Self-healing: a concept analysis

Abstract

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is a rapidly growing specialty within the healthcare field. One concept that appears central to the notion of CAM therapies is the concept of self-healing. Although "self-healing" is addressed within several bodies of literature, the concept is ill-defined within the context of CAM therapies, specifically energy-based healing modalities such as reiki therapy. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the concept of self-healing through a concept analysis using Walker and Avant's technique (1995). The resultant operational definition of self-healing was the result of 6 weeks of study and is not considered to be a final product, but merely a beginning step to understanding this unique phenomenon.