Natural Healing

I think my skepticism in naturopathic healing stems from my dad’s side of the family. However, lately after hearing much hype about the benefits of one naturopath, Dr. Carl H. Jelstrup, I decided to find out what these unusual health tactics could have to offer. Dr. Jelstrup is a chiropractor and an electro-medicine practitioner at Bellevue Wellness Center. “Electro-medicine” sounded a little intimidating and not very natural to me at first, but my unease dissipated when I was greeted by the friendly lobby environment which included a kind receptionist. She told me that many new patients were uncertain about the sometimes bizarre practices of natural medicine at first, but after a couple sessions they became regular visitors.  When the world is packed with new theories and practices competing to become recognized as the next big thing in medicine, there are bound to be some ideas that are a bit strange. They can range from "offbeat but possibly effective to "what the hell were they thinking?"  

Electro-medicine is not a new technology. Towards the end of the 19th century, there were several inventions that utilized energy in order to heal the body, such as magnet therapy, which used magnetic fields of energy in order to improve blood flow. Nowadays there are a number of tools that use electric and magnetic fields to promote the healing of organs, tissue, or cells within the body. The interaction of these fields, their frequency, the shape of the wave, the pulse, and so forth (it gets more complicated) all play a role in the success of the treatment. It’s all science, it turns out…And I thought it was all hooey! 

I did a little research online and found natural care practitioners that offer not only electro-medicine but a wide-ranging collection of alternative cures including mystical medicine and rebirthing therapy. Mystical medicine refers to a large chunk of natural medicine in general, while rebirthing therapy is a specific exercise that some therapists use on patients to simulate being born. Typically, a patient will be wrapped in a blanket, have pillows put on top of them, and then two or more people will lean on the pillows to simulate birth contractions while the patient has to fight their way out of the cocoon.  These ideas that are sometimes a little far-fetched, are considered alternative because they haven't been accepted by the mainstream medical community. 

Fortunately, I trusted that I was in good hands seeing that Dr. Jelstrup has been practicing medicine for over 40 years, and is known in the Puget Sound area for being able to fix head and neck problems in only days.. Dr. Jelstrup took the time to explain everything in detail as I’m sure he could sense the question marks in my brain with his “bio-phonic scope” or stress resonator. The bio-phonic scope is an instrument that he rubs his fingers on to detect stress radiation by sensing the level of friction it transmits. If it goes from smooth to squeaky, there is neurological interference, in lay terms, “stress”. With these stress indicators as guide lines, he is able to balance the nervous system and recreate a balance for the body’s innate to heal itself. The bio-phonic scope can be integrated with many different kinds of healing medicinal practices in order to achieve balance in the body. "The greater balance we can maintain in our body, the greater sense of well being we will experience emotionally, physically and structurally," he says.

I didn’t get to the balancing my body part because I had too much metal in my body. Mercury? You might ask. Nope, braces. Oh, and a few piercings on my face and ears. According to Dr. Jelstrup, my brace wires are blocking my electrical circuits, interfering with the stability of my neck, my right TMJ (Temporomandibular joint) is showing high stress, and my nervous system is reacting to all the metal. His recommendation is that I get my braces checked and get rid of my piercings. Although, Dr. Jelstrup was able to apply some of his chiropractic methods and cracked several joints in my body which actually did seem to ease some pain in my lower back and hips. 

Many of the natural healing practices that take place at Bellevue Wellness Center haven't been accepted by all doctors  in the mainstream medical community. But practices in the medical field are constantly changing, being improved, and also being discovered and invented. As time goes by, some methods will die out, but some will become successful and go on to help people live healthier lives. Who knows, electro-medicine just might become the next big thing in medicine.