10/01/2025
While a holistic orientation is not yet mainstream, the notion of mind–body connectedness has long been described by influential figures in history. Freud noted that the mind could influence the body, which could lie completely outside our conscious awareness sometimes (Freud, 1961). Carl Jung also documented that the spiritual core exists in our psyches and strives to find meaning and balance in our lives (Jung, Adler, & Hull, 1977; Jung & Wolfgang, 1955).
The term “holism”—that the whole is more than the sum of the individual parts— was first used by South African philosopher Jan Christian Smuts in 1925 to counteract the trend of fragmenting and reducing living systems to atomistic units in biology and science (Shannon, 2002). Holism constitutes an important
philosophical foundation of the Integral movement in medical health care (Shannon, 2002) and Integral Psychology (Wilber, 2000).
While a systems perspective, quantum theory, and integral thought is more rooted in scholarly domains, a holistic orientation is inevitably influenced by many ancient traditions, philosophies, and practices, including, but not limited to, Ayurveda, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), aromatherapy, and Native American medicine.
Ayurveda, a Sanskrit word derived from the Sanskrit words “ayur” (life) and veda (knowledge), is an ancient healing tradition in India that goes back 5000 years (Brooks, 2002; Varma, 1995). It
has its root in ancient Vedic literature and encompasses life, body, mind, and spirit.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) also capitalizes on the holistic concept of body–mind– spirit connection and balance as the roots of health and illness (Lu, 1994; Wong, 1987).
Native American medicine, another holistic tradition, proposes that the person consists of four elements: spiritual, emotional, physical, and mental. Illnesses are caused by a person being out of balance (Lee Winter, 1996).
All these ancient traditions have existed for thousands of years. While each has their unique features, beliefs, and practices, they all share in common a belief in the body–mind–spirit connection.
In sum, problems in life come and go; they are part of the natural, developmental, and continuous process of life. A more useful question for treatment is how problems are maintained and how beneficial changes can be initiated.
From:
Integrative Body–Mind–Spirit Social Work An Empirically Based Approach to Assessment and Treatment
By
Mo Yee Lee, Siu-Man Ng, Pamela Pui Yu Leung, Cecilia Lai Wan Chan
