I have a flex spending account with my insurance at work. I never used it and forgot about it. Now, I have $1000 to spend by Saturday!

I called the insurance company to ask if I can use an alternative health physician, like an ayurvedic practitioner and they said that as long as they're licensed, I can! Great news!

Now, what do I look for when I try to find one? I found one and called him. He was incredibly unexcited by my call, so I'm not thrilled about seeing him, but he's been practicing for 28 years.

So, do you use an Ayurvedic Practitioner? What do you ask them to make sure you're getting a good one? Seriously, the guy I called sounded like Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh.

Any recommendations?

I should also ask, for those who don't use an Ayurvedic Practitioner, do you use holistic medicine practitioners, etc.,

I'm looking for a good alternative for when I don't need/want to see my general practitioner, MD.

Your advice will be very appreciated!

i love my ayurvedic practitioner, but i would say most of all TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS. if he sounded unexcited and you are not thrilled, don't bother. make some more phone calls.

What's the difference between holistic and ayurvedic?

There's a Hippocrates Center for Holistic Healing, here in Minneapolis. I had to leave a voicemail with them though.

Hi Simple living,

Can you spend it on massage? Can you imagine getting $1,000 worth of massage treatments in 4 days...sounds like bliss to me.

Ayurvedic is a healing system from India, which could probably be considered a type of holistic medicine. Holistic medicine encompasses all sorts of natural / alternative/ and complimentary healing practices.

Aloha Nui Loa,

Greg

A great many people think they are thinking when they are really rearranging their prejudices. - William James

There is no pill that can be swallowed,
There is no guru, that can be followed, - Michael Franti (Pray For Grace)

The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion. - Albert Camus

What about a homeopath? Try homeopathic practicioners in Minnesota. [hplgroup.org] They are excellent! Don't know if you could get in so quickly but maybe!

regardless of which type of health practitioner you decide to check out, consider the first visit an interview process, like you are interviewing the practitioner for a very important job (because you are!) and don't be afraid to conduct multiple interviews if your first candidate isn't 100% to your liking.

the person should be:
* healthy themselves
* experienced
* kind
* willing to explain the whys and hows of things, not just dictate instructions
* open to new ideas (i.e., should not shut down around the issue of raw foods)

you should:
* do your homework
* fully brief the person on your lifestyle choices and health goals
* ask lots of questions

I have medical insurance but I rarely use it. I trust my body more then I trust doctors. For emergency care I appreciate doctors being there but for health versus degeneration care I put my trust in my body's innate wisdom. The better I do at following a healthy lifestyle the more my body responds. Everyone makes their own choices in such matters.

dreaming here...
if i had $1000 to spend by saturday i would either get
panchakarma (ayurvedic cleansing protocol) or i would get rolfed

In order to have these expenses covered, the "doctor" has to fill out a Doctor's Statement Form for Healthcare Expense. Part of that form says:

"The doctor's statement must indicate the specific medical disorder, the specific treatment needed, and how this treatment will alleviate the medical condition."

The "doctor" has to have licensure or proper certification. One homeopath that returned my call said homeopaths don't really have any certifications. Ayurvedic practitioners have that.

I'd like to spend the money on colon hydrotherapy, detoxification, parasite/worm checks, skin problems, liver cleansing, etc., Do ayurvedics work in colon hydrotherapy?

maui_butterfly has a big influence on me in this regard because she's been singing the praises of ayurvedic practitioners for awhile and I know what they've done for her. I just have to FIND one in Minneapolis! Even though this is a big city, this is NOT easy! I haven't had any luck at all.

I had an ayurvedic practitioner just call me back. She explained that ayurveda doesn't support raw foods because most people aren't built to handle it. She didn't say she was against it though.

She told me about panchakarma, which is usually around $2,000. I "only" have $1,000 to spend, so so much for that. She also said that colon hydrotherapy isn't ayurvedic. I'm starting to wonder if, for the health goals that I have, if an ayurvedic thereapist is for me, except to compliment what I'm looking for.

This is not an easy decision to make when you don't know anything about homeopaths, naturopaths, ayurveda, etc.,

What/Who does everyone here use/see?

"basti" or herbal warm oil enemas are a traditional ayurvedic practice. some people trained in ayurveda also do colon hydrotherapy, but it is not an ayurvedic tradition.

but colon cleansing, detox, parasite checks/cleanses, skin problems, liver cleansing... all covered.

i liked this recommendation about choosing an ayurvedic practitioner: "if you feel intuitively good about the person, and you see they have had at least 2 years of training, then this seems reasonable. Our suggestion is the practitioner seems to be living a peaceful life as well as talking about it. If they inspire your peace, then this is our definition of a good practitioner. If they empasize your life-purpose, spirit, and peace as the main healing tools, then you have found a real practitioner."

[www.ayurvedahc.com]

i found these two in Minneapolis/St. Paul MN: [www.wisearth.org]

good luck!

please note, i'm not trying to foist this on you, or pressure you in any way. i have a fantastic practitioner who i trust, and it has been a wonderful complement to raw foods for me. but if you are feeling unsure or like it would run contrary to your health goals, i advise you not to pursue it! my belief is that these things should feel like they are easily flowing with your life, and not a struggle or like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. there should be some synchronicity involved, some alchemy, a feeling of divine purpose even!

(my practitioner was skeptical about raw at first, but after a few months told me to keep doing whatever it was that i was doing, because she could tell it was noticeably beneficial for me).

Those are the two that I found, too.

Frank is the "Eeyore" I spoke about. He sounded completely depressed and uninterested in me. I felt like I was keeping him from, well, anything else!

