Moving away from the “dr says” mindset

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Over the years, I have slowly moved our family away from mainstream health treatments, realising that a lot of times the doctors we see are treating the symptoms and not the root cause. This does not mean we don’t ever see a doctor and we don’t take any medication.

We do. Really. Just that we don’t run to the doctor at the slightest issue. So run of mill issues like coughs and colds are usually treated with Vitamin C and garlic instead. And if antibiotics are necessary, we use Grapefruit Seed Extract (GSE) as our first line of defense. And for our allergies, most would know by now that we avoid steroids like the plague 😀 Instead, I will do diet modifications. But we do use antihistamines like Zyrtec and Clarinase as and when necessary and/or nose drops like Iliadin (which you are to use only for 5 consecutive days, max).

Not relying on doctors, doing my own research, checking alternative health practices, changing my family’s diet – all these are not acceptable to most people. Some think I am being irresponsible or weird. They seem to be stuck in a “dr says” mindset. If the doctor didn’t say it, doesn’t endorse it, they won’t do it. They won’t even explore any other alternative, much less follow it. But if the “dr says” yes, wow! They would move mountains to make sure that they adhere to that advice. No need to research more. No need to seek a second opinion from a different type of practitioner.

I am not naive. I know that not all alternative healthcare practitioners are kosher and there is much misinformation in the alternative health industry. But don’t these exist in the mainstream health industry as well?

But why would one want to move away from mainstream healthcare? Personally, we started moving away from it when we realised that many times, the human body that God created, does heal by itself if we would treat it right – eat-play-rest. No need for any medication. I remember one book I read had a doctor who said, it takes one week to heal from the common cold on antibiotics but 7 days with no medication – get it? 😉 ) I also chatted online with moms who have chosen natural alternatives to heal their children which was eye opening – not only did the treatments work, it had minimal or no side effects! Also, with eczema, the doctors had no solution except suppress the immune system with steroids and antihistamines. And often times when the prescribed medication doesn’t work, stronger and stronger ones are prescribed. It was frustrating. So I started my research.

I learnt how damaging constant medication can be to our bodies, especially our livers. And how certain medications (like steroids) can have a cumulative effect on our bodies! Now that was scary. And of course how antibiotics have a whole lot of cons with its pros. Medications tend to “work” by suppressing our bodies’ natural reaction. Example – a fever develops when the body tries to eliminate the bad bugs. Many times we too quickly suppress it instead of letting the body try to fight the bug off on its own. Yes, a too high fever is not good. So we do medicate. Also when the body starts to ache and make the child (or me!) miserable, I have no qualms about giving paracetemol or pandol. But I don’t immediately offer panadol at the onset of fever. So due to the toxic effects of all medication, I started avoiding them for the children whenever possible. And started looking elsewhere to help them fight the bug.

Please note, I do not just let the child suffer. I do not tell the child – no medicines for you, just wait for your body to do its thing! Nooo! I help the child’s body to fight the bug/s using natural or alternative methods. And I may also do a combination of both meds and natural treatments, depending on the situation.

Is moving away from the “dr says” mindset scary? Yes! An example : some months ago, I had a bout of urinary infection. My immediate thought was to go see a doctor. But equally immediately came the thought – the doctor will prescribe antibiotics! So I paused and brought it to the Lord. I told Him that He knew that I worked really hard to get my gut bacteria in order and it isn’t even fully recovered. One bout of antibiotics will destroy my efforts of the past 2 years. I really, really didn’t want to do it. So I tried the alternative way –  cranberry + d-mannose pills, GSE, probiotics, Vit C and garlic and lots and lots of water. And through it all, I kept saying to the Lord – if I need to go to see a doctor, please let me know. I will not be stubborn because I know UTIs can get scary bad fast.

I healed by the grace of God. No antibiotics. Sure it took longer than it could have with antibiotics but that was only a maybe. I had read of people who had to take multiple courses of antibiotics before their UTIs went away. So it isn’t a  100% guaranteed fact that I would have healed faster on antibiotics.

Yes, choosing to walk away from the “dr says” mindset, means I will need to read more, research more. I also need to connect with and seek out likeminded moms who have been on this route longer. And I most definitely need to pray more! Because only He heals and He will tell how it should be done. There is not tried and tested method because our God doesn’t work that way 😀

So if you are getting frustrated at the lack of answers your doctor is giving you and are thinking of considering alternative options, pray and research and then pray some more!

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