Customer Reviews

Educational Opportunities in Integrative Medicine: The A-to-Z Healing Arts Guide and Professional Resource Directory (Know Your Source Guide)

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As a first year nursing student, this book has answered a lot of questions I had regarding the field of integrative medicine. I plan to pursue a career in Holistic Nursing and to excel in this field one should be knowledgeable in the different disciplines and therapies that are currently available. If anyone plans to pursue this avenue of medicine and needs a practical and concise source of information, this is an excellent book.

As a layperson who happens to work in a holistic environment, i found this book to be exceptionally well-researched and comprehensive. I can imagine all the students out there getting really excited reading this book and perhaps finding some clarity as to their actual specialty. It's truly inspiring to read about all the different, effective modalities one can choose from, or simply add to their knowledge database. Really well organized and easy to read.

As a new student to the holistic/alternative health field, I found this book extremely helpful in finding out what opportunities are available to me for a career in integrative heath care. This book also contains invaluable knowledge about the ins and outs of a holistic practice, both at a legalistic and personal level. The book starts addressing one's first considerations when choosing a school (in nearly every healing modality imaginable), and follows the user through to post-doc and post-grad programs available to enrich an already established practitioner. I would recommend this book to anyone who is thinking about starting their own holistic practice, practitioners who are looking to network within their field, and anyone curious about pursuing a holistic healing art in a professional or nonprofessional capacity.

This book reflects an important symbol of change within older medical paradigm; integrative medicine is the way of the future, and the A-Z Healing Arts Guide is right on the forefront of that change. Finally, a much needed comprehensive guide to an emerging medical field. Thanks for writing this!

This is a unique and valuable reference source that is a one-stop guide to careers in the alternative medicine universe. What I particularly found useful and interesting is the extensive background information and history of each of the many healing areas covered. The listings seem to be very thorough, with lots of helpful sections for people thinking about a career (or even really just wanting to learn about the background) in these practises. I haven't found anything like it in researching the range and scope of educational options. In sum, it's a commendable addition to the public's introduction to training possibilities in integrative medicine and a great place to start (and maybe finish) any search for the learning possibilities in alternative healing. Top marks.

This education guide serves as a great resource when considering alternative health care. The book presents the history and a clear description of each method and modality. It is reassuring to see what the educational requirements are for your new practitioner before you put your body and mind in their care!

This book -- co-authored by Bastyr ND Nathen Gabriel (2000 grad.) -- is an excellent example of naturopathy's 'purposeful life spirit' / 'vital force spirit' sectarian premise.

And I quote, from the naturopathy chapter:

"naturopathic medicine is an integrative and vitalistic medical system [...] there are seven principles of modern naturopathy [...#2] respect the healing power of nature (vis medicatrix naturae). There is an innate healing force within all life that is always attempting to prevent and/or heal every possible illness [...a] 'life force' [...] naturopaths help their patients to optimize this innate force [p.119...] most medical systems in place before the rise of modern western medicine [...] were 'vitalistic' in nature, meaning that a spiritual 'vital force' or 'life force' was believed to be both the source of existence and the essential healing force for every person. Ayurveda's 'prana,' Chinese medicine's 'chi,' and Hippocrates' 'humours' are all versions of the vital force [p.120]."

I highly recommend this chapter for anyone interested the the central article of faith of in this form of sectarian medicine.

-r.c.

I'm an undergrad student tentatively on the `pre-med track' but feeling somewhat dissatisfied with the conventional MD route, and have been looking to explore other areas of healing modalities as a career. This book has been an invaluable guide for me, especially in terms of placing allopathic medicine within the context of other healing traditions and practices (some of which go back thousands of years!). Truly integrative in its broad assessment of so many practices.

Coming from a science background, I am somewhat skeptical of the more alternative practices included in the guide (homeopathy, rolfing, iridology) but was pleased with the objective descriptions that acknowledge drawbacks, uncertainties and criticisms in the different modalities. Non-judgmental, just the facts.

One of the best features for me were the lists of professional organizations, websites, and further resources associated with all the various modalities. In this way the guide is a great jumping-off point for further research and career-searching.