Reader Request: So I've applied for the Mount Taranaki Ascending Project but I'd just like clarification on what exactly a Holistic Lifestyle Consultation is?
This is a great question and one that tends to come up quite regularly so I thought I'd take the opportunity in the blog post to address it.
If your thinking "Alternative", "Airy- Fairy", "Quack"? You've got the wrong end of the stick
A Holistic Lifestyle Consultation is an in-depth evaluation of your health and lifestyle.
It looks at the complete person - physically, psychologically, socially, and spiritually, in the management and prevention of illness. It takes into account all areas of your life to help you achieve maximum health, happiness and well-being.
A whole person is made up of interdependent parts and if one part is not working properly, all the other parts will be affected. In this way, if people have imbalances (physical, emotional, or spiritual) in their lives, it can negatively affect their overall health.
A holistic approach may use a range of forms of health care, from conventional medication to 'alternative' therapies, to treat a person.
For example: When a person suffering from migraines goes for a holistic consultation, instead of walking out solely with medications; the consultation process would look at all the potential factors that may be causing the person's headaches; such as other health problems, allergies, diet, sleep habits, stress, exercise and emotional well-being.
The treatment plan will address lifestyle modifications to help prevent the headaches from recurring as well as referral to other health professional i.e Osteopath for realignment of the spine, yoga for stress reduction and a Food and Environmental Sensitivity Hair Test to pinpoint allergies/sensitivities.
People come to a Holistic Lifestyle Consultation for:
Healthy lifestyle advice
Nutrition advice for your specific constitution - each person is unique e.g. some people benefit greatly from reducing carbohydrates and some people do not. Working out what is right for you is essential for maintaining health and a desire to follow a healthy lifestyle in the long term
Weight management
How to exercise to achieve your fitness goals or what exercises to do to maintain health
Stress Management Techniques
Holistic approaches to ailments like depression, allergies, anxiety, eczema, insomnia, hormonal imbalance and digestive problems.
Embodied approaches to dealing with emotions
Support with chronic illnesses and syndromes and how to manage these from a natural perspective
Support with going through life-changes
What can you expect:
When you inquiry about a consultation you will be emailed/sent a Client Registration Form and a 3 day food and symptom diary. This is completed before the consultation and makes the face to face meeting highly productive and educational for the client.
An Initial consultation is around 1.5hrs long.
It begins with identifying your needs and goals and then explores your body systems in detail (past and present). Physical examinations may take place depending on what your body is showing to gather the most complete picture possible. You may be referred for further diagnostic tests depending on what symptoms and signs you are showing.
The client receives a treatment plan with detailed handouts on a summary of whats happening in their body and how this is contributing to there ailment, dietary advice, exercise advice, lifestyle advice. This is all done taking a persons budget into account, personal preferences and is aimed to be as practical as possible.
Each person has a unique body, experiences, genetics, environmental factors etc so the treatment plan is unique to each situation. No 'one size fits all here folks'
And I leave you with this
To use the analogy of a tree...If a tree's leaves are withering, taking a pot of green paint out and painting those leaves a brilliant shade of green may mask symptoms for a while. However, if the actual problem is the roots are not getting enough water, or a bug has burrowed into the trunk; the root cause of the problem is not fixed. So one would expect it won't be long till the tree shows further signs of a problem, maybe the bark begins to flake off; maybe the trunk slowly looses its strength and cant hold the weight of the leaves. A person's body is an amazing creation, signs and symptoms need to be listened to; not suppressed.
A Holistic Consultation in a nutshell is getting to the root cause of the problem and not masking the symptoms!