People are increasingly turning to Alternative methods of healing. There are many reasons for this. A lot of western pharmaceuticals come with unwanted side effects and can be very expensive. Because of this rise in interest, many medical centers now offer alternative healing.
These are all names for types of healing that are not Western Medicine.
Pushing it down
Types of Alternative Healing include aromatherapy, self help, meditation, shamanism, crystal healing, color healing, the use of jewelry, gemstones, colors, horoscopes, divinations or self created programs not related to a specific organized healing discipline.
Psychic Student Types of Healing Hub
Here’s a comprehensive list of the alternative forms of healing and the types of healers that are available. You may be surprised by how many they are – I was!
They’re in alphabetical order and there’s a short description of each.
Acupressure
Acupressure is acupuncture without the needles.
In this version, pressure is applied to acupuncture energy meridian points by the hand or elbow of the practitioner.
Sometimes, specialist devices are used instead.
Acupuncture
The insertion of extremely fine, filiform needles through the skin at specific points on the body with the intention of manipulating energy / Qi.
The filiform needles are usually made from stainless steel, but can also be gold or silver.
Angel Healing
Archangel Raphael is the supreme healer in the angelic realm and his main role is to support, heal, and guide in matters involving health.
Anytime you call upon Raphael, he’s there. The healing archangel isn’t shy or subtle in announcing his presence.
He wants you to know that he’s with you, as a way of comforting you and easing stress along your way to a healthy recovery.
Read More: What is an Angel?, Guardian Angels
Aromatherapy
Many people think that “aromatherapy” means anything that smells good, like scented candles, pot pourri, and perfume. It actually means the therapeutic application of plant essential oils (usually diluted in a solution) by qualified Aromatherapists.
Aura Healing
If you are near to a negative or angry person, their feelings can be absorbed by your aura.
If it isn’t healed regularly, it could become ragged or torn. This could make you feel depressed or ill.
Aura healing is achieved by meditation and visualization. Crystals also work well.
Read More: Auras for Beginners,
Ayurvedic Medicine
The word Ayurveda is a Sanskrit word meaning the “science of life.”
Ayurvedic medicine originated in India. It is probably the oldest system of caring for health in the world.
Ayurvedic medicine is completely holistic. People who use in work to create harmony between the body, mind, and spirit. The Ayurvedic belief is that keeping this balance can prevent illness, treat acute conditions and contributes to a long and healthy life.
More than 90 percent of the population in India use some type of Ayurvedic therapy. This could include eating using Ayurvedic dietary principles, practicing traditional medicine or getting help from practitioners who have been highly trained in Ayurveda.
In the Western world, Ayurveda is widely recognized as a form of complementary healthcare. Many Westerners now use and enjoy Ayurveda in the form of massage, meditation on cleansing / detox therapies.
Biofeedback
This involves the use of electronic monitors measuring functions such as the heart rate, number of respirations per minute, the blood pressure, any tension in muscles and activity in the brain.
Patients suffering from ailments affecting any of these are fitted with an appropriate monitor and then taught how to use their mind and emotions to decrease symptoms and certain conditions.
Does it Work?
Biofeedback subjects have reported having lower blood pressure, decreased anxiety, greater flexibility and a sharpening of their mential functions.
Are there Any Contraindications?
Always work with a Health Provider who is trained in the use of Biofeedback. This is important because if you are taking any medications for the area that you wish to work on, the dosage will need careful monitoring and may need decreasing as the Biofeedback begins to work. Do not ever attempt Biofeedback on your own.
Botanical Medicine
In this form of alternative medicine, plants or plant extracts are employed in the treatment or prevention of illness. This method of alternative medicine is as old as time.
Are They the Same As Herbal Remedies?
Pretty much. The difference is that the term “Botanical Medicine” also allows the inclusion of parts of the plant that are not herbs such as seeds, stems, roots and bark.
Why are They Sometimes Called Dietary Supplements?
This is so that they fit into a Government Category which sets out how substances may be sold and regulated. They are regulated as foods, not as pharmaceutical drugs.
In the United States, most botanical medicines are classed as dietary supplements. Some botanicals, such as digitalis leaf, are classed as pharmaceutical drugs.
Vitamins, minerals and amino acids are also categorized as dietary supplements.
Dietary supplements may be in the form of tablets, capsules, gelcaps, liquids, powders or bars.
The law that regulates dietary supplements is different from the one that regulates pharmaceuticals. Makers of dietary supplements are not allowed to claim that they treat disease or prevent it.
Breathwork
When we feel panicky or stressed, our immediate (and often subconscious) reaction is to breathe more shallowly and to take shorter breaths. This results in hyperventilation – less oxygen being taken into the blood which in turn, makes our muscles tense, which makes us feel more stressed, which makes us breathe more shallowly…
Breathwork is used to break this cycle by making you aware of how you are breathing.
It involves some techniques which are unique to breathwork and others which are commonly used in other disciplines such as qigong, tai chi and yoga.
Breathwork is highly useful because you can use the techniques at any time and in any place. By simply focusing your attention on your breath, your mind is able to let go of upsetting thoughts and emotions more easily.
Breathwork is generally safe for most people of all ages and all different levels of physical fitness. and age.
Chakra Balancing / Chakra Healing
We have hundreds of chakras but mainly deal with seven of them. Each on is associated with specific parts of the body and potential ailments of that area. The higher chakras relate to the spiritual.
If the chakras become unbalanced, it can cause a malfunction in the associated area. It also works the other way around. We can cause blockages with our behaviour and emotions.
To keep the chakras balanced so that energy can flow freely, it is necessary to work on them regularly. This may be done using vizualization of chakras and chakra colors, chakra meditation, working with chakra crystals or chakra stones, using sound or by having a healer work on you.
Many people like to wear a chakra bracelet or chakra necklace to remind themselves of their chakras and how important it is to keep them balanced and healthy.
Read More: Chakras 101, Chakra Colours and Meanings
Chinese Herbs
After diet therapy, herbal therapy is maybe the most used method of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). TCM uses herbal therapy to treat illness and to optimize health so that further illness may be prevented.
