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Shamanism as a healing paradigm for complementary therapy
1Centre for Health, Healing and Human Development, Liverpool John Moores University, UK.
Complementary Therapies in Nursing & Midwifery
|February 22, 2002
Summary
Shamanism and complementary therapies enhance healing by modulating the body's restorative functions, influencing the immune system through internal variables like patient meaning and imagery. This ancient practice aligns with modern psychoneuroimmunology.
Area of Science:
- Integrative Medicine
- Psychoneuroimmunology
- Anthropology of Healing
Background:
- Healing involves stimulating the body's innate restorative functions, historically termed vis mediatrix naturae.
- Traditional Chinese Medicine and complementary therapies recognize and utilize this principle.
- The immune system plays a crucial role in healing, influenced by both external factors and internal patient variables such as illness perception and imagery.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore shamanism as a healing paradigm.
- To examine the congruence between shamanic healing techniques and modern psychoneuroimmunology.
- To understand how shamanism informs complementary therapies and other healing modalities.
Main Methods:
- Review of shamanic practices and their focus on consciousness modification, imagery, and meaning.
- Analysis of the relationship between internal patient variables and immune function.
- Comparison of shamanic principles with established complementary therapies, spiritual healing, and the placebo effect.
- Examination of the psychoneuroimmunological perspective in relation to ancient healing techniques.
Main Results:
- Shamanic practices offer a toolkit for modifying consciousness, imagery, and meaning to facilitate healing.
- Modulating internal variables that enhance immune function is beneficial for the healing process.
- Shamanism provides a framework for understanding essential healing elements present in complementary therapies, spiritual healing, and spontaneous remission.
- The psychoneuroimmunological perspective appears to validate and align with ancient shamanic healing techniques.
Conclusions:
- Shamanism exemplifies a healing paradigm that shares principles with complementary therapies and other modalities.
- Ancient shamanic techniques are congruent with and validated by modern psychoneuroimmunology.
- Understanding shamanism can illuminate the essential healing processes within various therapeutic approaches.