Article archive / February 1, 2013
Originally published: . Volume 4, No. 6. Source pages: 13.
Dr. David Thomason, medical psychologist, is one of those rare individuals who loves the really big picture. He also loves to learn. He has put himself through a comprehensive series of educational programs. His studies have taken him up, down, and around the sides of today’s health issues, and it allows him to provide his patients with valuable choices that many do not have in today’s health industry.
Dr. Thomason has earned a doctorate in clinical psychology, a Masters’ in psychopharmacology, a Doctor of Naturopathic Medicine, and a Master of Science in Acupuncture. He is well known in the Monroe area for his holistic approach. He is also well known in the psychological community, having served on the Louisiana State Board of Examiners of Psychologists and as chair in 1999. He’s seen the shifts and changes in medicine, psychology, and the alternative health field.
His website is straightforward and gives a clear descriptive of where he sits on the forefront of healthcare. For those open to and hoping for the alternative, whole person healthcare approach, the sections of the website lay out Thomason’s credentials, philosophy, and treatments very simply. While explaining his services, the various pages of his site also give some guidance and education for the visitor. The welcoming page gives the visitor information on medical psychology and acupuncture:
“Medical Psychology is a specialty trained at the post doctoral level and designed to deliver advanced diagnostic and clinical interventions. Acupuncture is a technique from Traditional Chinese Medicine that Dr. Thomason uses to treat a wide variety of problems. He utilizes his combined knowledge in these fields to give his patients expert care and attention.”
Also on the home page he lists the main services: Medication Management, Psychological Testing, Individual Counseling, Acupuncture, and Biomarker and Nutritional Assessment.
Practice
The website’s next page, “Practice,” helps to explain his philosophy: “Prescription for Wellness.”
There are so many alternative approaches today for different conditions. When do patients know which approach is the best for their situation? My first goal is to remove any barriers to wellness and watch nature work. Some of my patients feel better with lifestyle changes, acupuncture and counseling. Others take a more comprehensive approach with laboratory and biomarker testing. Some need additional psychological testing. I never take progress for granted with a written prescription alone.
MInd-Body Connection
This page is dedicated to explanation for the “Mind-Body Connection,” framed by sunsets and Bonsai tree.
The mind and the body have an interactive effect on one another. This effect is powerful and is present whether or not you are aware of it. The mind-body connection can be utilized to help you feel less stressed, relieve depression, improve sleep, and lead a more relaxed life. Depending on your condition, you may need medication, supplements, acupuncture or other botanical medicine supplements. However, by using mutually supportive therapies your path to wellness can be more rewarding and less difficult than before.
Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine
Next is acupuncture, ancient Eastern medicine technique and philosophy, with the description of how this treatment helps in treating chronic pain, balancing hormones, stress.
Acupuncture applies traditional Chinese medical theory to diagnose and treat illness, prevent disease and improve well- being. By inserting sterile, extremely thin, steel needles at specific points throughout the body, acupuncture activates the body’s self healing capacity. By using Eastern medicine concepts of how the body functions it can be used to treat a wide variety of medical problems.
Acupuncture stimulates the body’s innate healing mechanisms. It promotes a response that stimulates the body’s ability to spontaneously heal injuries to the tissue through nervous, immune and endocrine system activation.
The description helps those with chronic pain understand if the method might be helpful to them.
The site also gives information on the stress and illness connection.
“Acupuncture reduces stress. Due to my training, I view this as the most important systemic effect of acupuncture. Research suggests that acupuncture stimulates the release of hormones and signaling substances that regulate the parasympathetic nervous system. […] The parasympathetic nervous system has been called the ‘rest-and- digest’ and the ‘calm-and- connect’ system. Research implicates impaired parasympathetic function in a wide range of autoimmune diseases, including arthritis, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease as well as diabetes, heart disease, and many chronic health conditions.”
Biomarkers
A page to describe biomarker assessment, help visitors to learn more about guiding choices in psychotropic medications, a topic of importance in the literature.
Nutritional Evaluation in the Laboratory
Nutrition affects many aspects of your health. Some of the diseases and conditions affected by nutrition are gastroenterological, autoimmune, neurological, cardiovascular, and orthopedic. Nutritional imbalances can affect your body in many ways.
Fertility
The last page introduces the visitor to what can be offered in to improve the often complex, mind-body issues involved in fertility.
“Acupuncture is able to help address a wide variety of conditions such as elevated FSH, endometriosis, PCOS, amenorrhea, painful or irregular menstrual cycles, recurrent miscarriage and male factor infertility.”
Dr. David Thomason’s website is an eye-catching and educational overview of this innovative and holistic practitioner, with solid descriptions of complex health issues and an array of interesting, sometimes even surprising, approaches offered to help individuals truly regain and maintain their health.
See the entire website at: www.drdavidthomason.com
Images and photos from Dr. Thomason’s Webpages.
This article is part of a historical newspaper archive. Read the original issue for its original layout, photographs and graphics.