My father was very proud of me. He told everyone what I was doing. He told his very conventional kidney specialist that I was practicing Integrative medicine. His doctor responded by telling my dad that he hadn’t realized that medicine had become segregated! At first, I just let the comment go, but then I realized that he pointed out a very important aspect of modern medicine. Medicine has become segregated! In the new age of specialization, our bodies have become segregated from our mind and spirit. This brings me to the answer of the question, what is Integrative medicine?

Integrative medicine addresses the entire patient mind, body and spirit. We honor the concept that to be healthy, all of these aspects need to be nurtured. We also realize that when given the opportunity, the body will heal itself. When you break your arm, is it the orthopedic surgeon that heals your bone? No, your bone heals itself. The doctor sets the bone so that it heals without becoming deformed. When you cut yourself, is it the ointment you put on the cut that heals it? No, your body heals the cut and the ointment may keep it from becoming infected. If you get an infection, is it the antibiotic that cures the infection? No, the antibiotic knocks the level of bacteria down to a low level so that your body can cure the infection.

As an Integrative medicine specialist, I help to nurture the mind, body and spirit by forming a partnership with my patients. In this partnership we honor the uniqueness of each individual. Some patients are interested in using complementary medical therapies others are not. What we do together is find what works for each patient.
Pure and simple; Integrative medicine is good medicine.