TCM uses thousands of plant, animal and mineral substances. TCM Practitioners learn how the substances are traditionally used, the correct dosages and any contra-indications. They also need to know if the substances may interact with any western pharmaceuticals that the person may be taking and keep up to date with current medical research.
How do TCM Practitioners Create Formulations?
It’s common to use more than two substances in a formula. This helps to create balance as the diagnosis is often holistic.
TCM Practitioners modify traditional formulas to suit each patient. The treatments are carefully tailored to meet the specific needs of each person.
Chinese medicinal formulations are prepared in a number of different ways:
Chinese Herbal Decoctions
This lengthy tea preparation is the most traditional way of creating an herbal formula in China but is not widely used elsewhere.
Herbal Powders…
are easier to prepare and not so pungent as the more traditional teas.
Chinese Patent Formulas…
are herbal formulations made into a pill, tablet or capsule. These are the most commonly used form of Chinese herbal medicine in the Western world.
Chiropractic
Most people think of chiropractors as mainstream because they often work in western medical settings and most health insurance plans cover treatment by a chiropractor.
However, it is not regulated, is not taught in Universities, Medical Schools or Nursing Schools and no surgery or drugs are used in patient care. This means that it is still considered as alternative healthcare.
How is Chiropractic Integrated with Western Medicine?
Chiropractic is a complementary medicine that dovetails with the conventional. Health professionals who understand the unique part that chiropractors have to play, will refer their patients. Chiropractors are increasingly included as a valuable member of an interdisciplinary team.
They are therefore able to work alone or as part of a team in treatment or rehabilitation.
What Makes Chiropractic ‘Alternative’?
Chiropractic uses a unique philosophy. It places emphasis on the intelligence of the body and works with preventative care to maintain health and quality of life.
Some Chiropractors aren’t too happy about the integration with conventional medicine and would rather abide by the original concept of the practice. However, most are happy that it is now considered one of the many methods of care available to patients.
Clinical Hypnosis
This is when hypnosis is used in a clinical (or medical) setting to help patients with issues such as pain relief, losing weight, stopping smoking or improving self esteem. In this setting, patients are taught how to become deeply relaxed to keep up the effects of the hypnosis.
This is only done in a clinical area by a Healthcare Provider who has been properly trained in the mode (and limitations) of hypnosis.
Clinical hypnosis is useful for helping with physiological and psychoanalytical issues. It can be particularly helpful in altering a patient’s feelings, perceptions, behaviours and patterns of thinking.
Hypnosis is induced by instructing the patient to remember pleasurable experiences and then suggestions are made for ways to relaxe and feel calm and well.
How Could Clinical Hypnosis Help Me?
Clinical hypnosis has been shown to be effective in pain relief, the treatment of depression, anxiety and stress, breaking habitual disorders, for relaxed childbirth and even for a form of anaesthetic during surgical procedures.
Are There Any Contra Indications to Clinical Hypnosis?
It’s not advised for anyone with personality disorders including schizophrenia or narcissistic disorders. It’s vital to find a licensed professional who has received training and certification in Clinical Hypnosis.
Colour Therapy / Chromotherapy
Colour medicine (also known as Chromotherapy) has been used for as long as other ancient therapies. It was certainly known about in 2000 BC. It is known that Light therapy was used in China, India and Greece. The Ancient Egyptians used sunlight and colour for healing. At that time, people didn’t understand why it worked but they knew that it did. They only used red, blue and yellow at that time as they didn’t mix two or more colours to create a third one.
Physical Matter and Energy
Einstein worked out that energy and matter are dual expressions of the same universal substance. This was the basis for his famous equation E = mc2
The density or matter of a substance is determined by how fast it vibrates.
If it vibrates slowly, it is physical and if it vibrates at the speed of light (or even higher) it is called subtle matter or light energy.
Light is caused by the fluctuating changes in natural electric and magnetic fields. So light is electromagnetic radiation. Light is energy.
Where Does Colour Fit In?
Colour is produced when energy and matter interact.
Each colour has a particular wavelength, a specific frequency and a precise amount of energy.
The Visible Spectrum
The human eye can only see light between the wavelengths of 380 and 780 nm. This “window” is called the visible spectrum (or visible light).
The visible colour spectrum.
Visible light can be categorized by frequencies. Each frequency relates to a color such as the colors of the rainbow: red, yellow, pink, green, orange, purple and blue. Those frequencies also include whether the colour is percived as pale or deep.
Where Does Colour Therapy Come Into It?
Chromotherapy is a band in the visible colour spectrum. These visible colours are combined with a source of light and then applied to organs which are functioning below par. This gives the body the healing energy that it needs. The science behind it, is that the biochemical and hormonal processes that occur in the body are activated by energy (electrical or magnetic) that is generated by the colour. It can be used to stimulate or sedate the body, as required to attain balance.
Craniosacral Therapy
This is a very gentle form of ‘hands on’ healing. It is administered by light finger tip pressure being applied to particular point around the head, body, knees and feet.
The goal is to clear perceived restrictions to improve how the central nervous system functions.
How Could Craniosacral Therapy Help Me?
It is useful for helping to reduce migraines, chronic pain, chronic fatigue syndrome and M.E. and post traumatic stress disorder. It can also help with healing following a trauma or surgery.
Craniosacral therapy should only be administered by a trained practitioner.
Is Craniosacral Therapy Covered by Insurance?
Practitioners often need to be licensed in a particular specialty such as massage therapy, chiropractic or physical therapy to qualify for coverage by health insurers.
Craniosacral therapy is sometimes reimbursed under employee flexible healthcare accounts. It’s important to ask your employer to make sure.
Creative Therapies
Creative therapies are offered under the guidance of a qualified therapist. It has been found that if a person engages in a creative endeavour, it helps them to become more expressive and communicative. This, in turn raises their awareness of issues and brings about a desire for change and the impetus to achieve it.
The creative works may involve music, art, dance, movement and many other creative activities.
Crystal Healing
The goal of using healing crystals is to bring the mind, body and spirit back into balanced harmony.
