Book Review: Radical Medicine
Stacie Deyglio, ND
Louisa Williams’ book, Radical Medicine, is a profound anthology of valuable knowledge for every naturally oriented patient, physician and practitioner. In her work, Dr. Williams expounds on many of the often overlooked aspects of alternative medicine and healing. In doing so, she details multi-faceted views of an extensive list of natural therapeutics.
Dr. Williams addresses the underlying reasons why patients today appear to natural practitioners as therapy-resistant or difficult to heal: “From this modern-day double whammy of nature (genetic weakness) as well as nurture (environmental toxicity), general holistic health guidelines are simply no longer efficacious. Add to this the fact that too many patients present to the holistic physician’s doorstep only after their immune systems have been ravaged by medications with two pages of ‘side effects’ written in fine print … Clearly, stronger intervention is needed.” With this understanding, Williams’ book yields potential resolve for confused and frustrated practitioners.
Radical Medicine provides answers to the question of “how” to heal the modern epidemic of chronic and degenerative disease by encompassing the truth, facts and reality of its existence as well as providing solutions to these decades-old problems. Tolle Causam is the naturopathic principle that best applies to the philosophy exemplified by the book: “One must always endeavor to go to the root of the problem in order to fully utilize the knowledge and to master the methods of treatment that are conveyed in Radical Medicine. In fact, the term ‘radical’ for this field of holistic medicine was chosen not for its common connotation of ‘unorthodox’ or ‘extreme,’ but for its original denotation as that which goes ‘to the root or origin’ and that which is ‘fundamental, far-reaching and thorough.” Identify and remove the underlying cause of illness, rather than eliminate or suppress its symptoms.
The information collected in the chapters of this book is a clinician’s dream come true. Dr. Williams comprehensively resources the information and provides a combination of historical perspectives and scientific research with proven clinical experience. Such chapters include European drainage remedies and miasms; detoxification of toxic metals and chemicals; diet, food allergies and dysbiosis; blocks to healing; chronic dominant foci; constitutional homeopathy and vaccines; the structural component; and psychospiritual healing. The appendices of the book include multiple color charts, figures and photos, a description of the different holistic practitioners, five patient examples, a section on energetic testing as well as a segment on “how scientific” allopathic medicine is.
Stacie Deyglio, ND received her baccalaureate degree in biology with a minor in chemistry from the College of Mt. St. Vincent in New York. Her personal health issues paved the way to discovering naturopathic medicine in 1999. Resonating with the philosophy and principles of naturopathic medicine, Dr. Deyglio graduated from the University of Bridgeport, College of Naturopathic Medicine in 2003. As a medical student, she was involved in student government, fundraising and the generation of two successful student-run health fairs. Dr. Deyglio’s interests include relating integrative therapeutics to the health of pediatric and geriatric populations. Currently residing in Phoenix, Dr. Deyglio is an avid bookworm, and is actively creating her practice.
