Rating: 
Summary: Radical Says it Mildly
Review: Ballentine brings synthesis to integrating the historic healing systems of the world. I am an alternative practitioner specializing in bodywork and the mind-soul connection. He says plainly what I have struggled for years to explain to my clients who truely seek wholistic healing. It's all in there and it's definitely all connected. This writing allows the reader to extract information and gain understanding in an applicable manner. I refer to it often and always discover something new and timely to aide me and my clients.
Rating:
Summary: a heroic attempt to integrate Alternative Healing Systems
Review: For over 600 pages Mr Ballentine makes a heroic attempt to put together a series of Alternative Healing Systems. I was afraid when I picked this book up that it was written by a novice who only copied introductions to these various systems, like many other books. But it is obvious that Dr Ballentine has used all of these systems to treat patients with varing conditions, rather than copying. And he has successfully combined them to treat patients. But does he succeed to explain all? I would have to say in my specialty Homeopathy, he has not had room to go very deep. In Chinese medicine which I know little about, he introduces concepts of elements and then does little with them. On the other hand the book is a BRILLIANT treasure chest ideas and insights to the ultimate nature of health and disease and the interaction of mental states and subtle alternative to conventional Allopathic Medicine. I was high-lighting every other page! If he meerly shows people there are many many different ways to treat disease other than Conventional Medicine and that each of these has a separate domain of effectiveness, he will ultimately succeed. But the subject is so big, he could explore it in more books for years and not cover all of the subject. Flower remedies are, as far as I know, totally without side effects. Homeopathic Remedies, are MOSTLY side effect free. Most are available over the counter. Sure Homeopathy can produce miraculous, "soul-altering" cures, but Dr Ballentine does not state that these remedies are most effective if taken for a limited time, no more than a month, and sometimes less . If Homeopathic remedies are taken longer than that, they become ineffective and if taken still longer they can be "proved", ie, they will exacerbate the symptoms they originally cured. People used to conventional medicine, who take pills the conventional doctors hand them forever, need to be aware of these limitations. I would not recommend anyone take Homeopathic potencies over 200C unless they know what they are doing! Or better, over 30C. The Appendix where he puts togther all 600 pages, may be the most useful part of the book, as he states. What is impossible to cure in Conventional Medicine, like the common cold, can often be easily, gently, safely and effectively treated by other means WITH NO SIDE EFFECTS. But I congratulate his effort. More work like this needs to be done. I have been lecturing for years that you and I, not doctors, are ultimatelty responsible for our own health. He explains this in very clear terms. Buy it! You'll need it. You can achieve a higher level of health than meerly the absence of obvious disease. It could change your life.
Rating:
Summary: A book to be read, trusted and used
Review: I read Dr. Ballentine's book a year ago, and have been using it since, getting from it guidance, perspective, information and insight. In general, the book is comprehensive, covering so many ideas and possibilities for understanding health and healing. And fortunately, with all this information the reader is not left behind, chasing the writer. Dr. Ballentine makes the information accessible, more easily assimilated. Most of all, I think the book is reassuring and comforting. It allows me to understand that my health is very much in my hands, or perhaps, my consciousness. Dr. Ballentine reminds us that there is a world of healing available to us, and we are not bound to a mere single notion of health, a single means of healing. Finally, in the tradition of a true healer, Dr. Ballentine opens those many healing means to us, guiding us toward them. This book is a gift.
Rating:
Summary: Everyone should read this book! Integration of medicines is
Review: I was captivated by the wealth of useful information found in this book, ranging from homeopathic medicines and working with doshas to spiritual health and prevention. The writing is intelligent, and the tables, pictures and detailed experiences helped me understand the concepts, therefore making the book fun to read. Thanks to Radical Healing, I see how important integration of medicines really is. I learned to trust my body and my judgement when it comes to my health care. I know not to rely on everything my doctor tells me, not by any fault of his own, but because he is not educated in my alternative choices. And until my health care providers realize the importance of integration and do something about it, I will continue to research my ailments and educate myself before seeking treatment. I highly recommend this book to everyone concerned about their well being and the well being of others. It will change the way you view the western way of practicing health care and perhaps get us closer to "Integrating The World's Great Therapeutic Traditions To Create A New And Transformative Medicine".
Rating: 
Summary: A holistic approach to holistic medicine
Review: It's fair in that it accomplishes what the title indicates - it does indeed integrate "the World's Great Therapeutic Traditions" - but it fails to adequately incorporate the world's greatest therapeutic tradition - traditional modern medicine.
Not all causes of illness arise in the mind. Case in point: using the book, since I have a sore throat now, I looked up "sore throat" and did the recommended "Lion" yoga exercise - I also even tried a little bit of the "cold wet cloth around neck". The "Lion" actually caused my throat to dry out, which actually aggravated the situation. The cold wet cloth didn't feel right so I stopped. Also, the stated possible cause of "Holding in anger, not expressing yourself" really didn't seem to fit the bill - I was too tired to feel like expressing anger, even in the "Lion" pose. (As a certified yoga instructor, I would have thought that something that massages the throat, such as the Cobra, would have made more sense.)
