Navigating Your Way To Wellness

Chapter Summary

CHAPTER ONE: Medicine & Pharmacology
Examines the positive and negative aspects of orthodox medicine, including pharmacological treatments, antibiotics and prescription drugs, as they relate to bacteria, viruses, and atrophy/degeneration. This chapter weighs the benefits and limitations of conventional and alternative medicine.

CHAPTER TWO: Psychosomatic Health
Proposes positive practices in contrast to medicalizing human experience. This chapter includes discussions of mood and nutrition, alcohol and health, brain function, interpersonal conflict, defense mechanisms, thoughts, feelings, learned optimism and positive psychology, as well as environmental influences on behavior.

CHAPTER THREE: Nutrition, Health & Wellness
Provides an easy-to-follow approach to healthy eating habits, including how to develop and follow a grocery shopping list, prepare food in healthy fashion and avoid a variety of unhealthful eating behaviors. The advice leans strongly toward a Mediterranean diet of fresh, natural foods, and provides guidance toward adopting and maintaining positive nutritional habits.

CHAPTER FOUR: Natural Approaches for a Healthy Lifestyle
Presents a wide-ranging set of guidelines for developing healthy habits, rather than seeking a miracle cure, including sound behavioral strategies regarding sleep, daily routines, exercise, and environmental factors affecting health. The chapter also elaborates upon individualizing one’s health regimen.

CHAPTER FIVE: Healing Considerations of Common Conditions
Reviews and offers helpful suggestions for handling the afflictions many people suffer, including the common cold, allergies, back pain, insomnia, smoking and weight control, as well as more serious conditions such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.

CHAPTER SIX: Natural Healing Practices
Discusses the history, benefits and variety of many available alternative practices, including psychology, chiropractic, osteopathy, naturopathy, physical therapy, Chinese acupuncture and Ayurvedic medicine, hydrotherapy, brushing therapy, meditation, and yoga. The chapter begins with a discussion of the benefits, cautions, and concerns regarding the use of complementary and integrative medicine.

CHAPTER SEVEN: Rules of Engagement
Explores the theories and practices of psychology, including the influences of inheritance and environment, the Premack principle, deprivation, stimulus control, the law of reinforcement, nonviolence and noninterference with naturally occurring events and the principle of nonresistance.

CHAPTER EIGHT: Unified Theories
Proposes unified theories of behavior, stress and the stress response, the immune system and immune response, psycho-neuroimmunology and the inflammation response. Includes risk factors and recommendations for stress management and building a stronger immune system and a unified theory of treatment.

The book also includes Glossary, Reference and Index sections, as well as an introduction and appendices elaborating on material in the text.