings like physical therapy, steroid injections, painkillers and nerve medication. These provided only mild relief at best. My doctor stopped the medications after a few months because of the side effects, but I’ll save the topic of drugs for later. The “textbook” surgery went “very well” and I was on my way to regaining a big part of my life back, so I thought. More
Soft Glow, a photo by Fergiemoto on Flickr.
(Click image to see larger photo)
I originally had a different topic for today’s posting, but this morning I was oddly driven to write something haiku-inspired. I’m puzzled because I’ve never written a bit of voluntary poetry since I was a kid, at least not that I can remember. So, I decided to explore this new request. I chose one of my photos and let the words form around the image. Short as the poetry may be, here is it’s debut:
>>:::<<
Vibrant sun soft hues
Honey made of gentle dustings;
Earth’s supple song
>>:::<<
Fergiemoto
"The part can never be well unless the whole is well." -- Plato
I’m not a health care provider, just a patient. The information in this blog is not advice. I am mostly writing about my experiences. Consult with your healthcare professional first.
"The part can never be well unless the whole is well." -- Plato
