It is to be observed that as early 400 B.C., Hippocrates (who is considered to be the father of medicine) had written that, “the natural healing force within us is the greatest force in getting well”. This is known as vitalism, also known as 'vis medicatrix naturae' (the inherent wisdom of the body). To put it simply, whenever there is something wrong with the body the doctor will attempt something.
for example: using antibiotics to kill the infection, perform surgery to remove a poisoned part or for amputation, put a broken bone into a cast, suture a flesh wound. All of these are part of the healing trade. The catch is that the body of patient has to actively respond to all this treatment otherwise it is wasted. Vitalism makes the body want to heal and get well. This is a well documented fact that people who deal with their physical problems confidently and cheerfully heal faster than others. The precise reason as to why this happens is not understood but the fact is still undeniable.
Holism
One explanation comes from the concept of Holism which says that the process of healing is a combined effort by the entire organism and cannot be achieved by any isolated part of that organism. The Holism concept can be traced to the time of Paracelsus, 1439-1541, who is credited with being the father of modern medicine. When Paracelsus treated patients he refused to pay attention to only that part which was showing symptoms of disease. Instead, he tried to treat the whole body as one whole entity. Holism is not a symptom=cure sort of healing technique. It involves a careful study of the defensive abilities of each individual patient's body.
Practitioners have to have the knowledge to differentiate between disease symptoms and the defensive or recovery systems. What Holism believes is that when someone falls sick, their whole body has undergone some kind of weakness and has lost the balance of its strength. So the solution is to simply restore the strength of the body. All western natural health therapies rely on biological factors and the better developed psychosocial approaches are a modern addition.
Individualism
This concept is different in the sense that it places all responsibility for sickness and good health on every individual in a society. So everyone is responsible for their personal health. Individualism results from an awareness of the importance of individuals in a community and the resulting virtues of self-reliance and personal independence. Well-rounded individuals are both self-reliant and independent.
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