My point is that not all causes of illness arise in the mind. Certainly some do, and even those that don't might have an effect on the mind, but I think it's just plain impractical to believe that illness is all about attitude. If you do believe that, you wind up thinking (as religious types sometimes do) that everything bad that happens to you happens because of something you did wrong or believed wrong. That isn't the case. Bad stuff happens to even the best of us. Don't always be blaming yourself for your illnesses, and don't always think you've got to change your life around just because you sneezed. (I'm exaggerating to get my point across.)
So far, it hasn't become a "New Transformative Medicine" for me, but maybe it will grow on me. In the meantime, I'll only seek "alternative" health care when "traditional modern" health care doesn't cut it for me.
Other than that, the book is great - it's well written, has interested anecdotes, is easy to read, is structured in an easy to use and intuitive manner, and has more than adequate illustrations to emphasize important points. This is the first book on holistic medicine I've ever read, and I'm glad it is, because it helps me see the "big picture" of the field of holistic medicine.
So as a book I'd give it 5 stars, but I'm taking off one star for the nature of the content and another star for the failure to truly integrate "traditional modern" health care.
Rating:
Summary: Radical Healing is a Masterpiece!
Review: Looking at the state of holistic medicine today, what we have are all these great healing therapies, but what they lack is unity. In fact, it seems that Holistic medicine is mimicking the efforts of Western medicine by compartmentalizing healing. As Western medicine has its gynecologists, cardiologists, podiatrists and dermatologists, Holistic medicine has its acupuncturists, herbalists, and homeopathic doctors just to name a few. What Radical Healing does is that it demonstrates how most of the holistic healing therapies can be used in conjunction to heal the body, mind and soul. It not only provides a map of how to benefit from using these therapies in combination, but also introduces the know how so we can begin to heal ourselves. Dr. Rudolph Ballentine has provided the reader with many of his case studies and personal experiences, which brings to life the theoretical foundations of each of the holistic modalities that he covers in his book. Radical Healing is a masterpiece. I have changed careers after reading it and that is only one of the many changes I made in my life. No other book provides such transformation. So, please do yourself a favor and go out and buy it!
Rating:
Summary: Radical Healing is a Masterpiece!
Review: Looking at the state of holistic medicine today, what we have are all these great healing therapies, but what they lack is unity. In fact, it seems that Holistic medicine is mimicking the efforts of Western medicine by compartmentalizing healing. As Western medicine has its gynecologists, cardiologists, podiatrists and dermatologists, Holistic medicine has its acupuncturists, herbalists, and homeopathic doctors just to name a few. What Radical Healing does is that it demonstrates how most of the holistic healing therapies can be used in conjunction to heal the body, mind and soul. It not only provides a map of how to benefit from using these therapies in combination, but also introduces the know how so we can begin to heal ourselves. Dr. Rudolph Ballentine has provided the reader with many of his case studies and personal experiences, which brings to life the theoretical foundations of each of the holistic modalities that he covers in his book. Radical Healing is a masterpiece. I have changed careers after reading it and that is only one of the many changes I made in my life. No other book provides such transformation. So, please do yourself a favor and go out and buy it!
Rating:
Summary: A must read for those seeking common sense in health
Review: The author uses his large range of experiences over 25 years and his very lucid writing style to detail the workings of herbal medicines, homoeopathic remedies & flower essences. I recommend these chapters to any lay person wishing to get an introduction to these areas. He deals with self diagnosis and detoxing, nutrition and diet, finally addressing health in terms of energy, which I find very thought proviking
Rating: 
Summary: An excellent Resource
Review: The author, Dr. Ballentine, has had a very interesting journey. With a psychiatry background, he worked in a free clinic in New Orleans in the 1960s with "flower children" who introduced him to then "alternative" concepts like yoga, meditation, and vegetarianism. With these interests more and more compelling, he decided to travel to India and began training in homeopathy and Ayurveda. He set up practicing these newfound skills in Chicago and became so successful that he founded six clinics around the city. While the unifying concepts to Ballentine's approach are unarguable - self-awareness, transformation, and wholeness - I found myself rather disturbed by the absence of a few things in this book. Namely, the author is so pro-alternative medicine that he doesn't even pay Western medicine the lip service it's due; namely, that its strength is crisis medicine and intervention. On a similar vein, on the chapter on herbal traditions, my hackles rose with the author's claim that the reader, upon completion of the section, would be able to walk into any health food store and select a "medicinal". This without the usual disclaimers of working with a reputable practitioner, be aware of interactions if you are currently taking other medication, etc. With that in mind, I found Ballentine's knowledge of homeopathy to be truly comprehensive and one of the best historical discussions and practical applications I've found to date in any book. Other stand out chapters include the exercise and movement chapter as well as the "Healing as Transformation" chapter which concentrates on breathwork and chakras - very well written and good advice for everyone. The resources at the end of the book are comprehensive, but I still wish that, considering the fine job explaining the complexities of various alternative/complementary traditions, that the author would have spent more time discussing how to select a reputable practitioner to accompany the individual on their journey. Still a recommended purchase for an alternative medicine library.
Rating:
Summary: a graet doctor
Review: there are few books which i can recommend more than this one.
[only recommended for those who already are a bit in the field of "alternative medicine"]
diet and nutrition [from the same author]was an eye-opener for me- many ,many years ago -and i still highly recommend this book -as a first choice -for anybody interesting in nutrition [to start with]
i am speaking as a physician.
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