What are your best rules for considering an alternative treatment?

**Katrina** · 12-07-2005, 09:29 AM

We need to be careful when we try any new treatment...conventional or alternative. Since with alternative treatments we often have to find out about them on our own what are your rules to make sure that the treatment is right for you?
Research?
Ask your doctor?
Judge the site you get info on in any special way?

Thank you very much for your help!

**poetgirl** · 12-07-2005, 10:57 AM

Hi Katrina,

I do a lot of research on my own -- usually on the internet. I try to stick to sites that describe the alternative treatment in measured, medical language and are written by a licensed holistic practitioner (N.D. or D.O.) I tend to be suspicious of any site that claims that a treatment can treat every problem out there or sounds so extreme as to be unbelievable.

I generally do not consult my medical practitioners (with the exception of my chiropractor) about alternative treatments because they tend to be dismissive of anything they haven't prescribed that isn't manufactured by a large pharmaceutical manufacturer.

**Katrina** · 12-07-2005, 11:07 AM

Do you have specific sites you check things out at often? Thanks for your help.

**poetgirl** · 12-07-2005, 11:11 AM

One site that comes to mind right away is: http://www.wholehealthmd.com/

**windwalker** · 12-07-2005, 11:51 AM

I will constantly research, get as much info and opinions as possible before deciding what to do.

**massagedoula** · 12-07-2005, 05:26 PM

I research (gotta love research) and then ask my naturopathic doctor.

**Dixiefireball** · 12-07-2005, 05:59 PM

i research, ask question here on the boards, then take the information i have with me to my uro. I don't take anything new with my meds without his approval. I learned this a long time ago with trying new treatments. I was in so much pain i was looking for a quick fix, but with IC and other disease there is no quick fix out there. i use to say to myself that i would give it a shot for a week or two then if it didn't work heck with it. Now i've learned better and i learned from my own mistakes. when trying new treatments i give it at least four to six mths to see if i'm going to see a diff. If i hadn't followed that advice i wouldn't had those eighteen mths of remission i had. I'm fighting hard to get that back and believe once we get these uti i get under control i will gain remission back again. Everything takes time in order to work. However I do believe anytime we are trying something new we should have our pain under control also. If the new treatments your trying is for pain control remember it will take time, but ask your doctor can he/she help you out with something mild for break threw until you have had time to see if its going to work.
I hope this makes sinces its pass my bed time and i've already had my meds, but i explained it the best i could.
Oh and something else i've learned from other memebers only try one new treatment at a time never mix new treatments if you do you want know what is working or what is helping.
Hope this helps someone.
Rhonda

**ICPrincess** · 12-08-2005, 02:21 AM

The first thing I always do is enter the name of the drug or supplement into the search engines here. I read what the other members have had to say about it. What their experiences were. I then go to DrugDigest which has that wonderful interactive search engine. There you can enter all the drugs and OTC supplements you are taking now and cross reference it with the new potential drug or supplement to see what reactions there might be if any at all.

I then go online and begin doing my own research. I do not take into consideration a place that might be selling the item. They can be biased (as this site might be for the items it sells). I try and find informational sites. I then gather everything together and make a decision. I do not always ask my doctors because they can be dead wrong about things as it is. If it's something really questionable like powerful herbs I have never heard of or components I am unfamilar with, I will then call and ask my Doctors what they feel about it. There are many wonderful things that my doctors never told me about that I had to learn on my own so I do not hang on every word they say to be frank. For something as simple as calcium, basic vitamins, aloe vera etc, no...I am not going to pester my physician there. I think through the many sources I can find online as well as cross referencing it with what I am taking now through the pharmacies search engine, is quite enough. If it is something that I am nervous about or that I am unfamiliar with, I will make the call. There is alot of wonderful information out there available to us online. The Internet is like one massive library. You can learn a great deal from it. It's also good to trust your own instincts about something. I think we all have a sixth sense to some degree. Call it intuition or whatever you will. We get vibes about certain things for a reason. Just as we do about certain people.

***ICNDonna*** · 12-08-2005, 03:27 AM

I learned fairly early on that if the only evidence that something is helpful is testimonials on a web site selling a product --- that I need to research more. I also check at http://www.quackwatch.org before trying anything.

Donna