How can Crystals help?
Each type of crystal has a unique internal structure. This causes it to emit tiny electrical impulses at a certain frequency. It is this resonance that gives crystals their healing abilities.
The impulses are very subtle but the neurological system of the body is able to recognize them and receive them.
Each crystal has its own unique energy which may be used to achieve a specific purpose. For example, Tigers Eye can help to improve confidence, increase courage and encourage pride in sucess – but it does all of this without allowing the negatives of these strengths to form an imbalance which could damage the person’s well being.
How is Crystal Healing Administered?
Crystals are placed on particular areas of the body and the surrounding area. This creates a lovely feeling of calmness, quiet and relaxation. Some people may feel tingling sensations or changes in temperature as the body responds to the crystal energy 
and gently comes back into balance.
Wearing Healing Crystal Jewelry
This has become increasingly popular and it is a great way to continuosly deliver crystal energy to your body.
Crystal necklaces, pendants, bracelets and earrings can all do this although the most effective pieces are those worn close to the skin.
Cupping
Cupping is a form of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
It involves placing a cup on the patient’s skin and then creating suction with the aim of drawing out negatives and to stimulate the flow of Qi (energy) to the body surface.
How is the Cupping Suction Created?
Fire Cupping
A flame is inserted into a small glass cup. This removes the air which creates a vacuum. The cup is then quickly turned upside down and the open end is placed onto the skin. The vacuum that was created causes suction which holds the glass in place.
Air Locks
Some cups are specially designed to include an air lock valve. In this method, the cup is inverted and placed onto the skin. The air is then removed with a small pump which creates the necessary vacuum.
Sliding Cup Technique
The Practitioner lubricated the skin before applying the cups. The cups are then slid back and forth across the skin. This gives the effect of cupping plus dermal friction therapy (called gua sha).
What is Cupping Used For?
It is commonly used to treat the common cold, early stages of flu, trauma and muscular pain in the back and shoulders.
Does it Leave Marks on the Skin?
It does. The marks are not painful but are unsightly.
Gwyneth Paltrow is a big fan of TCM and Cupping.
Unfortunately, this has led to some people reporting well meaning parents for child abuse because they have mistaken the cupping marks for signs of violence. Because of this, a responsible TCM practitioner should ask you to give written consent before administering cupping.
Dietary Therapy – Food Based Healing
This term is used when healing is administered by the ingestion of
- a specific diet
- specific foods
- vitamin and/or mineral supplements
- nutrients which are used in normal amounts or very high dosages such as mega-vitamin therapy.
Examples of this include macrobiotic diet, vegetarian diet, eating only foods of a certain color, eating only fruit, eliminating specific foods, low salt diet or diabetic diet.
Dietary Therapies
Nutrition has always been very important in Traditional Chinese Medicine. The first Chinese physician to advocate this was Sun Si Miao. He was a Doctor during the Tang Dynasty and he advocated the examination of a person’s dietary intake and lifestyle before considering anything else.
Yin and Yang
A TCM practitioner adjusts a person’s nutritional intake with food and with herbal formulas to alter the dynamics of the yin and yang energies.
This is done to rebalance the energies, to prevent illness and to maintain good health.
Individual Attention
Chinese Medicine views each person as unique so advice will be tailored to the person’s age, gender, diagnosis pattern, level of activity, the environment that they inhabit and the time of year.
Dermal Friction
This is a form of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Dermal Friction Therapy is called gua sha which is pronounced gwa shaw.
How is Dermal Friction Administered?
It involves the application of a lubricant (such as an oil or vaseline) to the patient’s skin, which is then scraped with a blunt edged tool. The tool may be the edge of a glass or china soup spoon. The aim is to increase the circulation to that area.
It is commonly performed by following acupuncture channels and the movements should be away from the center of the body. Brisk strokes are used and the skin will become reddened due to the friction and the increased circulation.It is often used on the back, neck and shoulders and can also be used on the meatier part of limbs.
What Does Dermal Friction Treat?
It’s used to divert colds and flu caught at an early stage, muscular pains, headaches and fever.
Distance Healing
This is simply healing which is performed when the patient is not present. Heaing energies can be transmitted over any any distance.
The recipient may or may not be aware that this Healing is being sent to them.
It can be very effective as it is often sent with love and concern from relatives and friends.
Edgar Cayce was an amazing distance healer.
Divine Healing
Divine healing involves a supernatural act which solves a problem which may be physical, emotional or spiritual.
Christians would say that the supernatural healer is God. However, most world religions believe in some form of supernatural healing.
- Islam uses incantations (Ruqya) which counter black magic and therefore cure disease.
- Tibetan Buddhists use Gso-wa Rig-pa which is a mixture of medicine, using mantras and meditation.
- New Age practitoners use a variety of methods taken from ancient religions.
All of these require the use of some form of ritual to ask the divine for help.
Divine Healing in the New Testament
Jesus must be one of the most famous healers of all time and roughly one fifth of the gospels is taken up with reporting how he healed the sick.
The constant among all of these views of divine healing is the necessity of ritual. Healing, in the non-Christian religion’s view, requires a physical ritual to coerce a deity into action or to manipulate an impersonal healing force.
Divine Healing According to Christians Now
The Christian camp is divided. Some say that the gift of healing stopped along with the gift of speaking in tongues. This is called cessationism.
Other Christians believe that sign gifts (including the gift of tongues) still exists today.
Emotional Healing / How to Heal Yourself
As humans, we have ideas about how things should be. If these ideas are at odds with how things really are, we are very good at beating ourselves up.
We revisit choices we’ve made, things we’ve said and paths that we feel we should have taken. We diminish our happiness by focussing on what we believe is not right in our current situations.
These negative thoughts and harsh self-judgements can make us emotionally unhappy and therefore, even more negative.
It’s interesting that if we have a pain in our body, it will cease once the cause is removed.
However, emotional pain is not so easily healed. We hold onto it and we believe that if only something was different, we wouldn’t suffer so much. That magical ‘something’ is external. The truth is that we hold onto pain because of false beliefs and perceptions.
