omplementary practices to address their recovery needs (McCloskey & Reno, 2019; Nguyen, 2017). Fear of adverse side-effects and negative impact to the baby while breastfeeding contribute to the aversion toward pharmaceutical interventions, while lack of ability to dedicate time to the committed process of psychotherapy contributes to the avoidance and non-compliance with standard recommendations of intervention (McCloskey & Reno, 2019; Nguyen, 2017). Particularly within highly vulnerable populations of low-socioeconomic and ethnic minority groups are these front-line interventions considered unattainable, and more and more are women turning to, even preferring, alternative and complementary methods of treatment (McCloskey & Reno, 2019; Nguyen, 2017).
Chiarmonte, Ring, and Locke (2017) indicate that as many as 75% of women within the general population are utilizing complimentary therapies. The most commonly utilized interventions being mind-body practices and dietary supplements, with use of these therapies being made by self-referral rather than in collaboration with a healthcare professional (Chairmonte, Ring, & Locke, 2017). The authors strongly advocate that physicians and other healthcare professionals should educate themselves on integrative approaches of such practices in order to support patient-centered preferences and approach the needs of women’s health concerns from an integrative perspective.
While complementary and alternative health care practices were once considered distinctly other than traditional models of westernized medicine, there is an ongoing shift within the contemporary health care practices of the United States, Canada, United Kingdom (UK), and Australia toward a more holistic and integrative view of health and medicine (Hilbers & Lewis, 2013). This shifting paradigm within the medical model acknowledges the benefits of complementary and conventional approaches when used in combination to support physical, social, psychological, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing (Hilbers & Lewis, 2013).
DEFINING COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE
The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH; 2018) elaborates on what the National Institutes of Health (NIH) define “complementary,” “alternative,” and “integrative” as within the evolving paradigm of medicine. While “alternative” and “complementary” are often used interchangeably, they are not synonymous. As healthcare professionals utilizing such methods, it is essential to know how and when to use such terms appropriately when articulating the value and efficacy of services provided.
If a non-mainstream practice is used together with conventional medicine, then it is considered "complementary."
If a non-mainstream practice is used in place of conventional medicine, then it is considered "alternative."
An approach to health care that brings conventional and complementary approaches together in a coordinated way. Integrative healthcare emphasizes a holistic, patient-focused approach to health care and wellness—often including mental, emotional, functional, spiritual, social, and community aspects—and treating the whole person rather than, for example, one organ system.
One of the greatest benefits that emerge from the integrative approach of blending conventional with complementary approaches is that it empowers the client to be a more active participant in their healthcare intervention process rather than mainstream healthcare models allow (Hilbers & Lewis, 2013). Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) practices allow the patient to seize control of actionable strategies toward their wellness goals. In the perspective of occupational therapy, these actionable pursuits are of primary concern to intervention philosophy and therefore may serve as viable options for intervention strategies when approaching the care of the depressed postpartum women from a holistic perspective.
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