Marcia is the one I just finished speaking with. She was very kind and was interested in how the raw food lifestyle was affecting me so well. She explained that even though ayurvedic principles don't support the raw food diet, that it's not her place to "tell me what to do."

Frankly, all I care about are that her tinctures for different ailments work. I'm not into the spiritual aspect behind this practice. I don't know if that affects anything, but...

maui_butterfly Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> please note, i'm not trying to foist this on you,
> or pressure you in any way. i have a fantastic
> practitioner who i trust, and it has been a
> wonderful complement to raw foods for me. but if
> you are feeling unsure or like it would run
> contrary to your health goals, i advise you not to
> pursue it! my belief is that these things should
> feel like they are easily flowing with your life,
> and not a struggle or like trying to fit a square
> peg in a round hole. there should be some
> synchronicity involved, some alchemy, a feeling of
> divine purpose even!
>
> (my practitioner was skeptical about raw at first,
> but after a few months told me to keep doing
> whatever it was that i was doing, because she
> could tell it was noticeably beneficial for me).

You're definitely not foisting anything upon me. I'm an adult and I accept the responsibility for my own choices. I'm checking out everything right now. I just wish I had more time to research things.

I would definitely go for massages. Max out on them. If anything is left I would get a checkup from a wholistic MD who is vegan-friendly.

I'm not into that colon stuff. A high fiber diet will keep your colon as clean as possible.

ksmanthey Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> What about a homeopath? Try homeopathic
> practicioners in Minnesota. [hplgroup.org]
> They are excellent! Don't know if you could get in
> so quickly but maybe!

Thank you, ksmanthey! Somehow I overlooked your response, I'm sorry. I will check out the website you linked to. Thanks for taking the time to do that!

Oh no prob. Incidentally, my homeopath was very supportive of the raw thing as it worked well for me.

can u just say your diagnosis is : "i'm burnt out from working too much"

and just go to a

SPA??

chill out, relax... have a raw pina colada ( with a splash of wheatgrass)

get a massage... listen to nice music

have someone sing to you til you doze off into dreamland

repeat cycle next day

can't you caryover the flex spending to another year? I thought that was an option for that.

Maybe you could go to a regular Dr. and get some interesting blood work done and a general medical check up that would include non-invasive things, like blood pressure, etc.

I like using a Naturopath and they sometimes will have a colon hydro therapist working out of their offices. You might try looking for a holistic health center with naturapaths, massages, hydro therapists, etc..then you might get the things you really want done.

I wouldn't look at the $1000 as if you HAVE to spend it..just count it gone, because you are healthy enough to not need it and have saved more in your health bank account then trying to spend money when it's not needed. I'd also beware of spending the money and getting told you need to have this or that done in order to be healthier and that would stress you out, as you might feel you have to spend more to get healthier on things really not needed.

How about using it for eye dr. for an eye exam, or for a dental hygienist to have your teeth cleaned?

Love,
Prism

Thank you for all the suggestions! The eye doctor, dentist and general physical things have all been done. I wish I could use it to go to a spa! Somehow I don't think they'll go for that!

I'm trying to learn the difference between naturopaths and homeopaths, but I'm not having much success. Even Wikipedia isn't very clear on it to me.

I'll just keep trying. I'd like to make a decision today what I'm going to do so I can just relax. I want to spend the money because, even though my health is great, I can't stand the thought of having done $1,000 pro-bono work for my Corporate America Job!

If nothing else, I will buy $1,000 worth of bandaids and whatever else I can buy with it and donate it to the local homeless shelter.

Yeah, I bought a year's worth of contacts last time I was in that situation. Definitely buy bandages or whatever you have to so they don't keep your money.

I can't do contacts. My momma taught me not to put glass in my eye. ;o)

Oh, yeah, that's just me, what I needed. They're plastic, though, didn't you hear that plastic is SO much better for you than glass

If you do have bad eyes, you could always get another pair of glasses. Otherwise, stock up on hygiene supplies. I also used it for the chiropractor co-pay and acupuncture. Maybe you can do a mix of things (but my co-pays are only $25 and $10 each respectively).

I'm trying to see if I can pay in advance on such services or if services have to be rendered first.

I don't know what the dif is in an ND and a Homeopath either. Maybe ask one of them? I know that both probably use the homeopathic remedies, my ND did anyway. Maybe one is closer to a MD with more education and able to write prescriptions? When you find out let us know!

Love,
Prism

I made a decision. My decision is not to worry about this right now. I'm not comfortable making this kind of a decision on a rush basis, $1,000 or not. I even tried calling a local colonic therapist and she was very uninterested, too. What is it with people in Minneapolis and the extreme lack of courtesy or even basic customer service? I asked her about payment and she said, "I don't know. People just give me cash, that's all I care about." Gee. Thanks. I guess she just takes them out back and sticks the garden hose up their bum on full pressure and stands back. I'd rather blend my $1,000 into a smoothie than give it to people like this.

I'm not 100% comfortable with anything I've checked out, so, to me, that means to put the issue on the shelf and pick it up at a later time. I refuse to stress about it. I found a family at my church who doesn't have insurance and needs glasses. I'm taking them to the eye doctor tomorrow, buying them all glasses and calling it a day.

Thank you all for your suggestions and taking the time to respond. I appreciate you.

I love that decision! Go SL!

I think if you're being blocked, its for a reason. You're just not supposed to pursue this right now.

Whatever is going on is for your highest good, of course!

That is awesome. Yes, they make it a real pain to spend the $$.