How to Release Negative Emotions
- Don’t ignore your emotions, or see them as ‘bad’. Face them and work out what they are saying to you. All emotions have a reason. The most difficult ones are the best teachers of all so try and listen.
- Try to retrain your brain to see your emotions more objectively. Rather than prefacing each emotion with “I” – for example, I am angry, I am unhappy, I am stressed – view the emotion as being around you rather then being about you.
- Be gentle on yourself. If you were advising a friend, you would show compassion. Show yourself some compassion. Remember that all emotions do pass. You know that you won’t feel like this for ever.
- If you always react to a particular situation in a particular way, take a long, hard look at that. As Tony Robbins says “If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.” Maybe it’s time to change.
- Meditate. Meditation is one of the best ways to let go of your old ways of thinking. This is because it gives your mind a chance to leave your old preoccupations behind. The more you do this, the less of a grip those previous preoccupations will have. They will gradually cease to be important to you and will fade away to be replaced with a more positive and calm frame of mind.
Energy Healing / Energetic Healing
Energy Healing (also called Energetic Healing) is the name for any form of therapy that used to bring the energy in our physical or etheric body back into balance.
Our bodies know how to heal themselves and when the energies are balanced, these innate healing systems are able to function efficiently again.
Which Therapies Heal Energies?
In alphabetical order:
- Acupuncture
- Angel Healing
- Aura balancing
- Chakra balancing
- Colour therapy
- Crystal healing
- Flower and Vibrational essences
- Kinesiology
- Reflexology
- Reiki
- Sound therapy
- Spiritual Healing
Faith Healing
Faith healing is the term given to healing where the giver and receiver both have faith that it will work.
It is this faith that allows divine intervention to be channelled through the healer into the person who is being healed.
Faith healing should not be confused with Spiritual Healing.
Faith healing believes in divine intervention in the form of God (or a God) whereas Spiritual Healing believes in divine energy.
Faith healing is administered using prayer and/or by the Faith Healer laying their hands on the person (a ‘hands on healing’) or hovering their hands over them.
Group Healing
This is where an individual seeking healing joins a group and it is the dynamics of the group that helps to heal every member.
This term could be applied to support groups, group therapy or group counselling.
Healer Moderated/Facilitated Healing
Healing Environment
This is creating an environment where you can have peace and quiet to heal yourself. To do this, you need your own space.
If you have a spare room, adapt it to those activities that you find most healing.
For some people it is sleep. For others, it is meditation, getting lost in a book or a creative activity such as painting, drawing, sewing, knitting, doing a jigsaw puzzle or any other passtime that you find relaxing and healing.
Aim to keep this room or special corner as a place where you are always positive. Make a conscious effort to leave all negativity behind as you enter this space.
If you have a busy life (and who doesn’t these days) make a point of scheduling time to spend in your healing environment.
Healing Herbs
Herbs have been used for healing since time immomorial. Most villages had a healer or a hedge witch who knew the best herbal remedies to use for illnesses and healing.
Herbs are in great demand for their healing powers because many people dislike the side effects of so many modern pharmaceuticals. However, herbs may also have side effects so it’s best to always obtain them from someone with experience and deep knowledge.
Healing Light
Healing light can be green from the heart chakra or blue from the throat chakra.
The most powerful light is the divine white light of healing and protection.
The white light comes to us through our crown chakras on the top of our heads.
It is always there and can be accessed directly during meditation and visualization.
It is usually seen as cascading over and through our physical and etheric body, washing away any negativity and filling us with divine light and love.
This term could also be used for the coloured lights used during colour therapy.
Healing Meditation
This is a meditation which is embarked upon with the goal of healing a part of ourselves or a group or a distant person who is not present.
If you do it for yourself, you may employ visualization to heal part of your physical or etheric body. It is often used by individuals for balancing chakras, cleansing the aura and getting energies flowing again. You can use healing mantras during this type of meditation to focus the mind and make the healing even stronger.
In a group setting, the healing may be directed at a member of the group, the group as a whole or for someone who is not present. If it is for the latter, it is a form of Distance Healing.
Read More: Meditation for Beginners, Types of Meditation
Healing Plants
These are plants or parts of plants which are known to have healing properties.
Many of our Western pharmaceuticals are derived from plants.
For instance:
- Digoxin which is used to slow and steady the heartbeat is derived from the foxglove.
- Aspirin which is used as a painkiller and a blood thinner is derived from the bark of the white willow tree.
Healing Power
This is simply the power used for healing.
It could be the healing power of meditation, Reiki, crystals, or anything else that is used for improving physical and spiritual health.
It is a misconception that Healers have healing power. They do not possess it – they channel it from a divine source.
Healing Prayer
Healing Quotes
Something that someone has said about healing that is quoted as being wise, informational, supportive, inspirational or humourous.
Healing Stones
These are stones that are used for the purpose of healing. Many people use the terms crystals and stones interchangeably. This is totally acceptable common usage.
However, it’s not quite accurate.
All crystals are minerals, but not all minerals are crystals.
Crystals are different from stones because they have a repeating crystalline molecular pattern. This repeating pattern can easily be seen in large fluorites, quartzes and garnets.
Some exceptions are the cryptocrystalline ‘stones’. These consist of such tiny crystals, that their crystalline structure can only be viewed under a microscope. These include aventurine, chalcedony and agate.
A stone is one mass of various minerals and they look like a stone as they don’t have angles and are smooth. Examples are lapis lazuli, larimar and granite.
Some healing stones are lapis lazuli, jade and turquoise.
Healing Touch
Healing Touch is a form of energy and complementary therapy. It employs the use of gentle touching which is believed to realign someone’s energy field which in turn, allows the body’s own inherent healing processes to work on the body, mind and spirit.
Like all energy therapies, Healing Touch works on the premis that we are fields of energy. Our constant contact with other people and the environment can cause disharmony.
What Happens During a Healing Touch Session?
The practitioner starts with a centering to calm the mind, bring out compassion and to get in tune with the patient. The practitioner then places his or her hands gently on the patient’s body or makes sweeping gestures with the hands above the body.
