All too often we take our life and the wonderful things we enjoy for granted. The purpose of Memorial day is to recognize those who have passed on, and truly passed on so many blessings to us.
My father was a World War Two veteran who saw action in the Pacific on a small carrier. Besides battle with kamikazes, torpedoes, and naval gunfire, he rode out Typhoon Cobra in which destroyers sunk due to running out of fuel and being blown over in the storm. That typhoon took many lives and ships.
This is a time to remember those who gave their lives and their freedom to keep us safe. Being a veteran myself, I understand the sacrifice our men and women in the armed forces have made through the years, and I’m eternally grateful.
We remember our family members that have passed on, who made sacrifices for us to live a better life. The mother, the father, the spouse or child that left far too soon. Our grandparents, and great grandparents, and those who have no family at all to keep them in remembrance.
As we reflect on those who blazed the trail for us, I see Memorial Day as a time of reflection upon those who’ve gone before me, in creating a profession I can be proud of. The practice of natural or holistic medicine has been dynamically impacted by many, long forgotten physicians, who faced prison for their dedication to providing safe and effective treatment for the sick.
Years ago, there weren’t laws on the books to protect naturopathic physicians. Medical doctors and osteopaths were considered “doctors.” Anyone who practiced alternative medicine was termed a quack, and thrown in jail for “practicing medicine without a license.” Although highly skilled in the art of healing, there were no state laws or licensing boards, authorizing them to practice medicine.
Many of the best doctors of the time, had served jail time, just for providing compassionate health care, while following the Hippocratic Oath, (physician do no harm). If not for those stubborn doctors, who fully believed in the innate healing ability of the human body, Alternative medicine as we know it today wouldn’t exist.
When I was taking my basic sciences in the early 70’s, naturopathic medicine was still quite uncommon. Naturopathic doctors were few and far between, and the number of states that licensed naturopaths could be counted on one hand.
Although I have a 1928 photo, showing a very large number of the attendees of the 32nd annual American Naturopathic Association convention in Portland, Oregon hanging on my wall, no one at the college I was attending knew what a naturopathic physician was. In trying to convey just what a naturopath was, I usually had to say, it’s what societies idea of a quack is.
Interestingly, the term quack medicine came from the use of mercury as a medicine by mainstream doctors. You see, mercury was called quicksilver. Thus, the term using quacksilver to treat patients. As most are aware, mercury is extremely toxic to the body, and the reactions of patients were quite dramatic. Unfortunately the dramatic responses were not beneficial. Kinda sounds like so many drugs used in mainstream medicine today. Somebody forgot to tell physicians that they are still to be bound by the Hippocratic oath.
Today, naturopathic physician’s aren’t just known of, but many greater and greater numbers of patients are being treated by, or seeking naturopathic care to correct what they’ve been taking drugs to cover up. What was considered quack medicine has risen to the forefront of modern day health care thanks to the efforts of those who’ve pioneered this noble profession.
I want to acknowledge Dr John Bastyr, for which the Bastyr university in Seattle is named, and who brought me into this world and instilled a desire to follow in his footsteps.
My father was a World War Two veteran who saw action in the Pacific on a small carrier. Besides battle with kamikazes, torpedoes, and naval gunfire, he rode out Typhoon Cobra in which destroyers sunk due to running out of fuel and being blown over in the storm. That typhoon took many lives and ships.
This is a time to remember those who gave their lives and their freedom to keep us safe. Being a veteran myself, I understand the sacrifice our men and women in the armed forces have made through the years, and I’m eternally grateful.
We remember our family members that have passed on, who made sacrifices for us to live a better life. The mother, the father, the spouse or child that left far too soon. Our grandparents, and great grandparents, and those who have no family at all to keep them in remembrance.
As we reflect on those who blazed the trail for us, I see Memorial Day as a time of reflection upon those who’ve gone before me, in creating a profession I can be proud of. The practice of natural or holistic medicine has been dynamically impacted by many, long forgotten physicians, who faced prison for their dedication to providing safe and effective treatment for the sick.
Years ago, there weren’t laws on the books to protect naturopathic physicians. Medical doctors and osteopaths were considered “doctors.” Anyone who practiced alternative medicine was termed a quack, and thrown in jail for “practicing medicine without a license.” Although highly skilled in the art of healing, there were no state laws or licensing boards, authorizing them to practice medicine.
Many of the best doctors of the time, had served jail time, just for providing compassionate health care, while following the Hippocratic Oath, (physician do no harm). If not for those stubborn doctors, who fully believed in the innate healing ability of the human body, Alternative medicine as we know it today wouldn’t exist.
When I was taking my basic sciences in the early 70’s, naturopathic medicine was still quite uncommon. Naturopathic doctors were few and far between, and the number of states that licensed naturopaths could be counted on one hand.
Although I have a 1928 photo, showing a very large number of the attendees of the 32nd annual American Naturopathic Association convention in Portland, Oregon hanging on my wall, no one at the college I was attending knew what a naturopathic physician was. In trying to convey just what a naturopath was, I usually had to say, it’s what societies idea of a quack is.
Interestingly, the term quack medicine came from the use of mercury as a medicine by mainstream doctors. You see, mercury was called quicksilver. Thus, the term using quacksilver to treat patients. As most are aware, mercury is extremely toxic to the body, and the reactions of patients were quite dramatic. Unfortunately the dramatic responses were not beneficial. Kinda sounds like so many drugs used in mainstream medicine today. Somebody forgot to tell physicians that they are still to be bound by the Hippocratic oath.
Today, naturopathic physician’s aren’t just known of, but many greater and greater numbers of patients are being treated by, or seeking naturopathic care to correct what they’ve been taking drugs to cover up. What was considered quack medicine has risen to the forefront of modern day health care thanks to the efforts of those who’ve pioneered this noble profession.
I want to acknowledge Dr John Bastyr, for which the Bastyr university in Seattle is named, and who brought me into this world and instilled a desire to follow in his footsteps.
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