What Is Naturopathic Medicine?
Naturopathic doctors are the only primary care practitioners clinically trained to use a wide variety of natural therapeutics. The naturopathic physician is set apart from the conventional physician in the search for underlying causes of disease and the use of natural remedies during the healing process. The cause or causes of a problem are crucial—without addressing these there will be no true healing.
Naturopathic MD’s also work to prevent future problems and to use building treatments “to do no harm.” Essentially these doctors are specially trained in all of the natural therapies from day one of medical school (*see below). Granted, regular diagnosis, testing, exam, drug knowledge and other medical skills are important and NMD’s learn these too, but they have the underlying philosophy of treating diseases and how to use the numerous therapies that are now becoming popular with much of the country. Naturopathic physicians help the body to heal itself–to let nature heal the human being.
Honestly, the naturopathic approach makes sense and a better name would be common sense medicine. As a patient you will find that your particular condition is specific to you. One person’s headache or thyroid problem is not the same as another even if it is the same condition. Each person has a unique response to illness and therapies and it is crucial to find the exact match for each person to achieve the best results in the safest and gentlest way possible.
These treatments are custom fit and adjusted to your specific needs, based on a philosophy that acknowledges you as a participant in the healing process. Naturopathic medicine goes beyond the symptoms.
*Naturopathic Physicians receive rigorous training at four year medical schools and are required to pass board examinations. Dr. Milisen has passed both the AANP board exams and the state of Arizona board exam and is licensed in the state of Arizona.
*The only accredited and legitimate Naturopathic Medical Schools are:
- Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine in Tempe, AZ
- National College of Naturopathic Medicine in Portland, OR
- Bastyr University in Seattle, WA
- The University of Bridgeport in Bridgeport, CT
- The Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine in Toronto, ON