What makes me embrace 'woo-woo' and why its good to be open-minded

I am ‘Woo-Woo’. I am a holistic health practitioner who uses Homeopathy, tissue salts, nutritional supplements and Bach flower essences for myself, my family, pets and my clients who come to see me. I have been put into a few categories: mainly that of a witch, a bullshit practitioner, a wanna-be doctor who never was… someone who practices woo woo stuff that does F*** all and the list goes on….

But I am all good with it.

Here’s why:

I’ve never wanted to be a doctor. It’s not that I wasn’t smart enough, so I chose something easier. I’ve aced anatomy & physiology with A’s. I breezed through Pathophysiology with top marks too. I have worked in Education payroll so my maths can’t be too shabby if I was in the role for 4 years. I want you to know one really important aspect about me and the vast majority of alternative/complementary practitioners: I/we are not against conventional medicine. I have used and still do use conventional medicine where necessary and so does my family and children. It saves lives. I am thankful for the anaesthetist who kept any eye on my survival while under sedation during a procedure I had last year. I certainly wasn’t going to go through it on rescue remedy alone (although it was a key part in my pre-op preparation).

So why did I chose to embrace and study ‘alternative’ or ‘complementary medicine?’. Why did I choose of all things to embrace a career in professional Woo-wooism?

I too was once very skeptical. Very skeptical in fact until I opened my mind to the possibilities. If it didn’t work for me, then fine, that was that, and my opinion would remain unchanged. But my open mind led me to give some alternatives a go when it came to looking at options for my health and what was going on for me. The results?

A consultation and health plan with a Naturopath helped me to change my diet, supplements helped increase my energy, restore iron levels. A consultation with a Homeopath sorted out my gut issues, an acupuncturist helped restore hormonal issues. All the things that conventional medicine could not offer me. They could help me ‘find’ the issue e.g. Irritable bowel, but then would refer me to a dietition. They could identify hormonal issues, but could only offer the contraceptive pill to alleviate the awful symptoms I was experiencing. If I chose to take the contraceptive pill, it would take away the symptoms, but the underlying issue still remained. I wasn’t after temporary relief, I needed a long term solution.

So, It works for me. "‘Woo-woo’ works for my children - one in particular had chronic asthma, ear issues, recurring sore throats. A visit to a Homeopath and sorted in a few months. I didn’t choose to spend 4 years studying Homeopathy and work full time to pay for my study if I truly did not see any benefit. It simply doesn’t make sense. Our ponies don’t know we are giving them arnica and hypericum for their injuries, but it works beautifully and quickly. Is that placebo? When moving house we gave our cats rescue remedy and they immediately calmed. Is that placebo?

What does make sense is how us woo-woo practitioners approach health. “Our body is always working in its own best interests to inform us when something is not functioning as it should. According to the Webster dictionary, the meaning of health is ‘freedom from defect, pain or disease’. It defines health as what it is not rather than what it is. Health is a state of positive wellbeing. True health must be thought of in positive , dynamic terms, not simply as the absence of disease” (Hilery Dorrian, The Home Prescriber Course - CHE).

• Homeopaths don’t diagnose - they treat the person, not the disease

• Naturopaths don’t diagnose - they use nutrition, lifestyle advice, medicinal herbs, supplements

• Acupuncturists don’t diagnose - their approach to health is via lines of energy in the body (meridians) using very fine needles inserted into the skin in specific points

• Doctors /Specialists- Can diagnose and treat the disease/bacterial infection/prescribe medication, perform minor or major surgery

When it comes to your health you have choices. ‘Woo-woo’ practitioners aren’t here to tell you to run from conventional medicine and we never tell you to stop taking prescribed medication. Our role is to work alongside any existing healthcare plans you have in place - (and a reminder to tell your GP if you are also under the guidance of a Naturopath, Homeopath etc) and likewise inform your Naturopath/Homeopath if you are taking regular medication! We need to know!

“To understand the difference between conventional medicine and Homeopathy we need to understand the different approach to symptoms” (Hilery Dorrian, The Home Prescriber Course - CHE).

What works for you may not work for others and what works for others may not work for you. If Naturopathy, Homeopathy, Acupuncture, Reiki and so on didn’t have a place in our world, it wouldn’t exist. But it does, and many people still seek the help from a ‘woo-woo’ practitioner because it works for them.

So, I say stay leave them to it and remain open-minded.

I continue to use many ‘woo-woo’ products and essences and the results speak for themselves. One day you might get fed up just like I did, and seek the guidance and support from a ‘woo-woo’ person yourself.

And just like me, you might be bloody pleasantly surprised.