It is often used alongside Western medicine and/or in conjunction with other therapies such as massage, visualization, creative therapies, biofeedback and others.
Healing Words
Because we are spirits having a human experience, we often view ourselves as being damaged by external circumstances.
We need to remember that we are spirits and as such, we are already complete and whole.
We also need to remember that it is possible to be healed without being cured.
Connecting with spirit and realising that we are energy beings can facilitate this healing.
Healing words are always positive and may be chanted during a meditation or just repeated as positive affirmations.
However you use them, they will help and have a positive effect on whatever you need to be healed.
Holistic Healing
Holistic healing has been recognized and practiced for thousands of years. Ayurveda is one of the oldest systems and so is Chinese Medicine. Both advocate living a harmonious life in balance with nature.
In 400 BC, Socrates cautioned against treating one part of the body. He said “…for the part can never be well unless the whole is well.”
Holistic healing considers the person as a whole. The goal is to have everything functioning in the best way that it can and to have mind, body and spirit connected. Holistic health asks that people take responsibility for their own choices in order to improve their own health.
Holistic Medicine
This is the active treatment and support of the body’s own innate ability to heal if treated correctly. The healthcare professionals who use holistic methods work together with their patient to achieved the balance required to improve health and well being.
Hybrid Healing
Hypnosis
During hypnosis, a person is put into a relaxed state where they become highly responsive to suggestion.
It is used as a therapy to help with behaviour modifications such as smoking cessation, weight loss and to improve self esteem.
It can also be used for Past Life Regression where the subject is taken back to re-live parts of their previous lives on the earth plane.
Imagery
Integrative (Combined) Healing
Another form of hybrid healing but often including western medicine as well.
Massage Therapy
There are now more than 80 different types of massage and many of them are relatively new, having been developed only in the last thirty years.
Massage is the manual manipulation of soft body tissues to improve health and wellness. Massage may be performed on muscles, tendons, ligaments and connective tissues.
It’s effective for deep relaxation, pain relief, reducing stress and improving the performance of athletes.
The American Massage Association has a good list of the Types of Massage for various health conditions – each with a link to further information.
Mind Body and Spirit
This is a term that is often used but not often explained.
Seeing the mind, body and spirit as one is truly holistic. The three should be balanced so that they can work in harmony with each helping the other two.
If one area is neglected then the other two suffer.
Mind Body Therapies / Mind Body Medicine
These are therapies that use the body to affect the mind, such as qigong, tai chi and yoga.
Like Mind Body and Spirit, Mind Body work together. If one is out of balance, it can affect the other. Healing one, will help to heal the other.
Definition of Mind
In the context of mind body therapies, the mind is not to do with the brain itself but with mental states. These may be conscious of sub conscious states such as attitudes, emotions, thoughts and beliefs.
Our mental state has a big impact on our bodies. For instance, when we are in an anxious mental state, our bodies product stress hormones. So calming the anxiety prevents those hormones from being released.
Most mind body therapies help you to become more aware of your mental state so that you can guide it to be more positive which helps your body to be more balanced and calm. See Mindful Movement next.
Mindful Movement
We know that exercise is important for physical and mental health. However, some activities are specifically focused on lowering stress levels and the knock on effect of negative reactions in the body. Here are three examples:
Qigong
The aim of this ancient Chinese practice is to improve the flow of ‘qi’. Qi is the life force and when that energy is flowing freely, it promotes harmony within the body. This is achieved using qigong exercises, positive affirmations, meditation with visualization and breathwork.
Tai Chi
Another Chinese system that helps Qi to flow freely. These movements use the opposites of Yin and Yang – forward and backword, gentleness and strength, action and serenity.
Yoga
The combination of poses that strengthen and stretch the body, being breath-aware and the meditative effect help the practitioner to connect with universal energy and calm emotions and thoughts.
How Can Mindful Movement Help Me?
All mindful movement has health and psychological benefits. These have been shown to include an increased ability to relax, the ability to concentrate more, feeling more balanced and improved moods.
Any ContraIndications?
As with any form of physical exercise, there is the potential for injury. If you can, find a teacher who is qualified in the form of mindful movement that you would like to perform. Discuss any existing health issues and always be led by your body. Only perform movements that feel right and comfortable for you.
Mindfulness
The symbol for Mindfulness.
It seems that everywhere you look today, you will see ‘mindfulness’ as the key to everything – whether its for improving your productivity at work, increasing athletic performance or just making you more successful, healthier and happier. So what is it? And how can it help you?
What Is Mindfulness?
It is learning to be ‘in the moment’ and to be non-judgmental (of yourself or others), to be patient (with yourself and others) and kind (to yourself and others).
Observe what is happening right now in the present moment – this includes thoughts, feelings and input from your five senses.
Maintain a patient, kind, balanced, non-judgemental, non-reactive relationship to whatever is happening in the moment.
Moxibustion
Moxibustion is a type of heat therapy which is used to improve the flow of Qi (energy) in the body.
How is it Administered?
The heat is given off by a burning moxa stick. The stick is made from a plant called Chinese Mugwort. The leaves are dried. At this dry stage, it is called moxa. The moxa is then compressed.
The stick is lit and then held one or two inches above the surface of the skin often at specific energy points.
The area of skin becomes warm and then red as the circulation improves.
What Does it Feel Like?
Patients say that they feel a sudden warmth which moves in a direction away from the moxa stick. The moxa practioner then knows that the energy block has been cleared and Qi is now flowing freely along the channel.
What Does it Treat?
Moxibustion is used for:
- Pain from trauma, injury or arthritis. It is especially effective in treating pain that usually feels better when heat is applied.
- Digestive problems and elimination issues.
- Gynecological and some obstetrical conditions.
- Protection against cold and flu.
Combined with Acupuncture
It’s common for acupuncture and moxibustion to be performed together. It is believed that using the two therapies together makes each one more effective.
Smoke and Smell
Moxibustion does produce smoke. Smokeless varieties are available but practioners usually prefer to use true moxa created from mugwort which produces a lot of smoke. To counter this, most clinics have good ventilation and air filtration systems.
