Naturopathic Medicine Student - Simona Ciobanu
Simona Ciobanu's interest in medicine comes from her own
personal experience. "When members of my family had health
issues, I saw that conventional medicine really wasn't addressing
the causes of each problem. Over time, my family started
looking into alternative methods of healing like acupuncture and
chiropractic, and I saw that those methods really worked."
"I'd always had an inclination toward medicine, so I started
researching different medical fields. Then a friend recommended
that I look into naturopathic medicine. I interviewed an ND
physician, actually the mother of a friend of mine. She had such
positive things to say about her profession and her career, that I
was hooked! Meeting with her really sealed my decision to pursue an
ND
degree," says Simona.
"I looked at other schools, but National was the best in terms
of what I believe. Naturopathy is really taught here as the healing
power of nature. We're taught to treat holistically: body, mind and
spirit. At National, we're not just learning how to treat a disease
or a symptom, we are looking for ways to restore health and to help
the body heal itself, to restore the healing process. That's a
different perspective from many other medical programs. Lifestyle
changes, nutritional counseling, getting to the root and cause of
the problem, and treating it with natural methods is what
naturopathy is all about."
"National's ND program is fantastic, but it's tough! This is no
joke. This is medical school. It's grueling and intense at times,
but that's what we're here for. I wouldn't expect it to be any
easier."
"My favorite class right now is homeopathy. It's incredibly
interesting and complex. At National, ND and DC (chiropractic)
students study together in many overlapping classes during the
first four trimesters, especially in the basic sciences like
anatomy and pathology. I get to know a lot about chiropractic
medicine, and they get to learn from us about naturopathic
medicine. Since this is an integrative program, what better way
than for us to be in class together and interact with each
other?"
"I could see myself having an integrative practice where I work
with different professionals from different fields. Having
relationships and connections with other medical professions is
going to be key to really providing the right health care for
patients," she says.
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