Through phone Consultation or Healing Arts publications sold in the Store, you can find information to get you connected to good practitioners who will offer alternatives or integrative and complementary health care.

When you consult with us, how do we know how much it will cost?

If I know what kind of therapy I want, how do you help me find the practitioner?

Can alternative therapies be used for life-threatening illnesses like cancer?

Where can I get the alternative information I need to deal with my illness?



Q. When you consult with us, how do we know how much it will cost?
A. The current price is listed on the home page under appointment information. However, we can’t be precisely sure in advance what it will add up to but it will take generally the same amount of time it takes for us to have a conversation, you asking questions, me giving answers. If your questions are about how certain therapies are practiced, what to expect during a treatment, and general practical matters, I will usually be able to answer from my knowledge. If I need to find addresses and phone numbers, I may have to consult a database which takes a little more time. We can set a time limit on discussion, using a timer. If there is a need to research your answer after we get off the phone, an estimate of the time will be made, and if you agree to it, I will do the research at that cost. If it takes less time than predicted, the charge will be less.

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Q. If I know what kind of therapy I want, how can you help me find the practitioner?
A. We can go about this in at least two different ways. I can give you the name and contact number of the professional organization for that therapy and you could contact them for the names of practitioners near you. A call like that would take just a moment and there would be no charge. However, if in addition, you wish for me to advise you on some of the questions to ask the practitioner or her office staff to help you make a decision about whether to set up an appointment, we’d have a short consultation.

In a second method, I would make the call to the organization and give you the names of practitioners in your area. If you wish, we could decide together what information you need from the practitioners and I could call them for you to collect their answers. Obviously, this would take more time. Even in this scenario, the choice of practitioner is yours to make. After all, you must feel satisfied that the professional is a good match for you, someone with whom you feel rapport and confidence.

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Q. Can alternative therapies be used for life-threatening illnesses like cancer?
A. Absolutely. Other cultures have different healing methods and one of them might be what you’re looking for. If you wish to pursue becoming knowledgeable about therapies used to treat cancer, for example, the first thing that might be helpful is to hear stories from people who are using alternative therapies. Learn from them why they’ve made that choice, how they are being treated, and by whom. Contact the Cancer Control Society and the National Foundation for Alternative Medicine. The NFAM has stories right on their website. The Cancer Control Society has a list of patients who are willing to talk with prospective patients of alternative therapies they’ve had for treatment. Also, CCS’s annual convention gives prospective patients a chance to hear practitioners and researchers speak of their work and become familiar with some of the possibilities.

You may want to read The Politics of Cancer Revisited by Dr. Samuel Epstein just to familiarize yourself with a different point of view about cancer prevention and treatment. The International Association of Cancer Victims and Friends, Inc. provides a list of practitioners, centers, non-toxic cancer therapies, and patients who have undergone treatments. It is not affiliated with doctors, clinics, or health food stores.

If you wish to have conventional treatment, using alternative support in a complementary way for the purpose of reducing stress, there are many organizations and hospitals you can contact, who, again, may be able to lead you to practitioners near where you live. There are Planetree in Connecticut (with associates throughout the U.S.), Beth Israel Hospital in Boston, the University of Massachusetts Medical Center in Worcester, MA, The Rosenthal Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine in New York, the Cancer Control Society in California, Center for Mind-Body Medicine in DC, (which sponsors an annual conference for patients and practitioners), Commonweal, and Exceptional Cancer Patients (EcaP), to name a few.

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Q. Where can I get the alternative information I need to deal with my illness?
A. As with anything you don’t have much knowledge about, you must find the right kind of support and information. Health professionals who are not trained in alternative therapies should not be expected to give you that kind of help. It would be irresponsible of them. It’s important for you to learn from those who have experience with it.

There are more and more MDs, nurses, and other conventionally trained health professionals who also have training in other health models such as oriental medicine, homeopathy, and ayurveda. National organizations dedicated to a specific healing therapy can direct you to practitioners located near you. Alternative Medicine, the Definitive Guide, a massive reference usually found in libraries, can help you locate them.

If you were to phone me for a consultation, I’d have many questions to ask you in preparation for finding you appropriate help. I would want to know what knowledge you have about alternatives so we could start with information that you would find appropriate. Are you interested in a particular therapy or do you need to explore which therapies are particularly suited to your condition? What kind of support do you have? Are your family or friends able to go with you for treatments and give you encouragement? Do you have a medical professional that is supportive of your intent? Can you afford to pay for treatments that most likely have limited insurance coverage, if any?

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For materials to help you be confident about alternative health care decisions, see our Store.
Questions? Use the email link below.