S
hortly before I began research for this book on
alternative and complementary medicine, I
informed a dear friend of the pending task. His first
comment was “How many volumes?”
Those three words would haunt me throughout
the project. One book hardly scratches the surface;
therefore my objectives were to compile up-to-date
information on and explanations of as many alter-
native, complementary, or integrative healing
methods as possible and to present them in an
unbiased and accessible A-to-Z format. That
numerous books on the subject—from single topics
to comprehensive references—already existed, was
intimidating in itself, so my contribution became
embracing them all. In the precise spirit of alterna-
tive medicine, I wished to offer readable entries
that would not only inform, but perhaps also
inspire people to have a go at a healing method
that might turn out to be effective for them but
that they had never heard of before. I also wished
to present the seemingly infinite possibilities for
healing treatments to physicians and other healers,
and introduce the diverse healers to one another.
I also hoped to create something of a “botan-
ical-garden” effect by gathering in one book a mul-
titude of ideas and disciplines that have been
established by great thinkers past and present. In
the course of such gathering I found myself riveted,
fascinated by the breadth and depth of healing as it
has evolved throughout the history of humankind.
From the most preposterous to the most solid,
practical concepts, healing has always been a fun-
damental aspect of life. We learn in our high school
sociology classes that self-preservation is a primary
human drive, and today we add to our efforts for
self-preservation what has become universally
known as the connection between mind and body.
The mind-body connection, then, plays a huge part
in the whole of alternative medicine. In fact, any
method involving mind-body-spirit is often the
alternative.
As I see it, ideal medicine is a combination of
whatever treatments work for an individual, a
healer who accurately perceives and offers those
particular treatments, and the willingness of both
healer and patient to supplant illness with well-
ness. As Norman Cousins wrote in Anatomy of an Ill-
ness:“Your heaviest artillery will be your will to
live. Keep the big gun going.”
This book’s approach aspires to the celebrated
manner and philosophy of William Osler, a physi-
cian who would go “unsolicited and unsparingly” to
help anyone ill or in distress of any kind. From here,
I would like to think at least one reader might invent
yet another effective healing method and make cer-
tain to let me know about it for the next edition.
xiii
PREFACE
