Healthy Alternatives: an interview with Regina Danvers

QUR: How did you first become interested in alternative medicine?

RD: I was diagnosed with scleroderma in 1993. Allopathic medicine was a dead end as it gave me no hope. I suffered from this condition for years. After reading the book What Your Doctor Won’t Tell You by Jane Heimlich, I started to read as much as I could about alternative medicine. I found the alternative medicine directory and learned about all of the therapies and modalities available.

QUR: Did you feel misgivings about trying something you didn’t know much about?

RD: At first I was hesitant to step outside of the box because of how I had been conditioned by the allopathic medicine community. Then I realized I had nothing to lose since I had been given a “death sentence,” as it were.

QUR: How do you think acupuncture helped you?

Well, actually I had previously used acupuncture successfully for smoking cessation. It decreased my urge to smoke. I went in with the mindset that it wasn’t going to worth. I was surprised when she put needles in my ear. Now I'm open to and enlightened about all the benefits of acupuncture. Sometimes you don’t know you’re not feeling bad until you feel better. My allergies have gotten better with treatment, too. There are so many more benefits that I have come to feel since I first started looking into it.

QUR: You mentioned that acupuncture is also helping your husband. Is that right?

Yes, he used acupuncture for glaucoma--he needs additional treatments but feels he has made better progress than with his conventional eye-drops. He says that acupuncture is helping him see better.

QUR: Did your contact with acupuncture inspire you to launch your television program?

Not specifically, but it has in conjunction with the many therapies, techniques, and modalities available thru AOM.

QUR: Do you think the American public is more accepting of AOM than in the past?

Absolutely, they are now savvy to the proven results of using AOM. They feel skeptical of and/or disappointed with allopathic medicine, so they are stepping out of the box and ready to try something different.

QUR: What do you think practitioners can do to overcome public hesitation to choose AOM services?

I think holding health fairs with free demonstrations helps spread the word. They can also cite the successful treatments of their patients in their advertising. . .not to mention sponsoring TV shows like "Healthy Alternatives"!

Regina Danvers hosts “Healthy Alternative” a public television program in North Carolina that explores AOM. AAAOM board member Bill Reddy recently appeared on Regina’s show. She may be reached at (910) 213-6461.