Curiosity in my early twenties led me to study subjects such as Taoism, macrobiotic diets and natural health. I completed my Reiki I course in 1996, followed by Reiki II in Japan a year later. From here I started to explore beyond the boundaries of what conventional medicine had to offer.
In 2001 I moved to Melbourne, Australia to begin a full time, three year long course that was to change the way that I look at health and medical research. It incorporated much learning, resulting in examinations in bio-chemistry, organic chemistry, clinical medicine with a focus on disease processes, nutritional medicine and herbal medicine, research and technology, pharmacology and integrated pharmacology. The latter is essential training which looks at how synthetic drugs interact with herbal medicines and individual plant constituents.
Some traditional therapies, such as acupuncture, are now available on the NHS. In a report in 2019 the World Health Organisation (WHO) has acknowledged the role of such traditions in “keeping populations healthy”.
In an ideal world, Naturopaths, Herbalists and Nutritionists will work alongside GP’s in order to deliver a more holistic and less invasive form of preventative medicine. This is already happening of course, and is set to rise as new research and consumer demand for safe and natural alternatives increase. I believe that this integrative approach is the future of modern medicine.