Patients from all over the country frequently end up traveling to Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, hoping for a correct diagnosis and proper treatment. Often, they're disappointed with their results, especially when it comes to autoimmune disorders.
Instead of seeing an endocrinologist or rheumatologists, patients would do well to make an appointment with Dr. Amit Sood, the Director of research in the Complementary and Integrative Medicine Program at Mayo Clinic.
Dr. Sood combines alternative and Western medicine to diagnose and treat a wide range of problems. Drawing on both traditional Ayurvedic (from his native India) and Chinese medicine, Sood uses healing methods that restore well-being rather than just treating illness.
A key technique of Dr. Sood's is what he calls "focused awareness." Here, he trains patients in cultivating an awareness that allows them to increase their depth of perception and decrease judgment. He does this through mindfulness training.
Sood is known for his research into meditation and ther ole it can play in achieving optimal health. Sood sees the limitations of conventional medicine on its own for dealing with illness and offering reventative care.
Source: Complementary Medicine, Ode, the Intelligent Optimists Issue, January 2009.