About Dr Shavit Sachs
Dr Shavit Sachs graduated summa cum laude from the University of the Western Cape in 2016 with a Bachelor of Complementary Medicine. She has special interests in stress management, nutrition as medicine, self-love, body-positivity, health and well-being. She loves guiding each patient through their journey to optimal health and welcomes each persons individual journey.
She sits on the executive committee of the South African Naturopathic Association (SANA) as the vice-chair person and is a member of the World Naturopathic Federation's (WNF) communications committee.
She presented at the International Congress of Naturopathy and Phytotherpy in Lisbon, Portugal and has written articles for various online and print magazines.
She loves yoga, dancing, Disney, being outside, learning, and educating about the world of naturopathy.
What is Naturopathy?
Naturopathy is a therapeutic-diet and lifestyle based medicine at it fundamental roots. The word naturopathy comes to mean nature cure - a vital aspect for naturopaths everywhere, as naturopaths use the body’s innate ability to heal itself, supported by nature. The body is ordered and intelligent and uses nature to aid the healing process, all while removing obstacles to health.
Naturopathy understands that each person is an individual with individual needs and takes a holistic view of a person. This means that all aspects of life are looked at, regardless of ailment or health concern. Health is defined according to the World Health Organisation as a state of complete physical, mental and social/emotional well-being and not just the absence of disease or illness, which a core belief in naturopathy.
Each body holds the key to its own healing, so naturopathic treatments will help guide each patient along this journey to optimal health and well-being. This is done through personalised treatments, tailored to suit each individual.
Naturopathy stands on 7 principles:
1. First do no harm - Primum non nocere
Naturopathic treatments support the body, and gently nudge it into the direction of optimal health, all while using the least force necessary, thereby doing no harm
2. The healing power of nature - Vix medicatrix naturae
Nature heals through the response of the life force (or vitality), this is how health is maintained and restored.
3. Identify and treat the cause - Tolle causam
Symptoms are the body’s way of expressing an attempt to heal, but they are not the cause of dis-ease.
4. Treat the whole person - Tolle totum
There is an interaction between physical, mental, social, spiritual and emotional factors in the body and it is important to look at these aspects, regardless of what the presenting problem is.
5. Physician/doctor as teacher - Docere
The practitioner is a teacher, not an authoritative figure, whose job is to educate about what they are doing and what is going on in the patients body.
6. Prevention is the best cure - Preoccupo est optimus remedium
Although this is sometimes hard in todays modern world where patients seek treatment when things are bad, striving to prevent further illness is very important for optimal health.
7. Wellness - establish a state of optimum health and balance
The concepts of wellness and well-being lead us toward establishing and maintaining health and balance.
What happens in a consult?
Your appointment is a learning experience, and tuning into your body’s innate wisdom requires a dedicated one-on-one approach. It is the time to open yourself up and to tune your body to nature.
Dr Sachs tailors each treatment plan to suit your specific set of concerns to ensure you will get to feeling back to yourself and better.
Initial consults run 60 minutes long, while follow-ups last 30-45 minutes.
Consults consist of extensive questioning surrounding your specific set of concerns, personal and family medical history, nutritional and supplement assessment, relevant physical exams and body work.
Nutrition
Nutrition forms a core healing technique. Here your current nutrition is assessed and a personalised plan is made for you to incorporate the right healing foods for your body.
This is the main point of healing as naturopaths aim to use food as medicine.
Supplement therapy
Supplement therapy may take the form of vitamins, minerals, herbs and tissue salts, or a complex of these.
Supplements are used as an aid to your healing journey and are kept to a minimum.
Body work
Physical connection between patient and practitioner is an important part of the healing journey.
Body work may consist of massage therapy, acupuncture, hydrotherapy, meditation or body relaxation .
Lifestyle modification
Our bodies don't work in isolation so lifestyle modification forms a big part of your naturopathic treatment.
Different aspects of daily life will be assessed and small, easy changes may be made to aid your specific set of concerns and to improve overall vitality.
"Your body's ability to heal is greater than anyone has permitted you to believe"
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