How diverse is your dream team of helpers?
I don’t believe that anyone should be judged based on the colour of their skin, their physical ability, the clothes they’re wearing, what books they read, where they shop, what music they like, what house they live in, what car they drive or what haircut they have.
I also don’t believe anyone should be judged on their job title.
In the past I’ve done all sorts of weird and wonderful things. I’ve worked in seedy nightclubs making cheap cocktails, in supermarkets selling sausage rolls and cereal, at buzzing cafes making coffee and scrubbing dishes, in fancy restaurants polishing cutlery, at ski resorts dealing with disgruntled customers, in chalets cleaning spas and making beds, and in administration roles answering phones all day.
Now, when I tell people I’m a Naturopath, I generally get one of three looks – confusion, approval or disapproval. No doubt it happens to many people, in many industries… but I’ve discovered that natural medicine is a particularly touchy subject for some!
Personally, I don’t mind confusion or disapproval. I’m totally accepting of the fact that not everyone will love what I do as much as I do! But, when I hear that clients are met with negative comments and scathing opinions after mentioning that they’re seeing a Naturopath to another health care professional, it really grates on my gears.
I still remember the day I got a phone call from a client who was sobbing, calling from the car park of her specialist’s office. Why was she crying? Because after she had rightly mentioned that she was seeing me for support before embarking on another round of IVF, the specialist ripped up a letter I had written in front of her (as well as verbalising his blanket disapproval). In defence of my letter, it was extremely respectful and simply outlined my recommendations based on deficiencies picked up on routine pathology tests. The stress and angst this poor woman felt, for evidence-based recommendations that were complementary to her treatment, was unnecessary and unhelpful.
Now, this was a particularly bad response and unfortunately my client copped the brunt of it. It was a rare instance, thankfully, but confirms that unfortunately, collaboration isn’t always a reality.
THE POWER OF PARADIGM DIVERSITY
A paradigm is basically just way of looking at something. Medical doctors, Naturopaths, Nurses, Chiropractors, Health coaches, Researchers, Nutritionists, Acupuncturists, Personal trainers, Dietitians, Psychologists, Physiotherapists, Myotherapists, Chinese Medicine practitioners and Osteopaths ALL operate from different paradigms on different levels (physical/ emotional / spiritual).
Collectively, when these skills and viewpoints are applied in real-world scenarios, in complementary ways, magic can happen! And the more complex the problem, the more important collaboration and diversity becomes.
Working together means there is less room for bias, and more room for critical thinking. This, to me, is the true holistic, patient-centered, integrative care that everyone deserves.
Of course, in each industry and profession, there are cowboys! It pays to ensure that the person/people YOU choose are legitimate candidates with sufficient training in their chosen field.
