An Ounce of CAM

It's easier to stick with the comfort of the old andmanaged to sell me an expensive set of custom
familiar, change is always difficult. This attitude canorthopedic insoles that helped a little, but the problem
prevent us from taking advantage of manyremained. It wasn't until I hurt my back doing yard
wonderful therapies when it comes to health care.work that I tried Rolf Structural Integration therapy,
We've always gone to the doctor to take care ofa type of CAM.
any illness or accident so we want to go to theOver time our bodies change. Weight gain and loss,
doctor even after he's told us there's nothing moreinjuries large and small, there are many reasons that
he can do. For most people being told to "just learnour bodies adjust and compensate. The problem is
to live with it" is the turning point towardsthey never return to their original condition, there is
complementary and alternative therapies. There arealways a little residual modification so the body can
very few who choose to open their eyes to newget a jump start on the next change. Over the years
possibilities when they're healthy and take advantageall of these little changes can add up to big problems
of the old saying about "an ounce of prevention"in how our bodies move and function. Rolfing is a
being better than a pound of cure.therapy that looks at the whole person and brings
Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) hastheir body back into its normal condition.
much to offer us. One of the newest trends inThe first thing the Rolf therapist had me do is walk
medicine today is Integrative Medicine whichback and forth to see how my whole body moved
combines the best of both worlds, traditionaltogether. After a few minutes the first comment
medicine and CAM, to better meet the needs offrom her was "You must have terrible pain in your
patients. This open-minded perspective sees eachknees." I admitted that I did but was curious how
person as a whole being of mind, body and spirit orshe knew it. She explained that the dynamics of my
energy and looks for the best method to treat thebody's motion, the kinetic energy, was focusing
source of the health problem.everything into my knees in the worst possible way
Traditional or mainstream medicine focuses onwhich had to be causing pain. She waved her hand to
treating acute medical problems. In a recent study ondismiss my concerns about this decades-old problem
the treatment of children published in the Newand told me not to worry. True to her word, after
England Journal of Medicine it found they receivedthe third session of the Initial Ten sequence I took
the correct medical treatment 68% of the time forthe insoles out of my shoes and haven't worn them
acute problems. When the children in the study weresince. Today I pound a treadmill several times a
dealing with a chronic medical situation they receivedweek because I don't have any more excuses! In
the correct medical treatment 53% of the time buthindsight if I'd been more open to the benefits of
when it was a preventative medical situation theycomplementary and alternative medicine I could've
received the proper treatment only 41% of the time.tried Rolfing when I was healthy to prevent the
This is one of the results from a system heavy withproblem. Being close-minded meant I suffered for
specialists and light on general practitioners.years unnecessarily and lost decades of the health
The principles of most complementary and alternativebenefits from exercise. I'm not alone however, most
therapies reveal almost the exact opposite prioritiespeople take better preventative care of their cars
because they're the mirror image of the currentthan they do of their own health.
medical system. Most of these therapies focus onEach one of us must take control of our own health
preventing health problems or at least in catchingbecause we are the only ones responsible for our
them as early as possible. Their goal is the highestlives. We may have to move out of our comfort
functioning in all facets of their patients to enable thezone and open our eyes to the world of possibilities
balance and harmony of health. In China many yearscalled CAM because it can help prevent little problems
ago doctors were paid monthly to keep you healthyfrom a becoming life-changing crisis. We need to
but you stopped paying whenever there was ancultivate a culture of health, not just the absence of
illness. This is a stark contrast to our current sick-caredisease, and that frequently requires expanding our
system and illustrates the difference in perspectiveshorizons beyond Western medicine.
between CAM and Western medicine.This is not a new challenge for human beings. In
One example from personal experience illustrates theancient China a wise old Master was approaches by a
differences between mainstream medicine and CAM.young apprentice and asked "We meditate for hours
For years I'd gone from one medical specialist toeach day to find inner peace. We spend hours each
another searching for relief from the relentless pain inday doing marshal arts exercises to strengthen our
my knees that made it nearly impossible to walk forbodies. We spend hours every day toiling in the fields
more than a few hundred yards at a time. I'd goneto grow healthy food. Why must we do this?"
to orthopedic specialists with no success. I triedWith a sly smile the Master simply replied "If you
neurology specialists, bouncing from one medicaldon't take care of your house, where are you going
specialty to the next. I even tried a podiatrist whoto live?