What is Holistically Healing?
Integrative psychiatry addresses the whole person—mind, body, and spirit
Mental health issues do not exist in a vacuum, and stressors on one part of the system will inevitably affect the entire system. For example, when working with an individual with depression because of a divorce, it would not make sense to treat the depression only with medication without also providing emotional support and care to assist in helping identify a healthy way of moving forward.
Similarly, if a person is experiencing anxiety, even the best nutritional regimen will not be effective if they live in a stressful environment where they are unable to relax. Each part of the system affects the other, which is why utilizing a treatment plan that encompasses the whole person is the most successful path toward healing.
Integrative Psychiatry is NOT anti-prescription medication.
There is more in common between how prescription medications, supplements, and herbal medicines work than there are differences, and they are all molecules that work on our brains, often on the exact same neurotransmitter pathways. To generalize broadly (with some exceptions), medications are stronger, work faster, and are more likely to have side effects, while supplements take longer to take effect, have more subtle benefits, and are less likely to have side effects. They can work well when used together, with prescription medications used to acutely stabilize the system and then supplements added to create a healthy micronutrient environment in the body, allowing us to use lower doses of the medication and taper off sooner.
Integrative psychiatry respects the patient’s individual belief systems and preferences, and emphasizes a relationship, characterized by respect, kindness, and genuine concern, between the provider and the patient.
Never is it acceptable to tell someone they’re “wrong” about their experiences or what they think is the cause of their symptoms. My very first duty is to listen and acknowledge, and then create a plan of care to facilitate the achievement of specific health goals safely and effectively. If you tell me you are experience a specific symptom, I will believe you. Why? Because you are the expert in your own body and how you feel. While I am trained in mental health care, I am always learning, always growing, therefore my patients are my greatest and most valuable teachers.