Guiding Principles for Diagnosis and Treatment in Holistic Medicine

Guiding principles for diagnosis and treatment in holistic medicine

The principles following below are the credo of Holistic Healing Resolutions website. The service afford by HHR aspires to abide, fulfill and act accordingly:

1. The principle of relativism and personalization: There is not one absolutely good or bad treatment or recommendation, except where it’s suitable or unsuitable for a specific person under specific circumstances.For instance, we’re accustomed to thinking that smoking is absolutely a bad thing, but in fact, smoking can also be therapeutic for some people in some situations. Almost any substance you will think about, even poison, can be used as medicine, if used properly. This principle is most certainly also valid to food. There is no food which is categorically healthy. There is only food which is suitable or unsuitable for a specific person at a specific time in their life.
2. The principle of respect for tradition: Diagnosis and treatment are based on Chinese medicine, Ayurvedic teachings, macrobiotics and the teaching of the Maimonides. These methods address the energetic quality of plants and food, and the effect of different cooking, processing and mixing methods on this energetic quality.Plants and food are used and cooked traditionally with inclination to using local food, which is eaten based on the seasons of the year.
3. The principle of five elements for diagnosing diseases:
   • Diagnosing what causes and cures the disease
   • Preceding signs of illness
   • Signs of the actual disease
   • What improves or exacerbates the disease and its signs
   • Disease course
4. The principle of removing the cause: The first step for treating an illness is recognizing its presence and the second is discovering the causes of the illness and removing them.
5. The holistic principle: The intent of diagnosis and treatment is to look at all the different aspects that make up the person.This principle aims to explain, diagnose and holistically treat the symptoms of illness, by connecting the seemingly focal illness to the systemic view point.For example, the symptom of a headache will not be treated with pain killers as a comprehensive long-term solution. Instead, a thorough investigation will be held into thedifferent causes that lead to this problem. Another example of the holistic principle, taken from herbal medicine, is the preference to use the whole plant, rather than a single component from it. Both human beings and plants have complex systems, so when the twains do meet, they reciprocate with one another.When the human system only meets a single concentrated active component, the effect is either positively or negatively extreme, meaning that one imbalance is just replaced by another imbalance.
6. The gradual change principle: It’s advisable to make nutritional and lifestyle changes gradually but consistently to attain a core change.Some situations, like health emergencies or when people don’t respond well to slow and gradual change, fast and drastic changes are required.In treating addictions as well, the substance of addiction must be tapered down gradually while adding something new to life that resembles in its qualities the substance being replaced.For instance, when quitting smoking gradually, it is advisable to gradually increase physical activity.And sometimes, there is no escaping the need to quit abruptly.
7. The mind-body principle: Diagnosis and treatment looks at and focuses on the person’s inner self; his/her beliefs, thoughts, feelings, emotions, habits, memories and how all of this affects and is affected by the physical being.
8. The principle of practicality: The recommendations must be personalized for each person, so that s/he will be able to actually carry them out.
9. The principle of modesty and openness: The treatment approach is open to a variety of therapeutic tools, according to consideration and necessity.It’s important to know the benefits, disadvantages and limitations of every therapeutic tool and to be knowledgeable about illnesses and conditions which are untreatable.
10. The principle of harmony between man and nature: The treatment methods lean towards using the most natural components over artificial ones, to preserve nature and aspire for harmony with it.There is a clear preference towards using food and plants that grow wild or are grown and processed using traditional methods that support the preservation of life and health on planet Earth.
11. The principle of like increases like: Similar qualities increase each other and dissimilar qualities decrease from each other.For example, dry skin exacerbates in dry climate, and diminishes when the climate is humid.Whether there is similarity or difference, it’s mostly related to natural qualities such as hot and cold, humid and dry, heavy and light, according to the 20 basic qualities in Ayurveda.