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The object of living is work, experience, happiness –Henry Ford
How to Find a
Natural Health-Care Provider
From Mother Earth
Living, by Jaclyn Chasse
If
you aspire to live a natural lifestyle, it makes sense to find a health-care
practitioner who understands, supports and prescribes in line with your values
and practices. While providers of alternative medicine used to be considered on
the fringes of the health-care system, times have changed. Today, nearly 40
percent of Americans report using some form of complementary medicine, and
integrative, natural health-care providers can be found in almost every locale,
offering effective care to help you stay healthy and address many conditions.
As
a naturopathic physician, I have the pleasure of working directly with
practitioners from many backgrounds. Each offers a unique perspective. But the
growing popularity of complementary medicine means more and more practitioners
have appeared on the market. Your biggest challenge when choosing natural
medicine is identifying a trustworthy, experienced provider you want to work
with. The best choice depends upon your health needs and what you’re looking
for from your provider.
Questions
to Ask Any Natural Health-Care Provider
When
interviewing any potential natural medicine practitioner, start by analyzing
these three important factors.
1.
Ask about their training and credentials. Most fields of natural medicine have
associated degrees, licenses or accrediting organizations. Ask where and how a
practitioner was trained and for how long, as well as about her professional
experience, particularly with the medical issues you face. I recommend choosing
practitioners with a minimum of three years’ experience. If you ever sense a
practitioner isn’t being straight with you or is inflating her experience, move
on.
2.
Determine which level of medical expertise you need. If you’re looking for
someone to manage your medical care, diagnose disease or treat an advanced
condition, you will want a naturopathic physician or medical doctor who
specializes in integrative medicine. Such professionals can manage drugs if
needed and make referrals to specialists more seamlessly. If you’re looking for
suggestions for how to improve your health (for example, to lose weight);
manage less-serious conditions; or want to seek a second opinion while
retaining your relationship with your primary-care doctor, you may consider a
provider with less medical training but more training in specific modalities.
(I think of this difference as medical care versus consultative advice.)
3.
Find someone you can partner with. Many patients come to me because they say
they aren’t feeling heard or understood by their original doctor. They may feel
their symptoms haven’t been taken seriously, that they don’t get the time they
need with their doctor, or that their doctor talks down to them. No matter what
type of natural health-care provider you choose, find someone who inspires you
to live healthier and who can help you find the path to get there.
Naturopathic
physicians
Naturopathic
physicians (NDs) are the natural medicine equivalent of family doctors. They
can provide standard exams, order lab tests and treat illnesses with natural
medicines as well as pharmaceutical drugs.
What
do they treat? NDs typically act as primary-care providers for those oriented
toward natural medicine — they can handle health care from birth through
adulthood, from annual exams to disease care. They often use a combination of
natural therapies to treat health conditions. NDs are most commonly seen for
digestive complaints, fatigue, thyroid imbalance and women’s health concerns,
but they can treat many conditions.
What
should I ask? Ask your ND whether she is licensed by the state, as NDs are
required to train in four-year medical schools where they study both
conventional and natural medicine. They are also extensively trained in
nutrition, herbal medicine, physical medicine (including spinal manipulations),
conventional medicine (including pharmaceutical drugs) and counseling
techniques, so ask whether she has experience treating your condition. If
you’re looking for a specific treatment, ask in advance whether she offers this
treatment when appropriate. Many NDs take standard health insurance.
Author’s
note: It’s nearly impossible to encompass the breadth of health-care
practitioners. Just because I didn’t detail Ayurveda, massage or any other
modality doesn’t mean these practitioners can’t potentially offer value to you.
Excerpted from Mother Earth Living, a
national magazine devoted to living wisely and living well. Please visit www.MotherEarthLiving.com or call
(800) 340-5846 to subscribe. Copyright 2013 by Ogden Publications Inc.
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