Writing a blog about alternative medicine while being married to a medical doctor? Oh, honey. That’s not a blog — that’s a contact sport. I live in a Western‑medicine household, but deep down I’ve always been pulled toward naturopathic methods, including energy healing. So yes, the debates in this house could qualify as cardio. And I have a lot to say on the subject.
Here’s something most people don’t know about me: I used to practice energy healing.
It felt natural, like muscle memory from another lifetime. When the opportunity to study it appeared, I dove in headfirst. Shockingly, my husband didn’t object. He grew up in Malaysia, where every street corner has a healer, psychic, or guru. His take? Finding someone who truly has the gift is the hard part.
He also said, “The mind is powerful. Maybe energy healing is just a placebo. But if someone feels better, does it matter what did the heavy lifting?”
Honestly? I think it’s both. The mind is powerful. Energy is powerful. And together, they’re a force. People doubt it because they can’t see it. Most can’t feel it. But when someone can feel it? That’s when it’s fun.
When I started practicing on real people (not just classmates), I was terrified. What if nothing happened? What if I looked ridiculous?
Then I hosted a couple of open houses. My living room filled with people — curious, hopeful, hurting. I remembered my teacher’s words:
“You are not the healer. You are merely the conduit.” I had to get out of my own way.
Think of it like charging your phone: the client is the phone, the source is the outlet, and I’m just the cord. Call the outlet whatever you want — God, Jesus, Buddha, ancient healers — the energy flows regardless.
And when someone who limped into my house walked up my stairs pain‑free after a 30‑minute session, it didn’t make me question reality so much as stand in awe of what the eyes can’t see. When someone tells you they felt tingling, warmth, or a little pop deep inside — maybe it’s not “all in the mind” at all. Maybe it’s the body responding to something ancient, something gentle and familiar to the soul, something we don’t yet have the tools to measure.
Physics shows that energy can be guided and influenced by forces, fields, and intention. A healer isn’t creating energy or doing anything supernatural; they’re helping the body shift its own patterns — the warmth, the tingling, the softening. It’s more like redirecting a current than inventing one.
Recently, I revisited my old Shiva Murti Facebook page and watched videos and post‑session interviews. I found myself shaking my head thinking, Why did I ever stop? Click on the link for a post healing testimonial.
https://www.facebook.com/reel/276398420161353
Western medicine demands proof — studies, data, clinical trials. What the eyes can see and the numbers confirm. Eastern medicine, by contrast, leans into faith. It trusts what the body whispers, what intuition knows before the lab does. Why are we all doubting Thomases, needing a spreadsheet to believe in healing?
Eastern medicine invites us into something softer: the hush of breath in a quiet room, the warmth of hands over aching joints, the way a plant’s medicine seems to know where it’s needed — like it’s been whispering directions all along.
I wholeheartedly believe nature is God handing us medicine in leaf form. After all, many modern drugs are derived from plants.
And the fascinating part? Many plants even look like the body part they help:
- Beets — deep red, earthy — support the heart.
- Walnuts — little brains — nourish the brain.
- Kidney beans — shaped like kidneys — support kidney function.
- Carrots — sliced into rounds — resemble eyes and are rich in beta‑carotene.
It’s as if nature left us visual clues saying, “This one’s for you. Connect the dots.”
I also believe our bodies are their own pharmacies — when we treat them right. Which is hard. Between chemicals in food and the fact that processed junk tastes amazing, it’s a miracle any of us are still upright.
I gardened for years when the kids were small. The memory of a toddler in a diaper crouched in the dirt, eating a strawberry or green bean straight from the garden? Worth every mosquito bite.
But now? The weeds win. The heat and humidity win. The mosquitos win. Herbicide tempts me, and that defeats the whole purpose. For people like me — God gave us farmers markets.
Western medicine is essential — but it often feels like symptom‑slapping instead of root‑digging. Natural approaches make sense to me: non‑invasive, no recovery time, no copay, and they feel like a warm energetic hug instead of a Band‑Aid.
Many countries focus on prevention. Their cancer rates are low. We tend to focus on… well, fixing what our processed diets break. Sure, genes matter. Luck matters. But lifestyle? It’s loud.
And don’t get me started on cancer treatments. Poison it, cut it out, burn it away — it sounds medieval. But immunotherapy — strengthening the body so it can fight — now that makes sense to me.
Also, I was recently informed that Iowa leads the nation in cancer rates. Lucky us. Farming chemicals, anyone?
Enter – my knees. Over the past year, my knees have been staging a full‑blown rebellion, interfering with my pickleball game and my patience. I found a chiropractic clinic offering natural modalities, including PRP (Platelet‑Rich Plasma) injections. Athletes swear by it. I signed up — hefty price tag and all.
Cue my husband, eyebrows raised. “Not enough research. Cartilage can’t regrow. If it worked, everyone would be doing it.” And the price tag? Let’s just say he mildly objected to it. He asked me to get a second opinion. Then weigh my options.
Ding. Ding. End of round one.
The second opinion matched the first: moderate osteoarthritis, some tibial bone‑on‑bone. Treatment plan: Aleve, stretching, cortisone injections when needed, and eventually total knee replacement. Yippee.
Driving home, here’s what my gut told me:
- Lose weight to ease the pressure — obvious.
- Cut back on sugar — my kryptonite.
- Take Aleve when necessary — but not twice a day. I’m not trading knee pain for stomach ulcers. Which is why I’m reaching for turmeric again; its curcumin content is widely studied for anti‑inflammatory properties.
- Stretch before pickleball — the thing we all know we should do and rarely do.
- Meditation / Energy healing.
Don’t think for a second I’m anti-medicine. Some pills are life-saving. Some surgeries are miracles. We’ve all seen them work wonders, and I’m grateful they exist. What I’m suggesting – gently, hopefully – is that maybe we don’t always have to wait until it gets that far. Maybe there’s a way to listen earlier. To notice the whispers before they become screams. That’s where energy healing lives. In the quiet. In the before.
So grab your favorite cocktail and raise your glass:
Here’s to honoring our bodies as the miracles they are.
To the quiet energy that heals, to knees that carry us, to hearts and minds that keep opening.
My hope is that Western medicine and Eastern wisdom stop glaring at each other and shake hands, meeting in the middle – each filling in the gaps the other can’t.
And here’s to all of us stepping forward a little lighter, a little softer, and a little more grateful in 2026 – needing fewer ice packs this year.
Merry Christmas to all – no matter what your belief may be.
Cheers!
