Order is Everything

This is the Therapeutic Hierarchy for treatment in naturopathic medicine. In every situation, whether to do with prevention or treatment, the naturopathic physician who is striving to abide by these principles, endeavors to start at the bottom and only move up the ladder if absolutely necessary.

In more certain situations, multiple steps, potentially even all of them, need to be applied at the same time, but the goal of a principle oriented naturopathic physician is still to never apply more harmful, invasive, unnatural, or forceful interventions without at least also assuring the requisite foundational support is there as well.

At times, when these principles are adhered to thoroughly (if the opportunity for doing so is available), fewer forceful interventions may then be required, as the healing capacity of a properly supported human body can be incredibly powerful. Even when drugs or surgery need to be used, they technically aren't doing the healing. They are simply helping provide a better opportunity for the body to do so.

Also, as you can see, nothing typically used in conventional medicine should be deemed completely out of the question, as some people out there claim is the way naturopaths think, when all they use is Wikipedia to learn about what we do.

The key when more aggressive interventions are applied is never forgetting what should be done beforehand, or at least simultaneously, in order to optimize the response.

At least as I see it, the conventional medical systems used in many countries simply cannot accommodate an approach like this. There is not enough time, not enough resources, and sadly, not enough training in the first place.

Is it any wonder so many people are struggling with their health?

Human bodies need a true opportunity to be healthy in order to fully unleash their capabilities. The way we live our lives, either by choice or lack of opportunity, and the way in which our typicaly solutions to the subsequent health problems that are created can never truly bring about the health, and vitality we all would prefer.

Until we figure this out and change our approach we can sadly expect more of the same.