Holistic healing, alternative medicine are growing part of Lancaster County’s ‘web of wellness’ – LNP | LancasterOnline

Since ancient times, health and wellness have been lofty and necessary goals. People have sought remedies from a range of sources including nature plants, animals, outdoor exploration and modern medicine.

Advancements in the latter cannot be overstated, but many seek answers to their ailments in a more holistic, organic realm, turning to herbal tinctures, aromatherapy, acupuncture, massage, nutrition, CBD products, yoga and other proactive body-balancing choices.

We are healing each other through a web of wellness, says Christi Albert, owner of Ellister's Elixirs, a North Queen Street shop providing organic, plant-based skin care and wellness products. She is referring to a thriving womens wellness collective currently blossoming in Lancaster.

Albert notes that, especially since the pandemic, (Social media) has helped support other makers and small healers through sharing each other's content, skills and offerings.

Christi Albert mixes Rose Geranium herb and sesame oil at Ellister's Elixers in Lancaster on Friday, Feb. 5, 2021. The infusion made from locally grown herb from Lancaster Farmacy is used as a massage oil.

The result, she says, is broader access to healthy learning opportunities for the public.

As women, it is important to have support from other women to feel uplifted and feel good about themselves and caring for each other, Albert says.

Dr. Erin Gattuso, a naturopathic practitioner in Manheim, is committed to helping women find alternative approaches to chronic health conditions, from fertility issues to menopause symptoms.

Root healing is largely emotional, and the goal is to break past the conscious into the subconscious thoughts and belief patterns, she says.

Breath and body work can also help people connect to a deeper layer of their emotional self, she says.

Gattuso works with men as well, often using cranial sacral therapy (CST), a gentle hands-on technique used to relieve compression around the skull, spine and surrounding joints to help heal deep-seated trauma. While CSTs efficacy may be dubious to some, many patients insist that it contributes to their health and sense of well-being, according to Medical News Today.

Gattuso says she is proud to be a part of the women's collective for healing in Lancaster, and mentions other talented, committed folks in the growing field.

Christi Albert is great at cultivating different experts and bringing them together, she says.

One of Gattusos pet peeves is that everybody wants to work with herbs, but many of them are not dedicated to the art and science of it.

In alternative medicine, you have to dive full in because every client's body is different, she says.

Susquehanna Apothecary provides raw herbs, tinctures, and even ergonomic and locally made Rebel Garden Tools. The business is owned by Benjamin Weiss and managed by Ella Usdin. They also offer classes, which Gattuso says she is excited to take this spring.

Among this growing wellness collective, Gattuso also cites Lancaster Farmacy, which grows certified organic medicinal herbs, flowers and produce. Owned and operated by Elisabeth Eli Weaver and Casey Spacht, Lancaster Farmacy, according to its website, describes its mission as empowering others to reclaim their health through the ancient knowledge of natural traditions of whole foods and herbs.

Gattuso calls Weaver a force and says she has the utmost respect for rad women like her who choose farming.

ho-lis-tic: adj. characterized by the treatment of the whole person, taking into account mental and social factors, rather than just the symptoms of a disease.

apoth-e-cary: noun. one who prepares and sells drugs or compounds for medicinal purposes.

The woman-owned herb and coffee house Blade & Spade Coffee Apothecary, on West Walnut Street in Lancaster, serves seasonal made-from-scratch food and drinks infused with mylk, a plant-based spin on dairy milk. Owner Alyssa Millers vendors include the previously mentioned businesses, ensuring Lancaster's wellness professionals help and support one another so they can, in turn, support the community.

The most common ailment for which people seek relief is chronic anxiety, the women say. But not just since the pandemic, Albert says. She attributes the uptick to the ubiquity of technology.

It is hard to turn things off as technology has increased, so has anxiety, she says.

Worry and unease as a root ailment can lead to hormonal, skin, gut and pain difficulties. Anxiety fuels other ailments," Albert says.

But, she adds, there has been a COVID shift, with parents balancing work and homeschooling their children and looking for ways to take the edge off in holistic, healthy ways.

Gattuso agrees, noting the pandemic has taken a toll.

Anxiety has been through the roof and harder to manage, she says.

Anxiety can manifest in other areas, like bowels, gut and sleep, which impacts the immune system, Gattuso says. But a holistic approach can cure the symptoms as well as the cause, creating long-term wellness, she adds.

Another effective remedy can be creating a sense of community, Gattuso says. For instance, before the pandemic, her clinic provided parent-connect groups where moms with (or dealing with) food issues or allergies could come together with other like-minded people.

It's very comforting, she says. Feeling seen and supported is the foundation of safety, which facilitates healing and wellness.

Albert, too, is looking ahead to a pandemic-free time when she can provide a free community meditation hour at the studio adjacent to her shop, giving people a safe place to feel calm and recharged.

Community is the main factor of health that is missing in most people's lives because in the U.S. we promote individualism, Gattuso says.

That lack of community connection has been exacerbated by COVID-19, she says.

What else is good for health and wellness? Singing and dancing, Gattuso says.

Women were meant to sing together! she says. Whether it's call-and-response or belting out your own melody, singing is such a relief it resets you.

Body movement walking, dancing, exercising is also crucial to wellness. When I work with a lot women (with anxiety), dancing is often that level of release that they need, Gattuso says. Dance can enhance your health and well-being.

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Holistic healing, alternative medicine are growing part of Lancaster County's 'web of wellness' - LNP | LancasterOnline