Naturopathic medicine can treat all sorts of health conditions: from pregnancy symptoms to chronic illness to depression and anxiety. Patients may be looking for alternative treatments to conventional medicine, or wanting to prevent future illness and disease. Different forms of naturopathy have been used in various cultures for thousands of years, and it has since become increasingly popular and widely practiced in the Western world.

Naturopathy is a type of holistic medicine, meaning that practitioners look for the cause of disease rather than just treating the symptoms. Naturopaths strive to understand the body as a whole and emphasize prevention as the best cure for all disease and illness. Naturopaths will work with you to modify your lifestyle and rebuild your health.

Naturopathic treatment encompasses physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health and utilizes the healing power of nature. There are a number of specialties that fall under the term “naturopath.” Some naturopaths may specialize in nutrition, while others have other health science degrees. Some naturopaths may also be homeopaths or massage therapists.

Naturopathic treatment can include diet and lifestyle changes, herbal medicines, supplements, topical creams, homeopathic remedies, acupuncture, and ayurveda, which is a natural healing approach from India. The focus is also on detoxifying the body, which may be done through taking herbal tinctures and vitamins, and giving up substances like caffeine, alcohol and sugar.

Naturopathy can be used to treat any medical condition, either in conjunction with traditional medicine, or as an entirely separate treatment. Some of the common medical problems people seek naturopathic help for include acne, asthma and allergies, headaches, arthritis, chronic fatigue, digestive disorders and menopause symptoms. A naturopath will work with you to develop a customized health and wellness treatment plan that will balance your mind and body.

Many employer health plans now cover visits to the naturopath. A visit to a naturopath will be somewhat similar to a visit to your general family doctor. The naturopath will ask about your medical history, diet and lifestyle, and may perform a physical exam and recommend lab tests. It’s important that you always share the details of any naturopathic treatment with your medical doctor, and vice versa, as certain treatments and medications can negatively interact with one another.

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Though it is not something of which I am particularly proud, I struggled with major depression since age thirteen. It may be even further back than that, that is my first memory of “feeling different”. I am now fifty three.

Of course I did not even know it was depression, and even if I had discovered it was, it would have been hidden, as, in the polite society of rural Mississippi, at the time, one did not see a therapist or psychiatrist and remain in society. He or she was hidden in the closet. Today things have changed and there are many modern- day state-of-the-art recovery programs and mental health clinics in the region. Alas, mum is still the word. I now live in southern California, where, at social functions, therapy and recovery are often a common them at social functions and events.

It was not until late in life, when I discovered a stray dog named “Thor” that I learned about alternative therapy. I had often heard that owning an animal can relieve depression and even lower blood pressure, but the dramatic changes were yet to be seen for the first few months of owning Thor. I noticed I wanted to get out more and walk him, as he loved that activity. This in itself lifted my depression. A long walk can, in fact, increase endorphins in the system.

Thor introduced me to people. People will open up to a cute dog faster than they will a human, hence they open up to the human as well. Thor loved people. I had owned dogs in the past, but Thor was my first rescue dog. The jury is out whether he rescued me or I rescued him. I did not adopt him from a shelter, but surely would have had I found him at one. He showed up in the rural Mississippi woods with a pack of two other dogs. He was the sickest of them, obviously abused and/or hit by a vehicle as he limped, and was a matted ball of fur. A vet friend took him home and put him on drips, shaved him, and gave him to me.

I researched and put him on the b.a.r.f diet. (bones and raw food). I put him on the same herbal tinctures I was taking. He never had another vet bill for a decade and lived to be nearly twenty two. He had ten very happy years as did I; mostly depression-free. Both of us were quite depressed when we found each other. He passed away nearly a month ago today. I continue to grieve over Thor but feel soon I will be ready for another rescue dog. I will visit the shelter. It is not completely selfless; I understand fully now the meaning of “they do much more for us than we do for them). A rescued dog remembers. He/she gives unconditional love and we get that gift to pass on to other people. I can’t begin to tell you the difference in the way I am treated now by other people, and, the way I treat them. I do my best to do what Thor taught me; that is, love them unconditionally. He saw me as one of God’s creatures; to him I was a god, and now I see all living creatures as part of God’s creation. I never was that religious and am not now. But how can I not be spiritual. Thor helped cure my incurable depression.

Rick London is an e-entrepreneur and cartoonist. Many of his cartoon products are dog-related and a percentage of each sale goes to benefit various animal causes. He is also the founder of the Internet’s top cartoon site, Londons Times Comics.

Rick London is a cartoonist and lover of animals, particularly dogs and cats. He founded the Internet’s top cartoon Londons Times Cartoons and a number of E-stores featuring his dog cartoons. A percentage of sales benefit animal causes. Some direct pages of dog-related products can be found at [http://www.cafepress.com/9500/4383555] at his Rick London Collection store. Another at RickLondonwear http://www.printfection.com/londonstimestees/DOGS-CARTOON-GIFTS-and-TEES/_s_81517 and his main cartoon site, Londons Times Cartoons http://www.londonstimes.us lures over 4000 vistors per day.

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