When it comes to the healthcare, people tend to have two different philosophies: mechanistic and vitalistic philosophy. Mechanistic philosophy states that we are not more than the sum of our parts. If something quits working, like a liver or kidney, we can just replace it and keep on going. Vitalistic philosophy states that we are more than the sum of our parts. Every aspect of our life works synergistically to create a whole and healthy human being. It is the difference between a mechanic and a gardener.
A mechanic is going to find out exactly what is wrong or broken with your car, put new parts in it and throw away the old ones. The premise is that your body is eventually going to wear out and you will have to replace each worn out part individually as it gets too old to function. This is why our medical paradigm has specialists in each system of the body; they see it as something separate from the whole being.
The gardener on the other hand, notices that the plant is not looking healthy and wonders how he can nurture its whole being back to health. The gardener will give the plant more water, sunlight or better soil and allow the plant to heal on its own. The sick leaves will eventually fall off and replace themselves with new healthy ones because it has the correct “lifestyle”.
You can paint leaves, graft leaves or replace dead leaves with artificial ones all you want, but the plant will not be any healthier. The problem with the plant was not the “worn out” leaves, it was the lifestyle or the environment in which it lived.
The question we can ask ourselves is the following: Are humans more like cars or more like plants?
As a chiropractor, I believe that creating an optimal environment and lifestyle for people to thrive in is much easier and more useful than learning how to keep people artificially alive in a poor environment. Feed yourself physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually to live a whole and healthy life!
-Laine Morales D.C.
Analogy adapted form “The Mechanic and the Gardener” by Lawrence Leshan
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