Do you have the body you want? Is it looking, performing, and feeling like you want?

For too long, we accepted our fate: good health is something we hope will not leave too quickly. If we’re lucky, we might feel good until 50, then we succumb to joint replacements, an increasing arsenal of meds, and a continued decline of wellbeing.

A third of Americans are not playing that game, though. These days, people use complementary and alternative medicine practices and natural-based nutrition.1 Whether it’s because they know their best investment is their health, or because it’s cheaper than paying high insurance or medical costs. In 40 years of practice, I’ve watched people forgo their fear of something new because their pain pushes them to try it. When your back continues to hurt, and but what you read and hear from previous back surgeries patients scares you, you start looking for alternatives.

I was no different than thousands of my clients. I struggled with (what I later realized were) Asperger’s syndrome, dyslexia and Lyme disease. I was encouraged to try rolfing by a roommate who gave up his law practice to be a rolfer. The immediate release of tension and pain had me hooked.

Taking the first step

As any good doc will tell you, they may be the best source of medical advice, but their specialty is not health. When you have a critical problem, a medical problem, you go to a physician. When you have a chronic problem that you want to turn around through getting well, you need people who specialize in helping your body heal and rebuild.

There is still misinformation out there that holistic health is not safe. Sure, as with any profession there are ineffective professionals. With very few exceptions, your biggest risk is wasting your time and money.2 Do your research, ask friends who use alternative therapies, and call the person you are considering using. Be as proactive as you are when you’re buying a new car.

Next week we will dive deeper into complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) practices as part of this six-part series on achieving your optimumhealth.

Owen Marcus, MA, a certified advanced rolfer, is the author of “Power of Rolfing”. He can be reached at align.org or by phone at 208-265-8440. This article and many more health and wellness articles can be found online at sandpointwellnesscouncil.com.

1. cnn.com/2015/02/11/health/feat-alternative-medicine-study/

2. bmccomplementalternmed.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1472-6882-10-63