Sunday May 7, 2006
At wellness center, East coexists with West
By CANDICE BOSELY candiceb@herald-mail.com
SMITHSBURG
Even the goldfish in a small aquarium on the receptionist's counter seemed to benefit from the services offered at Healing Waters Wellness Center. Despondent when it first came to the office, the fish perked up and now swims constantly after being the recipient of a Reiki treatment.
It's an anecdote, yes, but also a microcosm of the healing powers that Linda D. Potts said she believes can arise at the Smithsburg center, which she owns.
Potts, a registered nurse who previously worked in an emergency room, said she knows firsthand how alternative medicine can be beneficial.
Potts said that she was chronically ill for six years, diagnosed with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome and Lyme disease. At times she was bedridden and found walking a few steps to reach a bathroom rife with excruciating pain.
For the former personal trainer who liked to go white-water rafting, run and go backpack canoeing, a warning from her doctor that the condition might be lifelong was unbearable, she said.
At first Potts, 48, sought treatment via traditional Western medicine, but doctors could not figure out what to do. Working with her family physician, Potts said she'd like to try alternative medicine.
When she underwent a bio-energetic screening, it showed that parasites that had been lingering in her body for decades were at the root of her problems, she said.
From 1969 to 1971 her family lived in Thailand while her father worked as a civilian for the Navy. She said the parasites likely came from visits to the Philippines.
Treatments with herbs, homeopathic medicines, acupuncture and other forms of detoxification worked and, two years ago, the woman who said she had never imagined opening a business became trained and started doing bio-energetic screenings from an office.
She opened the wellness center at 38 E. Water St., in Smithsburg's former post office, in January. In addition to bio-energetic screenings, five other practitioners offer Reiki, reflexology, therapeutic massage, noninsertion Toyohari acupuncture, voice stress assessment emotional balancing, lymphatic drainage, Shiatsu massage, ion cleanse foot bath, far infrared dry sauna, and skin care consultations.
Pilates mat classes also are offered.
A bio-energetic screening involves sitting in a chair next to Potts, who sits before a computer. A small pen-like device is placed at two points on each person's fingers and toes.
Those 40 points then correspond with places on a person's body and the screening corresponds with a graph chart on the computer, displaying where imbalances exist in a person's body, Potts said.
"I then try to identify what frequencies are interfering with the energy flow," Potts said, adding that she does not diagnose any conditions.
Herbal remedies can be used to try to allow a person's body to regain its balances and Potts incorporates a person's prescription medications.
In that way she is different from some alternative medicine practitioners who disassociate themselves entirely from traditional Western medicine treatments.
"My main purpose here is to be a bridge between Western medicine and Eastern medicine," Potts said. "I want people to understand it's an 'and' world, not an 'or' world."
During the screening, which takes about two hours, Potts also discusses with a client his or her lifestyle, including diet and how lifestyle changes can help the healing process.
Getting rid of parasites, which are more common than most people realize, is important, she said, as is cleaning a person's digestive system.
The most common purposes for the bio-energetic screening are kidney, liver and digestive system problems, and people arriving with a diagnosis of Lyme disease are becoming more common, Potts said.
A popular detoxification method at the center is the ion cleanse foot bath. For that a small tub is filled with water.
Reflexology, Reiki
After a client places his or her feet in the water, the water begins to change colors, which Potts said shows that positive and negative ions in the water have pulled toxins from the person's body. The colors correspond to different toxins, she said.
The 30-minute process is an easy and effective way to detoxify without causing "a healing crisis" - detoxifying too quickly, she said.
For reflexology, Potts shows how points on the palms of a person's hands and on the soles of their feet correspond to different areas of a person's body.
She gave as an example a situation in which a woman complaining of pain to the bottom, rear portion of her foot underwent a bio-energetic screening that showed she had a serious condition with her small intestine.
Potts then showed the woman a chart on the wall in the reflexology room - showing that the painful area on the woman's sole directly correlates to a person's small intestine.
"Her body is speaking to her," Potts said. "Your body is designed to heal itself, which I think is just awesome."
Meanwhile, a far infrared dry sauna detoxifies a body from the inside out, Potts said, while a voice stress assessment can help people balance their emotions.
"Emotions play such an important part in our health," Potts said.
Reiki practitioner Regina Stuckey said her discipline involves the notion of universal life energy.
"Everything in the universe is made of energy, including our bodies," she said.
When blockages occur, Stuckey said that she can direct energy - not her own - to eliminate the block, helping to reduce tension, stress, fatigue, pain and anxiety.
It's an ancient healing technique that Stuckey said is difficult to describe in words.
She said she uses it when her granddaughters complain of "boo-boos."
And when her son was 15 years old and injured his arm in a dirt bike accident, Stuckey was told by a doctor that little could be done save for cleaning the wound and stitching it.
The doctor predicted it would take him six weeks to heal, but using Reiki sped up his healing time to two weeks, Stuckey said.
Potts said she has used Reiki on pets with dire prognoses. And, of course, on the office goldfish.
Living life to the fullest
Overall, Potts said she hopes to address a person's physical health, emotional health, mental health and spiritual health.
When one is out of balance, she said, it's only a matter of time before another will be as well.
Just about anyone could benefit from the center's services, according to Potts, who said she would encourage people who are in good health to try it for preventative purposes.
She said she sees a lot of people who are chronically ill and who have tried everything else and do not know where to turn.
Some doctors refer patients to Potts, who is working on a doctorate in naturopathy and a doctorate in bio-energetic medicine.
Along with stressing a working relationship between Eastern and Western medicines, Potts said she also stresses education in connection with her clients.
Just because people are suffering from chronic illnesses does not mean they cannot enjoy their lives to the fullest, she said.
More information and prices for the center's services are available on its Web site, www.HealingWatersWellnessCenter.com
