A Doctor's Guide to Therapeutic Touch

First developed in the early 1970s, Therapeutic Touch is an innovative and accessible approach to whole-body healing that has been demonstrated to induce relaxation, relieve pain and accelerate the body's natural healing process. Although Therapeutic Touch has been used by tens of thousands of nurses and other health practitioners, this book brings together, for the first time, the studies and research that support the validity of this treatment when used as an adjunct to regular medical care. Therapeutic Touch is a contemporary interpretation of several ancient healing practices and this clear-sighted guide shows how, and why, it can strengthen the immune system, relieve chronic pain, and detect illness; treat asthma, gastrointestinal disorders, cardiac problems, endocrine imbalances, and headaches; promote healing of fractures and infections; relieve symptoms associated with cancer, AIDS, and other serious illnesses; enhance relaxation to reduce anxiety and depression, especially as they are related to chronic or terminal conditions; and be used effectively with premature infants and geriatric patients.

This is a brief introduction to a noninvasive healing technique that, contrary to its name, does not involve touching. Therapeutic touch, developed in the 1970s by theosophist Dora Kunz and nursing professor Dolores Krieger, gets a stamp of approval from Wager, a Seattle physician who has been using it for over a decade. She briefly explains the technique's philosophical basis, how it is performed and its most common effects. Practitioners pass their hands over a patient's body a few inches above the surface, assessing the energy flow from the body, balancing that energy and transmitting outside energy to the patient. An adjunct to traditional medicine, therapeutic touch is said to promote relaxation and a sense of well-being, to relieve pain and to accelerate the body's natural healing processes. The scientific evidence is not compelling (eliminating the placebo effect and conducting double-blind studies pose significant research problems), but Wager gathers the available evidence to describe how the technique has helped, among others, premature babies and AIDs, cancer and Alzheimer's patients.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.