Benefits of Using a Holistic Healing Approach in Recovery

Learn about the different approaches in holistic healing and how they can help you or a loved one.

Holistic healing therapies are crucial when it comes to treating addiction, as only healing one aspect of the body can lead to unresolved issues in other areas. It has often been said that drug and alcohol addiction is a three-fold illness, meaning the body, mind, and spirit of the person using are affected. In order to reach sobriety and stay on a sober path, all three areas need some type of treatment.

Rehabilitation centers that involve comprehensive holistic healing in their treatment programs focus on a variety of therapies that are targeted to treat all three areas simultaneously. This well-rounded, holistic approach to healing is considered by medical professionals and counselors as the most effective way to help someone with a substance abuse disorder.

What Exactly is Holistic Healing?

You may be wondering what holistic healing therapies encompass? This type of approach blends traditional medical care and detox with complementary and alternative methods.

Depending on the addiction treatment facility, this could mean adding things like yoga, horseback riding, meditation, massage therapy, art therapy, acupuncture, and nutrition into a traditional schedule of group therapy, counseling, etc. A holistic approach works so well because it offers the body the self-care, nutrition, stress reducers, and rest that it needs to heal.

Meditation is usually a popular practice at substance abuse treatment centers because it is so restorative to the body. It isn’t uncommon for people in the midst of addiction to not have control over their thoughts, or to find themselves in a very dark place when it comes to their mental state.

Meditation can help bring balance to one’s mental state while also offering a calming, peaceful atmosphere that is scientifically proven to lessen pain, anxiety, stress and even depression. Believe it or not, meditation has also been proven to help with lowering one’s blood pressure, helps to restore focus, increase one’s discipline, make us more mindful of our surroundings and attitudes, and can reduce feelings of anger while also helping us become aware of healthier coping skills.

Nutrition is also a vital piece of the holistic healing therapies approach puzzle. Our physical and mental well-being can be dramatically influenced by the “fuel” we are providing the body in the form of food and drink.

We can’t expect our brain and body to run at optimal levels if we are eating low-quality foods, or no food at all (which is common when in an environment of active addiction). Research from the U.S. National Library of Medicine even shows how imperative good nutrition is when it comes to someone going through the addiction recovery process, stating it can increase one’s energy and improve mental health.  When diet and nutritional needs become part of the addiction recovery process, one can also expect to see:

• An improvement in mood
• The immune system becomes stronger
• Nervous system damage is being repaired
• An increase in energy
• Improved clarity and focus
• And a lower rate of relapse

At Legacy Healing Center, those who enter our nationwide drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers can trust that our holistic approach to healing will be front and center. Our protocols offer services that help to heal one’s entire body, mind, and spirit. In addition to testing for potential co-occurring disorders, we also help clients find new career paths and options once they complete the program, in addition to addressing family issues, health and wellness concerns, and aftercare.

Reach out to the addiction specialists at Legacy Healing Center to learn more about detox and treatment options. Speak to someone today at 888-534-2295.

Sources and Citations

• Mahboub N, Rizk R, Karavetian M, de Vries N. Nutritional status and eating habits of people who use drugs and/or are undergoing treatment for recovery: a narrative review. Nutr Rev. 2021 May 12;79(6):627-635. doi: 10.1093/nutrit/nuaa095. PMID: 32974658; PMCID: PMC8114851. [Sourced on 2025 April 18]
• Nadine Mahboub, Rana Rizk, Mirey Karavetian, Nanne de Vries, Nutritional status and eating habits of people who use drugs and/or are undergoing treatment for recovery: a narrative review, Nutrition Reviews, Volume 79, Issue 6, June 2021, Pages 627–635, https://doi.org/10.1093/nutrit/nuaa095 [Sourced on 2025 April 18]