Re: Holistic RN or chiropractic?

I just have to say that chiropractic has helped me tremendously. Back pain, neck pain, hip pain, allergies etc. It has also helped me have a better attitude becuase when you are in a lot pain it is hard to be happy all the time,although not impossible.

Many chiropractors have pre-med degress and another 4 years of training.There are many techniques from non-force adjusting to high force adjusting and you can chose which one to go too. I like having options to chose from! WWW.chiroweb.com is a good website. Pubmed has chiropractic articles also. You could also search Dysafferentation.

It takes a little time to find one that you like because they will have their hands on you to make an adjustment,so you will have to have that level of trust there.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...=pubmed_docsum

Re: Holistic RN or chiropractic?

What about becoming a naturopath? They incorporate much of what you say you want to do. In Connecticut, you could make a fine living and offer much needed alternative approaches to wellness as well as disease treatment modalities. Choosing a place that supports this kind of treatment is key. The populace in this area is very open to choice and they have the money to pay out of pocket as much will not be paid for by insurance. Nurses working in holistic areas that I know of are massage therapists, polarity therapists, or are working for homeopaths. or naturopaths, sometimes for MD's in integrative medical practice. And you could take the integrative medical route yourself (i.e. Dr.Andrew Weil). Good luck.

Re: Holistic RN or chiropractic?

Check out the American College of Advanced Medicine (ACAM). I don't know where they are on the web, but they have lots of docs who practice holistically.

Re: Holistic RN or chiropractic?

I totally agree- the article is bogus and probably written by an MD. I've been a nurse massage therapist for 10 years, and I can tell you chiropractic works when the chiropractor knows what they're doing.

Re: Holistic RN or chiropractic?

Re: Holistic RN or Chiropractic?
I am an LPN now, but was a chiropractic assistant for 10 years. I want to encourage you that you absolutely can make a fine living in chiropractic. As in any medical profession there are good and bad doctors. Unfortunately bad chiropractors get more attention because traditional medicine simply cannot admit that this form of healthcare does benefit someone's health. I did not know there was anything such as holistic nursing, and I will be looking in the Augusta area for any such training I can get to move in that direction. Thanks for asking the question and good luck with either career you choose. I think you will find satifaction with either since the goal of both is to help others be healthier.

Re: Holistic RN or chiropractic?

Originally Posted by abell

I am a premed student in portland oregon. i got accepted into chiropractic school but was warned that it might be difficult to make a living as a chiropractor. I have a BA but i am now working on pre-reqs to get an RN degree. i can go to chiropractic school this fall if i decide to do it because i was already accepted.
Do holistic nurses
-work in hospitals or private clinics?
-are there a lot of them, are they paid well, is it a recognized profession?

I would like to work and provide care using natural healing modalities that might include massage, chiropractic, naturopathic, and nutrition counselling. In other words, i want to help people who are sick, help them to detox and be healthy, and get paid to do this, and be happy and successful, and work with a group of doctors or caring people to help support the sick and encourage them to get well. is that what holistic nursing is? or should i go for chiropractic.

Thanks!
A Bell

Follow your heart. Go to Chiropractic school. Who ever told you that you might have a problem making an income has thier own agenda.

Let me give you an example. When I was enrolling in high school a guidance counselor told me that I could never ever be accepted into any nursing school. Now here was his logic as he explained it. His daughter was turned down from nursing school. AND she according to him was the cream of the crop. Therefore if she could not get in, I never could.

I know a number of chiropractors perosnally and they make a very nice living. They choose thier own hours and usually work no more than a 4 day work week.

This person who is advising you probably has a very different agenda than my guidance counselor but he definately has one.

If you follow the $$$ in choosing your career you will be miserable. Always follow your passion. If you do that you will figure out how to put a roof over your family's head and still love life. If you follow the $$$ instead of your passion you will die and early death or wish you do.

Chiropractic is a highly paid and respected profession. If that is what you want go for it. There will always be naysayers no matter what path you choose. Do not let others make that decision for you. You are an adult only you can choose the right path. Following such cocamamy advice will put you precisely where you don't want to be.

Re: Holistic RN or chiropractic?

I'm happy to read this thread.

I have a BA in Biology and was originally pre-med....but I ended up going to nursing school.

I got halfway through the RN program and moved to another state, intending to complete my RN at Excelsior College.

Unfortunately, I was not accepted because they say I was short one clinical hour. I wasn't sure what to do next and so I got any job to pay the bills. But in my heart I still love health care.

I enjoyed aspects of nursing school, but only when working with psych patients and on the maternity floor. I find that I don't enjoy typical nursing care, and I have a strong interest in natural healing methods.

Now I have an opportunity to go to Chiropractic school and have been trying to decide if that is the best option for me. I like that it incorporates natural healing methods while running my own business. But I don't think it incorporates psych or obstetrics in any way, though I may need to do more research on that.

I will say that back in April 2000 I was in a car accident where I got a whiplash injury when my head hit the window. Going to a chiropractor saved me from so much pain. I remember one time going into the office barely being able to move my head, and getting immediate relief from an adjustment...I felt so much better, I wanted to hug her! Chiropractic definitely works.

One thing I have learned is that there is always at least one person in the world that has something negative to say about any topic one can think of....and that we have to learn to make our own decisions in life.

Re: Holistic RN or chiropractic?

Chiropractic health care can be an amazing augment to western therapies. I think it is probably an intensive program too. I am also interested in holistic nursing. I have a b.a. degree in cell biology and will be doing an accelerated second degree bsn. I eventually want to get a masters in nursing to practice as a holistic NP or some variant of. I considered naturopathic medicine, but it was too expensive and too much of an investment of time with an unknown outcome. My impression is that if one has a background or training in western medicine will be more highly sought than one without it. So I think that the western training is valuable just to know it.
I think you should follow your interest though and seek what inspires you.
J

Re: Holistic RN or chiropractic?

To me it sounds like that nursing is not the thing for you. I have been an RN for a little over a year, and worked before as a physical therapist assistant. PT was much closer to holistic than nursing is, that's for sure. You'll be dolling out meds....not in every instance, but most.....plus you'll be doing a thousand other things, which might include some soul nurturing for the patients, but there is seriously not much time for that.

Re: Holistic RN or chiropractic?

I practiced chiropractic for a number of years. It is a profession requiring business sense and entrepreneurship. Clinical skills are important, but you won't get to be much of a clinician if the business is not the main focus. The short version of my story is that I finally came to grips with the fact that I'm no business-man and went into nursing. I don't regret my decision to go back to school.

Some things to know:
1. Chiropractic school is very expensive. Ask yourself "Why are the vast majority of chiropractic schools private institutions and not associated with traditional universities?"
2. Chiropractors generally don't work together well or refer to each other since there are no distinct specialties. You're pretty much on your own as compared to the network of support/interaction in medicine.
3. Many musculoskeletal conditions and some neurological problems can respond well to chiropractic care. Whether a spinal adjustment can help someone with metabolic problems, infections, endocrine disorders, etc. requires a leap in logic scientifically. But if your chiropractic school is like mine was, you'll be inundated with anecdotal evidence that chiropractic is good for most if not all health problems.

Just my 2 cents. Anyone considering chiropractic, or any profession for that matter, should interview a number of people working in that field. I went into chiropractic based on idealistic principles. Idealism is ok but should be tempered with reality.

Good luck to all!
Dave