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We are a nation of pill-popping and quick fixes – there’s no doubt about that. But more than just a few people have discovered that, sometimes, an alternative therapy might be the better, and healthier, choice.

Call it hippie-like, snicker at the idea of granola eaters thinking “Omm…” can make them feel better, but the truth is many of these alternative health options are proving to be better healers than your Ibuprofen. Here are a few of the hottest ones around:

Deep Breathing Exercises

If I had a nickel for the number of times my mother has told me to breathe in and breathe out, I’d be a freaking millionaire. But while I may sometimes roll my eyes at this tried-and-true wisdom, many health experts, including Dr. Andrew Weil, author of several alternative health books such as Eight Weeks to Optimum Health, say that simple breathing exercises can help to ease stress and anxiety. Try one of Weil’s recommended yogi-like exercises called “The Stimulating Breath:” Keep mouth closed, rapidly inhaling and exhaling through your nose. Breaths should be quick, but equal. It will seem silly, – you’ll feel like a panting dog – but after just 15 seconds you’ll feel renewed.

Meditation

Sure, quieting your mind might seem like an impossible feet when you have dinner to make, a project for work, Johnny’s soccer game and…Shhhh. It’s tough to achieve a pure meditative state, but when you take a peek at the long list of benefits it’s tough to ignore. Just to name a few: It increases blood flow, slows the heart rate, creates a deeper level of relaxation, decreases muscle tension and headaches, helps with PMS, aids post-operative healing and enhances the immune system. To help achieve a meditative state, try adopting a mantra – a phrase or sound that you repeat in order to tune out other noise – light calming incense or aromatherapy oils and make sure you are comfy because you will be sitting for a while. Consider investing in a mediation book or tape, like Meditations for Manifesting: Morning and Evening Meditations to Literally Create Your Heart’s Desire by Dr. Wayne Dyer.

Diet-based therapy

So many people lean on diets to help them get slim quick, but there are also a number of food plans that can help ease some of your worst bodily woes. Alternative health gurus back diets like veganism, macrobiotics and the Okinawa diet, claiming that eliminating, adding or controlling certain types of foods can help to improve health. Many of these diets focus on eliminating certain trigger foods, like processed sugar, caffeine or animal products, in order to help boost not only the immune, but all of the body’s systems. Take a look at The Hip Chick’s Guide to Macrobiotics and Becoming Vegan. You may also just want to do a quick Google search of “diet-based therapies.”

Progressive muscle relaxation

Yes, it works exactly like it sounds. According to the Mayo Clinic, this technique involves the slow tension and release of muscles throughout your body. If you have ever been typing for hours on a computer only to realize your shoulders are hiked up to your ears, then you know how good the “release” part of this method can feel. Try it by squeezing the muscles in your toes and feet for five seconds, and then relax for 30 seconds. Repeat, making your way to each one of your muscle groups.

Biofeedback

This is where we tap into the mind-body connection that we hear about so often. Biofeedback is an alternative therapy that leans on the idea that we can use our thoughts and mind to control our bodies, and specific conditions and illnesses. The controlling of brain activity, blood pressure and heart rate have been shown to help ease symptoms related to headaches, asthma, epilepsy, nausea caused by chemotherapy and low back pain – just to name a few. Right now, I am reading The Brain that Changes Itself, by Dr. Norman Doidge. This book relies heavily on other people’s experiences with concepts similar to those of biofeedback.

Now, of course, these are only five of the several alternative therapies that are out there, just waiting to help you. Chiropractic therapy, Reiki massage, yoga, herbal supplements and several others are all options to consider before going for all-to-common over-the-counter medicines. At the very least, give them a try.

Just be sure to do the breathing exercises in private – your neighbors already think you’re weird enough.

And of course, if you have suggestions of your own, leave them in the comments below.

Photo by Shutr.