Ayurveda is India’s traditional, natural system that has been practiced for more than 5,000 years. Ayurveda provides an integrated approach to preventing and treating illness through lifestyle interventions and natural therapies. Ayurvedic theory states that all disease begins with an imbalance or stress in the individual’s consciousness. Lifestyle interventions are a major ayurvedic preventive and therapeutic approach.

Biofeedback Therapy is a techniques to improve health by learning to recognize and manipulate signals sent by their own bodies.

Body Work is a general term that applies to a variety of manipulative therapies, emphasizing skillful touch, which affect posture, function, and behavior.

Chiropractic is a branch of the healing arts which is concerned with human health and disease processes. Doctors of Chiropractic are physicians who consider man as an integrated being and give special attention to the physiological and biochemical aspects including structural, spinal, musculoskeletal, neurological, vascular, nutritional, emotional and environmental relationships.

The practice and procedures which may be employed by Doctors of Chiropractic are based on the academic and clinical training received in and through accredited chiropractic colleges and include, but are not limited to, the use of current diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. Such procedures specifically include the adjustment and manipulation of the articulations and adjacent tissues of the human body, particularly of the spinal column. Included is the treatment of intersegmental aberrations for alleviation of related functional disorders.

Chiropractic is a drug-free, non-surgical science and, as such, does not include pharmaceuticals or incisive surgery. Due regard shall be given to the fact that state laws, as well as the nation's antitrust laws, may allow Doctors of Chiropractic to utilize ancillary health care procedures commonly referred to as being in the common domain.(Source: ACA)

CAM is an acronym for Complementary and Alternative healthcare and Medical practices. It refers to those healthcare and medical practices that are not currently an integral part of conventional medicine.

Chinese Medicine: see Traditional Chinese Medicine

Cranio-Sacral Therapy is a therapy consisting of gentle manipulation of cranial bone movement to effect the membranes surrounding the central nervous system.

Disease Management: A coordinated system of preventive, diagnostic, and therapeutic measures intended to provide cost-effective, quality healthcare for a patient population who have or are at risk for a specific chronic illness or medical condition. Also known as disease state management.

Feldenkrais is a system of neuro-motor training and reconditioning that includes a soft tissue manipulative technique that promotes functional integration. It concentrates on increasing the body’s efficiency through improving coordination.

Herbal Medicine is the use of plant remedies in the treatment of disease. It is the oldest form of medicine known. Now, with the advancement of science enabling us to identify the chemical constituents within these plants, we can better understand their healing powers.

Homeopathic Medicine is practiced worldwide, especially in Europe, Latin America and Asia. Based on "like cures like", it uses natural remedies that stimulates the body’s own healing processes. Homeopaths view the individual as a whole and prescribe a remedy to cure the emotional, physical and spiritual imbalances that underlie physical symptoms.. Homeopathy is used to treat acute and chronic health problems as well as for disease prevention and health promotion. Recent clinical trials suggest that homeopathic medicines have a positive effect on several disease states.

Magnetic Field Therapy involves the use of magnetic and electromagnetic force fields to treat a variety of disorders. It can be used in both diagnosing and treating physical and emotional disorders. This process has been recognized to relieve symptoms and may retard the cycle of new disease.

Manipulation is a passive manual maneuver during which the three-joint complex is suddenly carried beyond the normal physiological range of movement without exceeding the boundaries of anatomical integrity. The usual characteristic is a thrust-a brief, sudden and carefully administered "impulsion" that is given at the end of the normal passive range of movement. It is usually accompanied by a cracking noise.

Massage Therapy is a general term for several disciplines that utilize many forms of body work techniques to promote healing and health, including neuromuscular therapy, sports massage, Shiatsu, Swedish massage, Thai massage and visceral manipulation.

Mind-Body Medicine involves behavioral, psychological, social and spiritual approaches to health. It is divided into four subcategories: Mind-body systems; Mind-body methods; Religion and spirituality; Social and contextual areas.

Naprapathy is a healthcare system that assists the body in restoring its structural and functional integrity through gentle manipulation, nutritional counseling and adjunctive therapies. Naprapathic Doctors need to be certified and licensed in most states. You will find the credentials D.N. after their name.

Naturopathic Medicine or Naturopathy is a complete health care system that utilizes a wide variety of natural healing therapies. Some of those therapies include: nutrition, herbal medicine, and physical medicine, which is the manipulation of muscles, bones, and the spine. The appropriate credentials designating a Naturopathic Doctor are N.D. given after graduation from a four-year postgraduate program in Naturopathic Medicine. In states where they are licensed, ND’s are primary care providers. Currently Naturopathy is not licensed in Illinois.

Nutritional Counseling focuses on education and awareness of the individual’s dietary needs and by examining the person’s current condition and past medical history. Food and nutrition are fundamental to all life. Diet plays a central role in a person’s overall health. Meeting the health needs of the body is the aim of a balanced diet.

Osteopathy is a system of treatment , based on the recoginition of the role that the musculoskeletal system plays in the body's continuous effort to resist and overcome illness and disease. It is felt that manual manipulation is useful in stimulating the body's ability to fight disease and in restoring health. Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT) is composed of a spectrum of manual techniques that today's osteopathic physicians may use to alleviate pain, restore freedom of motion, and enhance the body's own healing power. Often these techniques are used in conjunction with more conventional forms of medical care, such as prescribing medication and performing surgery. The following are some of the most commonly used manipulative procedures: articulatory techniques, counterstrain, cranial treatment, myofascial release treatment, lympathic techniques, soft tissue techniques, and thrust techniques. DO refers to Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine.

Reflexology is a technique that stimulates the feet and hands to promote healing and stimulate the rest of the body’s internal organs and muscle systems.

Reiki is a form of energy healing that is used to reduce stress and increase energy, peace and feelings of well-being.

Rolfing is a form of massage that induces change toward an ordered pattern. It consists of a ten hour cycle of treatment that balances the myofascial system.

Stress Management focuses on reducing the response to stressful situations includes a variety of techniques and approaches that stimulate relaxation and decreasing stress hormone levels. These techniques include: meditation, visualization, laughter, cognitive therapy, herbal medicine, Traditional Chinese medicine, exercise, diet, relaxation and Ayurvedic medicine. Stress is a natural part of life. When levels of stress exceeds our ability to cope with it, or stretches beyond healthy limitations, it becomes a problem. Stress that is experienced on a long-term basis can be debilitating both physically and mentally. During a stressful experience the body produces an increased amount of hormones, that causes the body to prepare to run or fight. The body can easily adjust to the short-term effects of these chemicals. However, chronic release of the stress related hormones, leads to an increased susceptibility to a variety of diseases.

Therapeutic Touch is a non-sectarian form of laying on of hands developed in the United States by Dr. Dolores Kreiger. It focuses on the therapist’s "intent’ to promote healing through the transfer and manipulation of subtle energies.

Traditional Chinese Medicine is a sophisticated set of many systematic techniques and methods, including acupuncture, herbal medicine, acupressure, qi gong, and oriental massage. The most striking characteristic of Chinese medicine is its emphasis on diagnosing disturbances of qi, or vital energy, in health and disease. Diagnosing in Chinese medicine involves the classical procedures of observation, listening, questioning, and palpation, including feeling pulse quality and sensitivity of body parts.

Ancient Cultural Medicine is a way of protecting and restoring health that existed before the arrival of modern, conventional medicine. These approaches to health belong to the traditions of each country, and have been handed down from generation to generation. Traditional systems in general have met the needs of the local communities for many centuries. In practice, traditional medicine includes herbal medicine, mental healers, traditional birth attendants and acupuncture.