My story - part three - the non traditional treatments

I have always been curious and willing to try new things. I don't always stick stuff out, but I am always up for something new and interesting. I love to learn and experiment.

So having an incurable condition that I clearly wanted to cure, caused me to explore some of the more, let's say, alternative therapies.

As I explained, in part one and part two of my story, the condition of alopecia is life changing, yet not life threatening. It is purely cosmetic, but it is psychologically and emotionally damaging. Accepting there is nothing that can be done, is hard. Yet medicine cannot help much.

So my adventures of finding a cure, included some research and fun in the following areas:

1. Homeopathy - this was a series of sessions, where I talked to a very nice lady about me, my preferences and my lifestyle. Whatever purpose this served, I did enjoy the discussions. I was forced to be conscious about areas of my life, that I had never explored. It was quite intense, but very insightful.

2. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) - this is based on rebalancing the disharmony of the body functions , qi and xue and many other fancy named organs are at the core of this therapy. The practioner examines the tongue, the pulse and a few other body parts and then diagnoses the imbalance and prescribes a little potion to ingest daily. For a number of months, I tried very hard, dauly, to like TCM. I wanted to like it as I found an appreciation of the history and the holistic approach, but it really felt like I was drinking cigarette ash and at some point I was getting a gag reflex even before the first taste. After a few months I stopped.

3. Bach flower therapy - this is based on the theory that dew on flowers retains healing properties of the plant. When this dew is transferred to humans, it can have the same healing effect. I did this once, although I am not sure why.

4. Schuessler cell salts - I can't say I understood this one too well either, but there are 12 possible salts that can be prescribed and taking the one that you are diagnosed as missing, completes the body's constitution somehow. I don't think I got as far as taking them, even though I went through the session and paid excessively for the salt box.

5. Reiki - this is where palm healing transfers universal energy to allow self healing. It is a bit of an odd therapy, but I was curious. I went once.

The results were pretty much zero. In fairness I never gave any of these therapies chance to work, I had a go, but I think I was more intellectually curious than really willing to try it out.

That said I learned a whole lot about me. One thing that the homeopath suggested made sense, she suggested that humans have a need to get things out of the body. Blocking things, be it sadness and emotion, or sweat caused the body to react and reject other things. Her theory, in my case, was that the hair was being pushed out. Her therapies thus included stopping to wear deodorant and crying more. 

In summary, nothing changed about me physically, but something did shift in me mentally, possibly spiritually. I kind of came to thinking that I needed this experience. I needed this condition to grow and become a better person. I started to believe that this hardship was meant for me, just me and as a result the "why me?"question, became the "why not me" answer. (see my July "Why me?" post)

So my experimentation with alternative therapies spanned about a year and it is now over. I am glad I  tried some of these things out, at least I can say I tried. And hereby endeth my story on alternative treatments.

The final part of "My story" will be part four and this will cover the acceptance and my final solutions.

More soon.......