NATURAL HEALING

Mindfulness, music, and other integrative medicine techniques support recuperation and general wellness

BY ERIKA KLEIN

Dr. Tanuja Sharma, medical director of the Integrative Medicine and Arts Program at Tampa General Hospital, demonstrates how to perform acupuncture.

young woman with Crohn’s disease and abdominal pain was healing after a recent surgery at Tampa General Hospital, but constant pain prevented her from going home.

“The patient’s medical issues and surgery had already been completed and managed. There was nothing else keeping her in the hospital except her uncontrolled pain,” recalled Dr. Tanuja Sharma, a family medicine physician and medical director of the Integrative Medicine and Arts Program at Tampa General Hospital. “The medical team was just trying to get her pain under control.”

After the patient went weeks without improvement, Sharma was consulted to attempt an integrative medicine approach to improve the patient’s pain, which was not being well controlled through medication. When she arrived, the woman’s pain was a 10 out of 10. Sharma walked her through a mindfulness exercise combined with guided imagery and aromatherapy to help calm her. By the end of the half-hour session, the woman had fallen asleep. That evening, her pain had improved so much she declined her scheduled pain medications and was able to be discharged from the hospital the very next day.

“In order to get the best outcomes, it is important to get to the root of the problem and

Aaddress the whole person—mind, body, and spirit,” she said. “If not, things may be missed, or patients may be placed on medications or treatments that are not effective or which may even cause unwanted side effects.” This is the core of integrative medicine. It cares for the whole person as informed by scientific evidence. It focuses on prevention, optimizing health and wellness, and lifestyle medicine and uses the most natural and safest remedies first. It takes a team-based approach that includes the traditional medical team. “We can’t put every single person in a cookiecutter box because we all have our own unique makeup and don’t always respond to treatments

Danielle Goodwin and Anthony Goodwin, members of the Integrative Medicine and Arts Program team, visit with a patient.

in the same way,” she said.

Integrative medicine, which is available at no cost to patients admitted to TGH, comes in a full-spectrum menu of approaches: mindfulness, meditation, yoga, aromatherapy, music therapy, touch therapy, and art, with acupuncture an upcoming addition to the hospital’s program. “We really try to offer something for all the senses, so patients have a variety of modalities to choose from,” Sharma explained.

In many cases, integrative medicine specialists may tailor their treatments based on scientific evidence for the patient’s specifi condition. Studies in this field of medicine may include thousands of participants completing randomized, controlled trials to offer strong support for integrative treatments.

For instance, a 2020 study published in Holistic Nursing Practice found that guided imagery and breathing-based exercises significantly improved sleep quality in elderly patients both before and after abdominal surgery. A 2016 study published in the Global Journal of Health Science found that chronic headache patients using mindfulness exercises to reduce stress experienced less pain and an improved quality of life than patients who did not use these techniques. Research reviews also support the benefits of integrative medicine, with a 2019 meta-analysis in Mayo Clinic Proceedings finding that yoga, particularly when combined with breathing techniques, helped reduce blood pressure in people with hypertension.

Sharma finds it fulfilling to see the benefit of integrative medicine firsthand in acutely sick patients in the hospital. “Frequently after a session, patients feel very relaxed, calm, and uplifted,” she said. “Their mind shifts in a more positive way, allowing them to cope with their symptoms and hospitalization better. They are also sometimes more receptive and responsive to treatments. Patients also may require less pain and anxiety medication, which can even result in them going home sooner.”

Before her patients leave the hospital, Sharma teaches self-care mindfulness techniques that they can practice on their own at home, such as deep-breathing exercises and meditation. She emphasizes that anyone can use, and benefi from, these methods.

“Sometimes I hear from patients, ‘It’s too hard to meditate,’” Sharma said. “I explain to them that simply centering yourself and focusing on your breath—taking a few deep breaths in and out—is a form of meditation.”

Integrative medicine has been shown to improve pain, anxiety, and several other symptoms without always having to rely on pharmaceuticals such as opioids and benzodiazepines alone, Sharma said. This helps to save costs as well as avoid potential side effects and the possibility of addiction.

“Even if a patient is skeptical, I explain that it is always worth a try,” Sharma said. Integrative medicine techniques have no risk—and the benefits can be bountiful. “There’s no real negative aspect in using an integrative medicine technique in a treatment regimen. It is inexpensive, it’s effective, and it’s safe.”