Burning mugwort smells like marjuana. It’s now common for practitioners to put up signs telling patients that it’s not pot they’re smelling – but the odor of moxibustion.
Naturopathy / Naturopathic Medicine / Natural Healing
This is an holistic type of alternative medicine which promotes mind, body and spirit wellness by assessing each patient and then using natural therapies to restore balance to the whole.
Naturopathic medicine may include acupuncture, herbalism, nutrition and counselling. Treatment works on the premis that our bodies are able to heal themselves when they are in proper balance so the aim is to get that balance and flow of energies just right.
Non-Religious Prayer Healing
This is a healing prayer which does not involve organized religion. It could include meditation, Huna prayer (a short prayer that you repeat every day for thirty days) or asking for help from nature spirits.
Osteopathy / Osteopathic Medicine
Osteopathy or Osteopathic Medicine is an holistic system which focuses on preventing injury and illness.
Osteopaths look for an alteration that can be seen in normal anatomy. The goal is to correct that abnormality to get rid of disease or to lessen the effect that it is having.
It is most commonly used for musculoskeletal issues such as strains, sprains, pain and headaches.
Pranic Healing®
Pranic Healing® is a system of energy healing that was developed by GrandMaster Choa Kok Sui.
Prana is the Sanskrit word for the vital energy or life force that keeps the body healthy and alive. In Chinese it is called Chi and in Japanese it is Ki.
There are 3 main sources of Prana – the air, the sun and the ground.
Pranic Healing® is a no-touch, drug-free complementary therapy system that uses prana to heal a wide range of ailments – both physical and psychological.
The Pranic Healing® brand-name is a registered trademark of Institute for Inner Studies Inc, a for-profit company founded by Choa Kok Sui.
Prayer for Healing
Problem Solving Healing
In this type of healing, it is necessary to recognize problems or issues that are causing illness. The malady may be from stress, emotional pain, mental issues or spiritual issues. Once the issue is recognized and dealt with, the healing will be able to commence.
Qigong / Chi-Kung
The Chinese word Qi (pronounced chee-gung) means ‘breath’ or ‘air’. It is the vital life force energy.
In other cultures, the corresponding term is ‘pneuma’ in Greek, ‘bioelectricity’ in the West and Prana in Sanskrit (Indian).
Gong means ‘work’ and refers to the effort that an individual puts into any practice or skill that takes time, patience and multiple repetitions to achieve.
Qigong is cultivated using techniques such as –
- Breathing
- Postures and gentle stretches
- Meditation
- Guided Visualization or Imagery
Through steady work and study, it is possible to learn how to manipulate Qi to increase self-healing, prevent disease and increase longevity.
Quantum Healing
The term ‘Quantum Healing’ was coined by Deepak Chopra and is the title of his bestselling book written in 1989.
He defined Quantum Healing as “the ability of one mode of consciousness (the mind) to spontaneously correct the mistakes in another mode of consciousness(the body).”
Chopra went to India to explore Ayurveda – one of the oldest known forms of holistic healing.
He combined his insights into Ayurveda with neuroscience and physics from Western medicine.
He discovered a “network of intelligence” in the human body.
This formed the basis for Quantum Healing which alledgedly has the potential to beat cancer, heart disease and other major illnesses.
Quartz Crystal
I’ve given quartz crystal its’ own space here because it is known as the Master Healing Crystal.
This is because it contains the full spectrum of light which means it may balance every one of the chakras and can work on every level to rebalance the body. It is able to make the body’s energy fields stronger and more stable.
Quartz is great for bringing positive thoughts to the forefront and increase positive energy. Thus, it is able to help anyone who needs to take positive action.
It can also help with clear thinking so that you can see your way forward more easily.
It also helps negative energy to be released. This may be your own negativity or negative energies that you have picked up from someone else.
If you work on your pc a lot, put a chunk of quartz crystal next to the monitor. This combats radiation and helps to get rid of static electricity.
Reconnective Healing / The Reconnection®
On his website, The Reconnection® Dr Eric Pearl says
“One day I was a chiropractor and the next day I was something else.” Overnight, he found how to connect with energy and work with it to heal people.
The website goes on to say
“Reconnective Healing It is an easy, non-invasive healing approach that everyone can learn how to do to help heal others and themselves. It is a comprehensive healing approach free of the rituals and techniques integral to the numerous energy healing modalities known today.
You can’t really compare the RH frequencies to “other” frequencies because there aren’t really “other” frequencies. According to what we can best determine from the scientific research results so far, the RH frequency spectrum appears to contain or include all of the known healing frequencies existing to date plus much, much more not seen here before.”
Reflexology
Reflexology involves the application of pressure to particular points on a person’s feet, hands or ears. Each point corresponds to a different organ or system in the body.
For instance, if a reflexology practitioner applies pressure to a particular point on the arch of the foot, it is actually treating the bladder, which is the related organ.
Complementary Therapy
Reflexology does not diagnose issues. It is a commonly used complementary therapy in Europe and Asia for conditions such as
- anxiety
- asthma
- cardiovascular problems
- diabetes
- headaches
- kidney issues
- Pre Menstrual Syndrom (PMS)
- Sinus issues
Studies in Denmark have shown a reduction in sick leave. In one area, employees had six sessions with a reflexologist and a third of them reported greater job satisfaction afterwards.
Reiki Healing
The word Reiki is made from two Japanese words –
- Rei which means “God’s Wisdom or the Higher Power” and
- Ki which is “life force energy”.
so Reiki is “spiritually guided life force energy.”
Reiki was developed in 1922 by Japanese Buddhist Mikao Usui.
It’s a Japanese spiritual, vibrational healing technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing by balancing and strengthening the energies of the body. It is administered by the light laying on (or hovering) of hands. A Reiki massage is the same.
It’s based on the idea that an unseen “life force energy” flows through us and is what causes us to be alive. If your life force energy is low, then you are more likely to get sick or feel stressed. If it’s high, you are more capable of being happy and healthy.
