Holistic Medicine vs. Drug-Based Medicine: The Honest Truth

First of all, it’s important to define exactly the meaning of the term “Holistic.”

Strictly speaking, Holistic health, otherwise known as alternative medicine, believes that all aspects of people's needs - psychological, physical and social should be considered as a comprehensive approach to treatment.

There are a number of separate disciplines within alternative medicine, including but not limited to:

• natural diet and herbal remedies
• nutritional supplements
• psycho-spiritual counseling
• meditation
• acupuncture
• homeopathy
• crystals

Moreover, it is a widely held belief that the spiritual aspect affects overall health and is integral to a person’s well-being.

Holistic medicine is also viewed as a team approach, involving a cooperative relationship among all those involved, leading towards optimal attainment of the physical, mental, emotional, social and spiritual aspects of health.

It also emphasizes the need to look at the whole person, including analysis of physical, nutritional, environmental, emotional, social, spiritual and lifestyle values. It encompasses all stated modalities of diagnosis and treatment, including drugs and surgery if no safe alternative exists. Finally, it focuses on individual education and personal responsibility and efforts in order to achieve balance and well being.

Following detoxification, standard drug and alcohol residential treatment more often than not includes extending the use of a variety of medications.

First, though, what is a residential treatment center?

A residential treatment center, or RTC, sometimes called a rehab, is a live-in health care facility providing therapy for a combination of substance abuse, mental illness and/or other behavioral problems. Generally, residential treatment is considered the "last-ditch" approach to helping a child, friend or other loved one suffering from severe problems. RTC’s vary widely in price depending upon their location and the services offered. Monthly fees range from no-cost in some nonprofit facilities to as high as $100,000 per month for what is often referred to as “high-end treatment.” These are self-described “luxury” facilities specializing in clientele who are often celebrities, professional athletes, top corporate executives or members of extremely wealthy families who wish to keep a low profile. These facilities also offer lavish amenities in order to justify the expense.

No matter what the price point, however, these facilities generally tolerate and often encourage the use of various medications during the client’s stay. These could include anything from psychiatric medications like Celexa for depression, Lithium and Lamictal for Bipolar Disorder to various highly addictive benzodiazepenes (Xanax, Atavan, Valium) for anxiety. In some cases, medical doctors continue to prescribe drugs like Suboxone for maintenance even after detoxification has been completed.  Many practitioners of holistic medicine see this as a very dangerous precedent and nothing more than a band-aid approach to freedom from substance abuse. This standard medical model approach that has been used for years has generally involved a combination of the aforementioned medication along with cognitive behavioral techniques, repeated psycho educational groups on a daily basis and 12 Step group meetings. Many people have been helped by this protocol, but many more continue to relapse. Some never get sober; some die and countless others return time and time again to the same programs, hoping against hope that this time they will somehow achieve different results. While 12 Step programs by themselves have helped countless alcoholics and addicts for over 70 years, it is the only program that emphasizes spirituality and growth and for many, especially the chronic relapsers, that isn’t enough.  As a result, a few alternative treatment facilities have begun to come into existence.

One of these facilities is REBOS Intensive Outpatient Services in Los Angeles, California (http://livingrebos.com/), which describes itself as a “Holistic Alcohol and Drug Program.” Its founder and CEO, Ross Remien says, “Holistic, to me, is a smoother and more natural way to approach a goal or opportunity that involves a team of people helping you to create the person you’ve always wanted to be.” A big part of the approach, according to Ross, is “having trained therapists walk through struggles, triumphs, success and failures with the patient in a way that is more like going with the flow and personal rhythm of the individual rather than forcing something upon them.”  Remien sees Holistic treatment as “a more down to-earth method of achieving a goal, be it physical, mental or spiritual.” That process is coupled with a concentrated effort to assist the patient in discovering his or her true potential through a combination of the following:

·         Introspection

·         Spiritual awareness

·         Psychotherapy

·         Drug counseling

·         Hypnotherapy

·         Group processing

·         Visualization

·         Career and Life Coaching

This illustrates the Holistic approach, whereby treatment is a process containing many elements offered by The Whole or team who form an integral bond– all working for one common purpose - the well-being of the patient.