| 'You don't really believe these bizarre techniques | | | | therapy is nonsense! This offer of mine puts them in |
| work, do you?' This or other similar often less polite | | | | touch with the fact that they are not as convinced |
| comments are common responses when we try to | | | | as they think they are that the therapy does not |
| convince our more sceptical and scientific friends and | | | | work. If they were really as certain as they claim |
| acquaintances about the power and efficacy of our | | | | then they would be happy to do this because they |
| favourite alternative and complementary therapies. | | | | would know that I couldn't possibly make them |
| Many of us are left floundering in the face of the | | | | ill.Many doctors only ever meet our failures. I once |
| superiority of their total conviction in their rightness. | | | | met a doctor who claimed that osteopathy was |
| Over the years I have developed several different | | | | dangerous on the grounds that his patients who had |
| approaches to the sceptic. I do not use all these | | | | been to see one had come back to him in more pain. |
| approaches at the same time, but try to assess | | | | I pointed out to him that if the osteopathic |
| which approach will work. If one tactic doesn't work, | | | | treatment had been successful then his patients |
| then I try another approach. My success is not 100% | | | | would not have come back to him. Similarly, |
| but I have managed to convince many sceptics and | | | | complementary therapists only tend to see the |
| hostile scientists to take a second look at these ideas | | | | disasters of allopathic medicine. Many of my clients |
| and therapies. Some of these original sceptics have | | | | complain to me of their doctors' insensitivity and |
| become my greatest supporters and have, in turn, | | | | ignorance. I always remind myself that there are |
| managed to convince many other people to consider | | | | many people who are satisfied with conventional |
| these therapies.Sceptics often see the success as | | | | medicine and the treatment they receive: they are |
| being purely attributable to a placebo effect. It is | | | | so satisfied that they do not come to see me.Even if |
| argued that because people believe that it will work it | | | | sceptics admit that people are genuinely getting well |
| does. In fact many of the people who come to me | | | | they will often dismiss the therapies because we |
| say they find it very hard to believe that it will work. | | | | cannot adequately explain how it works. I offer the |
| Some clients ask incredulously: 'Can this really work?' | | | | following story to these people. Many years ago |
| or 'Is that it?' Other clients have told me that they | | | | when one of my sons was small we were travelling |
| have walked out after the first visit convinced they | | | | to my parents' house to celebrate their Golden |
| have just wasted their time and their money, only to | | | | Wedding Anniversary. My son had been entranced by |
| find that they do get better, that their symptoms do | | | | our preparations: the golden presents being wrapped |
| diminish and that they feel happier and healthier than | | | | in golden paper. On the journey we stopped at a |
| they have for a long time. It's not a very good | | | | motorway service station and he picked up a packet |
| placebo if so many people are so unimpressed by it! | | | | of Durex Gold condoms. 'What are these?' he asked |
| Small babies and children respond to kinesiology and | | | | curiously (obviously wanting to know whether this |
| other therapies very well. A 6-week old baby was | | | | would be a good additional present for Grandma and |
| brought to see me because she was failing to thrive. | | | | Granddad). 'Condoms,' I replied. 'What are they for?' |
| She was sick every time she was fed and was losing | | | | was the inevitable next question. 'They are things |
| weight much to the concern of her parents and the | | | | that men put on their willies to stop ladies having |
| medical profession. The mother had tried various | | | | babies,' I told him. He gave me a very hard look to |
| baby milk formulas (including soya-based ones) to no | | | | make certain that I really meant this bizarre |
| avail. I found that the baby was allergic to the tap | | | | statement and then he shook his head and said: |
| water that her mother used to make up the | | | | 'Strange, very strange.'Of course, to him the idea |
| formulas. We changed the tap water source and | | | | that men wearing something could stop women |
| used some homeopathic treatment and the baby | | | | having babies was bizarre, because he lacked a vital |
| responded immediately. This can hardly be attributed | | | | piece of information that made sense of this |
| to a placebo effect, particularly as the baby slept | | | | statement. The situation with many complementary |
| through the whole procedure, only waking as she | | | | therapies is bizarre precisely because we lack |
| was leaving my office. Even if it were a placebo, I | | | | information that would make sense of it. It is the job |