Reiki treatment is usually facilitated by light, non-manipulative touch to a clothed recipient.
What Does Reiki Therapy / Reiki Treatment / Reiki Massage Feel Like?
People receiving Reiki often feel a connection to their own spirituality. Reiki can also make people feel highly emotional as blocks are cleared away.
Reiki Attunement
Reiki is not taught in the usual sense, but is transferred to the student during a Reiki class. The ability and Reiki Symbols are passed on during an “attunement” given by a Reiki master and allows the student to tap into the unlimited supply of “life force energy.”
You can get Reiki treatments from a professional or a friend who has attuned. You can also learn to give yourself Reiki.
Read More: Reiki, The History of Reiki
Religious Prayer Healing
A prayer that is offered up from someone who belongs to a formalized or organized religious group – whether based on a belief in a God or another focus of worship.
Ritual Healing
Any series of religious or non religious actions that the healer and patient believe have meaning and an ability to help with healing.
This can happen in one of the following ways –
The patient gives the healer power to allow healing
OR
the patient is given power by the healer and takes power from the ritual to start the body’s own inherent healing.
The Ritual
A healing ritual may be any part of a healing program including alternative medicine, oriental medicine, western medicine or shamanistic healing.
Rituals are most commonly thought of as being a part of alternative healing or medicine but there are also distinct rituals in western medicine that we adhere to such as –
- calling to make an appointment with the doctor,
- filling out forms
- waiting in the waiting room until called
- getting our weight, blood pressure, pulse and respirations taken
- taking off our clothing
- sitting on the examination table
Then the Doctor who is wearing a white coat (the robes of his healing profession) –
- places a stethoscope on the heart and lungs
- looks in the throat
- feels various parts of the body and
- then makes a diagnosis.
All of this is part of a ritual which we, as patients, expect. If this ritual is not performed, we are left feeling that something has been left out, the visit is unsatisfying and it may block our healing.
Self-Healing
This is any healing that the individual completes, with or without help.
Consent, Permission and Intention
All healing requires three things –
- the consent of the person who is being healed
- the permission of the person who is being healed and
- the intention to heal, from the person who is being healed
If consent is not given then healing is either blocked or slowed down. When healed spontaneously and consent is not allowed after the healing process has taken place, what often happens next may be refer to as “relapse,” the condition returns.
It doesn’t matter if somebody follows a specific program of healing, uses sacred healing items, chants or mantras. The most important elements are that
- they truly want to be healed
- they allow the healing to take place
- they do whatever is needed to become healed
Shamanic Healing
A shaman is a person who interacts with the physical world and the world of spirits. Shamans are common in tribal cultures but many people are turning towards shamanism.
The role of a tribal shaman was to take care of the physical and spiritual health of the members of the tribe. They were also expected to invoke spirits to help the tribe or to see into the future or interpret particular omens.
They were expected to redirect and move energies to –
- restore harmony within a person
- restore harmony between that person and their community and
- restore harmony between the community and the spirit world so that everything was back in balance.
In Shamanism, there is a particular point where the physical and spiritual worlds connect. This point is seen as the center of the world. Anyone studying to be a shamen had to find that point and cross over into the world of spirits. They returned with special powers and knowledge.
How Does Shamanic Healing Work?
There are two parts to the healing –
- Diagnosing both the seen and unseen energies that are causing the problem.
- Working with the energies to solve the problem.
The shaman may take away energies that should not be there or return missing energies.
When this happened in a tribal setting, there was time and support for the phases that a shamen had to complete to effect a healing. Shamens in the western world or other non-tribal cultures have to create the resources that are necessary for the required shift in energies.
Shiatsu
The word ‘shiatsu’ means ‘finger pressure’.
Shiatsu is a non-invasive form of therapeutic touch that originated in Japan. It uses a variety of hand work such as kneading, pressing, soothing, tapping, and stretching all designed to realign the energy of the body. It’s performed without oils through light, comfortable clothing.
It is very versatile and may be used as a main or complementary therapy in the treatment of
- internal organ issues – such as digestive problems
- musculoskeletal problems – such as muscle stiffness, back and neck pain, joint pain
- emotional issues – stress, anxiety
It is also helpful for headaches, PMS, fatigue, insomnia and fibromyalgia.
Depending on the goal of the treatment, shiatsu may be stimulating or calming.
Sound Healing
Tibetan Singing Bowls are often used in Sound Healing.
Sound has been used as a healing tool for thousands of years. The Hindis use mantras and tribal peoples from Central and South America use the Icaros or medicine melodies.
The goal of sound therapy is to put a person’s energies back into balance.
How Does it Work?
Sound helps to facilitate shifts in our brainwaves by using entrainment. Entrainment is the brain’s electrical response to rhythmic sensory stimulation. We entrain our brainwaves by using rhythm and frequency. Our naturally fluctuating brainwaves then attune to this stable frequency.
Using such rhythm and frequency, we can start with our normal waking consciousness state and take it through all of the frequencies as follows –
beta state (normal waking consciousness) > alpha state (relaxed consciousness) > theta state (meditative state) > delta state (sleep – when internal healing takes place).
This same concept is of rhythm is used in meditation with breathwork. When using sound, it’s the frequency that influences the shift of state.
Spiritual Healing
Spiritual Healing is a complementary healing that is administered by a Spiritual Healer. Spiritual Healers may be trained or not have formal training.
Sometimes, Spiritual Healing is offered following a Spiritualist Church meeting, the healer may not be formally trained. In this case, only ask for healing from someone who you know and trust.
How is Spiritual Healing Given?
It is adminstered by a light laying on of hands. The Healer does not possess healing powers. They channel the healing from a Spirit such as a Healing Guide or Healing Angel who facilitate the channelling of healing energy from the higher power of the universe.
Do I Have to Believe in Spiritual Healing or Spirits For It To Work?
No. It does help if you genuinely want the healing to work and feel positive about it and the outcome.
Spiritual Prayer Healing
This is a prayer that asks for healing but is not based on any principles of organized religion.
