Healing Reactions or Healing Crises
By Dr. Deborah Bier, co-editor of this publication and essence maker for Whole Energy Essences
One of the most important principles in holistic healthcare is that body, mind and spirit are endowed with powerful healing abilities. When symptoms of disease are present, it is believed to be because this ability to correct the difficulty is not functioning properly. Any healing therapy's work is to catalyze the person's own powerful self-healing abilities. Through this manner of healing, some peoples' recoveries can seem quite "miraculous" and unexpectedly far-reaching.
The understanding of the process of disease from the holistic point of view includes the belief that disease emerges as a result of imbalances of natural, internal forces or as a result of trauma. The direction a disease follows occurs from the outside, inwards... from top to bottom... and backward in time. This phenomenon is often referred to as "Hering's Law of Cure," named for Constantine Hering (1800-1880), leader in the American homeopathic movement.
In this model, the spiritual, mental, and emotional planes of being are respectively deeper than the physical plane. Disease progresses through each of these planes, moving from less serious physical complaints to more serious ones, and then inward to deeper levels. For example, a disease may first manifest as a skin rash that eventually seems to clear up over time. The disease may progress inward to manifesting as respiratory allergies. As it further progresses, depression may develop, growing more severe over time. This is a process that can happen gradually, and over a long period of time, and with the use of drug therapies.
Because of this, many people may experience old symptoms -- some of which may not have been present since childhood -- or am exaggeration of current ones as the healing process unfolds. When healing occurs, the course of illness is reversed and the person moves through previous states of health, perhaps occurring in the reverse order of their original appearance. This can be seen to occur in either a literal or metaphoric way, where, for example, a person's emotional rigidity may be expressed as a period of intestinal constipation some time during the healing process.
It is the role of the practitioner to help the client put their healing process into perspective, helping them see that what they have experienced on all levels of their existence has been meaningful, even descriptive of who they are and how they feel. It is important to explore the idea that illness and discomfort are not just some randomly ascribed events or symptoms. Therefore, this model can be a useful tool to explore during the healing process. It is a common cultural viewpoint that we understand that feelings, such as depression and anger, come as reactions to life events.
Most people's experiences with conventional medicine do not prepare them for what they experience when treated with holistic methods. The focus of conventional medicine first and foremost is to cure the symptoms and to relieve discomfort. Holistic care is determined to get to the roots of the disharmony, even if it means experiencing temporary discomfort.
In this way, the more mainstream and healing-reaction points of view may be in direct conflict with one another. It may be hoped that as more ways to combine holistic and conventional treatment approaches are found, that a good balance between relieving suffering and deeper healing can be struck.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Deborah Bier, PhD, is a holistic healthcare practitioner in private practice in Concord, MA. This is an excerpt from her newly published book/ebook Flower Essence Practice: For Students, Essence Practitioners & Other Healing
Professionals (Windfall, 2008). She is also the author of Healthy Connections: Flower Essences for Better Family, Friend and Work Relationships; The Encyclopedia of Vibrational Essences, and Learning About Vibrational Essences (find all these titles here). She is the maker of Whole Energy Essences, and Publisher/Co-Editor of this ezine. She is available for private consultations. Read more of her work in Vibration Magazine here.
Art Credits: Page designed by Windfall. Images courtesy of Clipart.com.
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