What is holistic healing?

Holistic healing treats a person as a whole – including the physical, mental, emotional, energetic, social, environmental and spiritual aspects of their being. Health and wellness is determined by a person’s whole state of being. Holistic healers’ focus on identifying and treating the root cause/s of symptoms to enable true healing and resolution to take place – not only the temporary relief of symptoms. Whilst the methods differ widely – from cranio-sacral therapy to homeopathy, reiki to shiatsu – the aim of holistic healing is to help the client achieve optimal health, balance and wellness on every level.

Understanding holistic healing (and the plethora of complementary therapies now available) can feel a bit confusing at first for those who have grown up in a western medical paradigm in which body parts, symptoms, and the body and mind are mostly addressed in isolation from one another and often believed to be limited in their capacity to heal. (I used to feel the same! It was only my own unresolved chronic illness that led me down the holistic route, desperate for solutions.)

Holistic healing teaches us to view health, healing and human potential in a completely new way! It requires us to expand our understanding of what is possible; to recognise the interconnection between our body, mind, emotions and energy; and to take greater responsibility for our inner state of being and choices.

The eight key principles of holistic healing:

There are eight fundamental principles that apply to all holistic healing, no matter what the modality:

1) ‘Whole person’ healing: Our physical body, mind and energy systems are all interconnected via our nervous system. Physical, mental and emotional disharmony manifests as chronic tension, inflammation or pain, hormonal imbalance, and/or a lack of fluid and energy flow. Restoring balance to one level (e.g. the mind), positively affects all the others (e.g. the body and energy flow). However, often the most successful healing occurs when we work on multiple levels simultaneously: our physical body, mental/emotional patterns and energy flow.  

2) Helps re-establish inner balance: Stress / nervous system dysfunction is at the root of at least 90% of all health issues! (The remaining 10% is genetic.) A state of chronic stress impedes the healthy functioning of our nervous and immune systems, and vital organs. Relaxation and stress reduction is a core component of healing – not only during a treatment but also in the way we navigate daily life. Developing an overall relaxed, peaceful and balanced inner state of being will begin to naturally restore healthy functioning of our bodily systems. Healing treatments can support and re-educate the body / mind / nervous system to relax at the appropriate times.  

Stress and tension can originate from our minds / emotions (our reactions to past / present / future events which we perceive as unpleasant) or our bodies (for example, an unresolved injury, poor diet or heavy metal toxicity). Holistic healing will look at all of these elements to identify where attention is needed. The ability of the mind to influence the physical body – either positively or negatively – cannot be underestimated!

3) Addresses the root cause/s of a problem: Identifying and addressing the root cause/s of a person’s symptoms is important for true and lasting healing to take place. A symptom is the body’s physical signal that some aspect of our being is out of balance; however often we have to look deeper to understand its true origin.

4) Helps to restore the body’s natural self-healing ability: Factors such as excessive stress, unresolved physical or mental trauma, vitamin and mineral deficiencies, ongoing lack of sleep or exercise impede the body’s nervous and immune system function (which are closely connected) and block the flow of vital energy throughout a person’s system. Holistic healing aims to address the problem areas, and gently restore balance to the energetic, nervous and immune systems.

5) Healing comes from within: You are your own healer! A healing session is a co-creation between the practitioner (or remedy/supplement), client and their body’s inner forces. A practitioner does not ‘heal you’ – rather they offer the conditions, support and guidance to activate a healing process within yourself. A skilled practitioner will act as a mirror for your own self-healing journey – helping you to understand yourself more deeply, identify any blind spots, and empower you with knowledge and tools to maintain health and balance within yourself.

6) Self-responsibility: gentle self-honesty, willingness and courage are often are required to step into change in our lives where necessary. This could be alterations to our diet, lifestyle, beliefs / thought patterns and / or behaviours.

7) The importance of intention: when we embark on a journey to heal ourselves, of key importance is a true desire and willingness to heal – that is greater than any fear of change! Often our ailments contain a mental/emotional component, such as a limiting belief (“I was told by the doctor that this is something I will just have to live with”) or hidden payoff (“Being sick was the only way I got attention when I was a child.“) Sometimes a healing session will include identifying and working with any inner resistances to change.

8) Remembering our energetic nature: At the subtlest level, everything in existence – including our physical bodies, thoughts, feelings and emotions – is comprised of particles and waves of energy. Any physical, mental/emotional or environmental imbalance is reflected as a disturbance in a person’s energy flow (blockage or deficiency).

The good news is that energy can be rapidly influenced and transformed – for example, through intelligent movement, an intentional change of thought or emotion, a homeopathic remedy or healing treatment – even when working from a distance (time and space is no object when working with energy). When we reconnect with this truth, then healing becomes much faster and more effortless! Re-establishing a healthy and unimpeded flow of vital energy throughout our system is a fundamental key to health and wellbeing. A good healer can teach you how to work with your own energy for self-healing and to maintain optimal health.

At the deepest and most complete level, healing is a journey back to wholeness, peace and unconditional love. There are many modalities and tools that can support us on our healing journeys, including cranio-sacral therapy, reiki, intuitive healing, shiatsu massage and hypnotherapy. If you are seeking healing support, my suggestion is to start with the therapy / tool that you are the most naturally drawn to or interested in, and then find a practitioner of that modality who you like and trust.