How to Start a Holistic Healing Business

It takes a village to raise a child, but sometimes, it takes an herb or two to bring her back to health if you're not enthusiastic about conventional medicine. Plenty of prestigious medical entities acknowledge holistic practices; even the Mayo Clinic hosts a landing page on its website devoted exclusively to holistic healing techniques used by practitioners of complementary and alternative medicine. According to Mayo Clinic researchers, nearly 40 percent of all U.S. adults use alternative medicine in concert with conventional therapies. This should be welcome news as you prepare to launch your own holistic healing practice.

1. Study holistic medicine at a school devoted to mind-body health. Choose from local classes and distant learning programs. If you've concerns about legitimacy, verify credentials with your State's Attorney and Better Business Bureau. Once you're enrolled, learn how spiritual well being, the environment and emotions impact health. Study herbal therapies, acupuncture, healing touch, neurological pain intervention, naturopathy and mind-body healing.

2. Practice principles of holistic healing as an intern, apprentice or student healer under the tutelage of a trained healer. Observe treatment outcomes to understand the effects of poor nutrition, unhealthy lifestyle choices and unfulfilled emotional needs of patients. Complete your internship and pass exams administered by the school to receive your completion certificate or degree. Apply to state and municipal agencies for licenses/permits required of holistic healers.

3. Survey holistic healing businesses in your area to match your service menu to theirs. You may have taken a practicum while attending school that gave you a formula for setting treatment rates, but it's best to verify these figures to make certain your treatment rates align with other alternative medicine practices. Additionally, if your business is to include a retail component (for example, in addition to massages, healing sessions and nutrition counseling you'll sell herbal remedies and essential oils), you'll want to put several supplement and vitamin suppliers on your speed dial.

4. Stay abreast of new healing philosophies, methods and techniques. Naturopathy, traditional Chinese medicine and movements from India like Ayurveda offer unique opportunities to expand your holistic healing skills, but these require more training and could require additional licensing and certification. One way to stay up to date on all of these topics is to consult organizations like the American Association of Drugless Practitioners and the Holistic Health Practitioner. Become a member of any of these professional organizations so you can network with other holistic practitioners, add certifications to your credentials and take advanced workshops to stay up to date with new alternative medicine techniques.

5. Promote your new holistic healing business in ways that will attract people looking for alternative treatments for their physical and emotional issues. Schedule healing circles, herbal therapy workshops and individual counseling sessions but don't ignore common marketing practices to attract people, especially during that critical first year of business. One of the best ways to introduce the world to your new business is to hold a holistic health fair that gives you an opportunity to "show and tell" your entire community all of the benefits of holistic healing.