During Voltaire’s era, he must’ve observed that many individuals heal without the need for much intervention when given time, thus leading to his quote, “The art of medicine consists of amusing the patient while nature cures the disease.” We interpret this as our nature or the environment that we live in cures our illnesses. That people heal by the power of nature and its elements. In today’s world, it means going out in the sun, unplugging from technology, eating organic food, getting a goodnight’s sleep, breathing fresh air. However, this is not what Voltaire meant.

He was using “nature” to describe the phenomenon of the universe – balance. That all things balance out in the end. We may go out of balance once in a while when we are sick, but eventually, things become normal, we become healthy again.  

Balance occurs to some degree in most cases of illness and sickness, and our environment and medical procedures may either intensify or slow down the process. There are now, of course, several exceptions to this theory, such as neurodegenerative disorders and cancer, once the stage of metastasis has advanced. Generally speaking; however, balance plays a crucial role in the achievement of our medical treatments also referred to as the Art of Medicine.

Balance is not just a phenomenon that occurs naturally. If we want to maximize our ability to appreciate what works when we handle ourselves and others, it is something we need to pay attention to. We might not have to be so fast to search for a pill or write a prescription. Perhaps we should take Voltaire’s advice and let “nature” do its thing. But one barrier prevents this from happening?  Is the nature that once cured dynamic human bodies exist? After all, at times and in environments that do not fit our circadian biology, we live in an age of endless interactions, mobile phones, social media, minimal time in nature, fake food, and sleeping. Obviously, not an environment suitable for sickness healing.