It may be based on –
- a person’s own non-religious belief in a higher power
- a belief in a higher universal intelligence
- nature spirits or
- a belief in Spirits, Spirit Guides or Angels
Spiritual Retreats
This is when a person chooses to withdraw from their day-to-day life to focus on their spiritual life for a short time.
It is not a vacation as such but can be extremely enriching and rejuvenating. During a Spiritual Retreat, you may choose to focus on spiritual awakening or increasing your current state of awareness.
How to Choose a Spiritual Retreat
Spend time choosing an environment that speaks to you. Do you prefer being near the sea or in a woodland or somewhere with beautiful gardens to walk in?
It’s a good idea to find somewhere that is well established and has good testimonials.
Take note of what they offer. Group sessions can be very powerful and bring good results because of the higher energy that a group can provide. Some offer yoga and meditation sessions.
Get Yourself Ready
In the run up to your Retreat, eat well, take regular exercise and meditate at least daily. This will help you to ‘hit the ground running’ when you arrive.
When you leave home to travel to your Retreat, make a conscious effort to leave your problems at home. Once you’re at the Retreat, you can view them objectively and find ways to solve them that you may not have thought of while still at home.
Enjoy
Don’t put pressure on yourself to achieve a certain goal. Go with the flow because the Universe may have a different agenda for you. Relax and accept.
Therapeutic Touch
Tibetan Medicine
Tibetan medicine is based on four basic principles:
Karma
This refers to the universal law of cause and effect. The belief is that your own behavior affects you, other people and the environment.
Sometimes your choices have an immediate and obvious effect. At other times, the effects are not immediately obvious and may affect you later in some way.
Tibetan medicine teaches the importance of being aware of both the immediate and long-term consequences of your choices so that you learn to choose what promotes health and happiness.
Suffering
This is seen as a universal condition of human life. It may be emotional, mental and/or spiritual. Physical pain is not seen as suffering although it is recognized if present. Tibetan medicine sees suffering as a result of interpreting life in a negative way.
Healing
Tibetan medicine sees this as the result of creating a healthy mind and making lifestyle choices that bring your energies back into balance.
Happiness
This is not viewed as a short lived result from temporary pleasures and accomplishments. True happiness is lasting peace, meaning, integrity and wellbeing. These are gained from thinking positively and living a balanced life.
Traditional Chinese Medicine
Our Western view of medicine is that it is a method of dealing with illness and disease. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) focuses on achieving health and wellbeing by cultivating harmony and balance in our lives.
TCM is based on the Chinese concept of Qi which is our vital energy and the harmony of all the opposing elements and forces that make up existence – which is called yin and yang.
It believes that:
- Harmony brings health, wellbeing and an ability to sustain both.
- Disharmony leads to illness, disease and eventual collapse.
TCM is a way of looking at ourselves and our world. It sees everything, including what we eat, whether we do exercise or not and how we interact with
- friends and family
- the wider community and
- our environment
This is called ‘taking whole’ and it applies to everything that may affect our health and general well being.
So TCM doesn’t just identify and treat illness – it optimizes health and teaches how to sustain it.
Traditional Healing
Traditional Healers practice the oldest type of medicine that is underpinned by a set of principles. It is the foundation for all known medicines, including Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayurvedic Medicine and Western Medicine.
This ancient form of healing was a part of the daily lives of nomadic, semi nomadic and tribal groups. Archeological evidence for Traditional Healing has been found to date to 14,000 BC. However, it is believed that it originated even earlier and it is likely that it existed before the Ice Age.
Traditional Healing is unusual in that it is not based on a philosophy. It is entirely founded on knowledge that has been passed down through the generations and is based on –
- the healer’s personal experience including their awareness of the natural world and their sense of unity with it
- their understanding of the different levels of consciousness that humans are capable of
Traditional Healers view the universe as an living intelligence. They believe that the intelligence operates according to natural laws. The natural laws manifest according to specific rules. The Traditional Healers believe that the purpose of life and the nature of a disease cannot be understood unless the Healer has a thorough knowledge of these natural laws as well as the person’s relationship to the natural world.
Traditional Healers must have a thorough understanding of how living things are influenced by natural laws. This is why it is often called ‘wisdom medicine’ or ‘wizard medicine’. Here, the word wizard doesn’t mean a magic sorcerer but a wise man.
This profound knowledge and accumulated experience mean that the main principles of Traditional Healing are similar in different countries and through thousands of years.
Tui Na
Tui Na refers to a range of Traditional Chinese Medicine therapeutic massages.
Tui Na is pronounced ‘twee naw’ and means ‘pinch and pull’.
What is Tui Na Therapeutic Massage?
It is not a relaxing massage but is used to treat energy patterns that have lost their harmony. In the same way that acupuncture stimulates the flow of Qi energy, Tui Na is administered by pinching and pulling the acupuncture energy channels. So acupressure (where finger pressure is used instead of needles) is a form of Tui Na.
When is Tui Na Used?
It is often used to treat superficial trauma, mild injury and a many types of musculoskeletal problems. It is particularly helpful in the treatment of children where acupuncture would not be appropriate. When Tui Na is used on children it is called Chinese Pediatric Massage Therapy.
TCM practitioners encourage patients to do self massage and exercises at home and teach them how to do it. This increases the benefits from treatment sessions.
Yoga
Yoga is one of the most popular forms of exercise. It is wonderful for –
- stress-reduction
- calming the mind, and
- lowering levels of stress hormones such as cortisol
- insomnia
- irritable bowel syndrome
- heart disease
- high blood pressure
- diabetes
most of which can be negatively affected by stress.
Other health benefits include –
- increased strength and flexibility
- better balance and coordination
- improved reaction times
- better lung function
- heightened cardiovascular conditioning
- and weight loss
Psychological benefits of practice include
- relaxation
- better concentration
- and improved mood.
Yoga overlaps with other mind and body therapies including meditation and biofeedback. Many exercises used to rehabilitate people with injuries are based on yoga.
I’m sure there are many other types of healing.
If you use or know of something that isn’t already listed please let me know in the comments box below and I’ll be happy to add it to the list.
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