Meeting Your Local Wellness Team

By Natasha Ryan, ND, Regional Wellness Manager

Knowles Apothecary Wellness

. http://www.knowleswellness.com/

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Meeting Your Local Wellness Team

Are you interested in using natural remedies to seek relief from a medical condition or to simply improve your state of wellness? If so, you are not alone. The wellness industry is growing exponentially because many people like you are taking control of their health and seeking alternatives to allopathic medicine.

Due to this trend, it is important to know who you can turn to for safe and accurate information about products and services that when used wisely can vastly improve the quality of your life. Consider seeking advice from qualified wellness practitioners. Here is a brief synopsis of some of the licensed or registered wellness professions in the area.

Naturopathic Doctors

Naturopathic medicine is a blending of natural cures and cutting edge science in the fields of nutrition, botanical medicine, manual therapies and more. The credential of naturopathic doctors on the east coast is ND and in some states they have the designation of NMD (naturopathic medical doctor).

There are seven principles that help define the profession and they are first do no harm; the healing power of nature (vismedicatrixnaturae); identify and treat the cause; treat the whole person; the physician as teacher; prevention is the best cure; and establish health and wellness.

Many patients of naturopathic doctors appreciate the time that these professionals spend with their clients. The initial consultation can be anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half. Your ND will ask about your diet, stress levels, medications and more to assess your state or wellness. With this information, he or she will develop a treatment plan that may include lifestyle changes, herbs, homeopathy and more.

Support the licensure of naturopathic doctors in the State of Maryland. For more information, please go to MDANP.org.

Acupuncturists

Acupuncture is an ancient profession from China. It is just one modality in TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) that includes herbs, acupressure, and more. When you go to your acupuncturist, they will assess your Qi, or life force by possibly looking at your tongue, feeling your pulse and asking you various lifestyle questions.

There are several clinical trials that specifically show the efficacy of acupuncture for back pain and arthritis. However, acupuncture has been used for many different conditions including headaches, fertility, and more.

Nutritionists

Dietitians and nutritionists are experts in food and nutrition. They advise people on what to eat in order to lead a healthy lifestyle or achieve a specific health-related goal. More and more information is coming out in the field of nutrition linking food choices and lifestyle to specific disease states.

A nutritionist can help you create an eating plan that will improve your energy, balance your weight and improve your health markers such as blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar. Not all nutritionists are registered dieticians. Some are masters or Ph. D level professionals with a background in whole foods nutrition who may be licensed by the state.

Massage Therapists

Massage therapy is a wonderful form of treatment that is gaining popularity. Some of the more popular forms of massage are Swedish massage and Shiatsu. Massage is excellent for stress management, decreasing musculoskeletal pain, easing the aches and pains of pregnancy and more.

They may have the designation LMP (licensed massage practitioner) or LMT (licensed massage therapist). If you want to find a practitioner, you can see if there is a school of massage therapy in your state and they can be a great resource in finding a therapist.

There are many different wellness practitioners in your community. Take a moment to get to know them. They can be a vital part of your health and wellness team now and in the future.