| have a placebo that works in many instances where | | | | of the scientific community to provide this |
| conventional medicine has failed.The most direct way | | | | information. Their model cannot explain the |
| to convince a sceptic is, of course, to improve his | | | | undoubted success of much alternative medicine. It is |
| her health using these techniques. Some years a man | | | | not sufficient (or scientific) to call the therapies |
| came to see me about the severe arthritis he had in | | | | bizarre and unscientific. It is necessary to find a |
| his knees. Although he was only in his 30's and an | | | | model that makes sense of these therapies. The |
| ambitious man he was only able to work part-time | | | | inadequacy is on the part of the scientific community |
| because he was in such pain. During the initial | | | | that cannot explain kinesiology and many other |
| conversation he told me that I would not be able to | | | | successful and increasingly popular therapies. It is not |
| help him. I was surprised at this and asked him why | | | | on the part of therapists who are busy helping |
| he had come to see me. He told me that both his | | | | people to get better and heal themselves.Many of |
| wife and his neighbour were clients of mine. | | | | the sceptics are implicitly arguing that medicine is |
| Whenever he complained about the pain in his knees | | | | scientific, rigorously assessed (with double blind trials |
| they would 'nag' him to come and see me. He had | | | | etc.), but this is far from the truth. For example, |
| decided he would come to see me simply to stop | | | | saliva swabs were taken from 12,000 children whose |
| them nagging. I did not spend a long time explaining | | | | GP's had diagnosed that they had measles. 97.5% of |
| or justifying the strange therapy but got his | | | | these children were found not to be suffering from |
| agreement that he would do everything I asked him | | | | measles (Daily Telegraph January 8th 1997). We are |
| to do. He came back for the second session and told | | | | not talking about doctors misdiagnosing some |
| me that his knees were much worse. 'You're the only | | | | obscure disease, but a common disease that is much |
| person that's ever managed to do anything,' he said. | | | | discussed. Many drugs have been found to be |
| This was a rather surprising but encouraging | | | | ineffective or, even worse, to involve serious side |
| comment. By the time he came for his third session | | | | effects. Pethidine, for instance, given to huge |
| his knees had improved dramatically and he had | | | | numbers of women to reduce pain in labour has been |
| taken a new full-time job that involved him in driving | | | | found to be ineffective (What the Doctors Don't Tell |
| thousands of miles each month in a non-automatic | | | | You March 1997). A doctor specialising in anaesthetic |
| car. He was delighted and subsequently | | | | and pain relief told me that many of the operations |
| recommended many other people to come and see | | | | used for intractable pain had never been fully tested |
| me.A man with macular degeneration of the eyes | | | | and in his opinion many of these were useless |
| said at the end of his final appointment, 'I don't mean | | | | procedures submitting people to more distress and |
| to be rude. What you do is a joke, but I have no | | | | pain. Many drugs have had to be withdrawn after |
| other explanation for why my eyesight is getting | | | | devastating side effects have been found. In many |
| better.'In the past I often offered to show sceptics | | | | ways doctors and 'scientific' people are asking |
| how powerful health kinesiology was. Some refused | | | | standards from complementary therapy that |
| to let me do anything, but others agreed to have a | | | | medicine and science do not achieve.A frequent |
| short session. When their symptom improved or | | | | comment from my clients is that though the therapy |
| disappeared after the treatment they would often | | | | (in my case health kinesiology) seems bizarre, I seem |
| say 'But it would probably have gone anyway' or 'I | | | | very sane and down-to-earth. They feel that they |
| don't feel any different'. Eventually I got frustrated | | | | can trust me and that I am acting with honesty and |
| with this sort of response so I decided to offer to | | | | integrity. More than conventional doctors we need to |
| make the sceptic worse rather than better. 'I will put | | | | prove that we are intelligent, honest, knowledgeable |
| your body so out of balance that you will get | | | | and skilful.Based on an article first published in 'Positive |
| sickness and diarrhoea' I now volunteer innocently. I | | | | Health' in March 1998Jane Thurnell-Read is a writer |
| am sure skilled homeopaths, herbalists, masseuses | | | | and researcher on health, stress, alternative medicine, |
| and reflexologists could do this too. I have not yet | | | | and happiness. Visit her web site for tips and |
| found anyone who is willing to let me try to do this, | | | | information on how to live a happier, healthier life no |
| in spite of the fact that they believe that the | | | | matter how busy you are. |