I am 100% on board with holistic healing. I have gotten to the point where I look at my body and the issues I have with Crohn's as something that needs to be addressed as the whole package. In addition to the random prescript
ions my drs give me, I have also been on 6mp (and it stopped working), Remicaide (and it stopped working) am starting Humira this week (dr says he doesn't know if it is going to work), am currently taking Prednisone in pill form but have been in the hospital on IV steroids. That is a lot of hard core medicine, all with side effects and a lot with the potential to cause cancer, or mutations in the body. That being said, I am living for today and taking these drugs means that I am not laying in a hospital bed on medical leave from work for 3 months while my body is wracked with pain and I can barely function on a basic level. I think most people here can relate to that feeling.
So in ADDITION to the hard core drugs, I also take a holistic approach. This is what I do (disclaimer - this is what I CHOOSE TO DO FOR MYSELF and I know it's not for everyone, but everyone deals with their disease in a different way :)
I follow a mainly plant-based, dairy-free Macrobiotic diet. I tried being Vegan but Macrobiotics works much better for me since I can eat fish. Macrobiotics is more of a philosophy rather than a strict diet but a VERY basic premise is that your diet is centered around whole grains and veggies and (this is big) you chew your food very well. Everyone says that, no one does it, but in macrobiotics it is a focus. Then there are other things, like being consciously aware of what you are putting in your body, appreciating what you eat (I always say a little prayer before I eat), eating organic, not eating 3 hours before bedtime and not eating and drinking at the same time (giving at least 30 min between eating and drinking). There is a focus on the Alkaline/Acid ph balance in your body (which you can test) and you want to keep the proper balance. All this is easier than it sounds.
I am still learning about it but this is what I am doing so far with my diet.
Aside from that, I run and do yoga - I pray and try to meditate - I am trying to deal with my stress as best I can but at this point am looking to make some big changes in my job and maybe even where I live. I tend to get sick in the cold months and am very healthy during the warm months. There are so many links to Vitamin D and sunshine and inflammation in the body - maybe I need to move someplace warm? I take several supplements and drink Chinese teas. I am currently trying to eliminate nightshade vegetables from my diet to see if that helps, they cause inflammation in some people.
I have tried accupuncture but it was too expensive for me so I didn't do it enough to see results specifically from that.
I think that a holistic approach can be used in conjunction with modern medicine - there is no cure for Crohn's or colitis and no one here has been suddenly cured, so why not look into it and try it? It can ONLY HELP YOU. If it doesn't work out you can go back to your dr's orders to eat white rice and Wonder bread and drink Ensure. The bottom line is that everyone's body is different and we all have a responsibility to ourselves to live the best lives that we can, disease or not. So we need to figure out and learn about our bodies on a very personal level. Our drs give us the same medicines and hope for the best. They also don't care so much about the side effects, a GI dr's #1 concern is getting the inflammation down at any cost. If a person ends up with cancer in 10 years....................they go to a different doctor who treats that. Holistic healing is about connecting everything in your body and yourself as a person. You will learn a lot about yourself in the process too when you are more in touch with figuring out how what you do affects who you are. I am finding myself happier since I have made this a part of my life. And I have been sick, so I am sick and happy. :)
If anyone wants suggested reading, Alicia Silverstone's new book The Kind Diet is AWESOME and she really makes it simple.
Good luck! Let me know if you have any questions, i would love to help!! :)