Faith healing, which is also known as spiritual healing, is a type of holistic treatment used to support good health and wellness, in case of people suffering from major illnesses. This can be used in addition to the main treatment as a complementary treatment modality. Ideally, faith healing is only for promoting wellness and should not be considered an alternative to the main treatment.
Principle
Faith healing is based on the principle that some people have the ability to connect to the divine powers and channelize them for the healing or betterment of the needy. In this, the person who gets connected to the divine powers is regarded as a mediator, who can heal the patient by using the powers to closely connect with the higher power. It can involve meditation, prayers, or a ritual but basically, it is the deep faith of the patient in the supreme power and the mediator or healer.
While there is no scientific evidence to back up this theory, this is widely practiced and promoted. It may not be able to completely cure the ailments, but may provide peace of mind, feeling of satisfaction, and allows the mind to relax. The healers also contribute to this by enabling their patients to recognize their potential, allowing them to relax and creating a sense of hope as regards their health and reinforce the will to live. However, it is the patient’s ability to understand the situation, to regain the confidence and become aware of their own self. This can help them to relieve pain and apprehension and be able to deal with the health problems more effectively.
Benefits
Although there are no specific documented benefits, faith healing is believed to bring about improvement in general health and severity of the chronic medical condition, which is actually based on the belief of the patient in the divine powers and the healer. It could be the feel good factor after a faith healing session that makes the patient feel better and develops the energy and strength to fight the ailment.
Safety First
While faith healing does not seem to be harmful, patients need to be careful as it is completely based on faith and confidence. If there is no improvement in the health condition, patients might feel dejected, which may affect their health even more. Patients also need to identify false claims made by such healers and decide accordingly.
