AlternativesGateway.com is a new web site whose primary function is to provide online healthful lifestyle resources for the general public that contains relevant information, articles, news, and links to member service providers and advertisers. AlternativesGateway.com offers alternative/complementary healthful lifestyle resources through access to body, mind, and spirit services providers, and also access to relevant information via RSS feeds, featured articles, and other resources that allow you to investigate and make your own healthful choices. It is a directory of healers, practitioners and others that deal in the realm of alternative/complementary medicine, spirituality, and metaphysics to allow you to investigate and to choose what you think is best for You.
Our world is constantly changing and evolving, and so are we. AlternativesGateway.com was created to assist you in navigating through all of life's changes with purposeful clarity through access to whatever resources you need to achieve the results you really desire your life to be.
AlternativesGateway.com offers:
- Access to alternative resources for healthy living in your hometown and around the world. Resources like massage therapists, yoga classes, Pilates, health expos and health fairs, articles on health, and courses on health and wellness of mind, body, and spirit.
- Opportunities to share your healing experiences and learn from others in the community who have found unique and powerful paths for healing.
- Opportunities to make appointments on-line with your favorite alternative/complementary health care provider - no more phone tag.
- A central place for those who are on healthful and/or spiritual paths to find others to grow and share with.
- Access to member events for individuals to learn and grow together.
- The opportunity to participate in helping AlternativesGateway.com evolve and grow to help others as you do by providing feedback to us, both positive and negative.
Fundamentally, AlternativesGateway.com is a directory of resources, practitioners, businesses and organizations who practice and support a more balanced and harmonious lifestyle. As part of that goal, AlternativesGateway.com also lists events of interest and provides links to other resources to aid you in learning and finding answers to your healthful questions. There are links to online shopping resources, as well. Our vision is to be the one-stop source people turn to when looking for healthy, balanced, alternative, and complementary lifestyle information on the Internet. We want to be the "place" you always come to investigate your options and choices for mind, body and spirit.
If you have any comments, questions, or recommendations to improve our web portal, please do not hesitate to contact us. We want this to be "Your" Place to visit, investigate, and learn.
Q & A with Pete Esquinaldo, Owner, AlternativesGateway.com
Why did you establish AlternativesGateway.com?
My goal was to create a safe haven site -- a comfortable online meeting place where people seeking all types of health and wellness information and resources could linger. I particularly wanted to provide a portal for one-stop shopping about wellness programs, holistic techniques, spirituality and traditional medical resources.
Much of this information exists elsewhere online, certainly. But the problem is that it’s often spread over multiple types of sites. Searching for what you need can be a daunting and time-consuming task. In contrast, AlternativesGateway.com is a singular place where people can find diverse types of information and resources.
How did you become interested in holistic and alternative medical options?
I’m an engineer by trade and a corporate manager by profession. But from the age of 12, I wondered what my true purpose was in this life. I grew up in a spiritual household with a particularly strong influence by my father. My dad encouraged us to be spiritual, whatever religion we might choose. He also had a philosophy of treating people well. So I always felt I was destined to do something to help others but just didn’t know quite what direction that would take.
Over the years, I developed a personal interest in holistic and alternative medical options. Many techniques often can be integrated with traditional medicine to enhance the health, spirituality and meta-physical life of the individual. I also have an interest in psychology and how the human mind works. As a result, I’ve taken several courses and seminars on these topics and always found them productive.
In May 2006, I was browsing through magazines in a local book store and noticed a massage therapist magazine that talked about booking massage appointments online. The light went on. I set out to “meld” an information source for people interested in holistic, alternative and traditional medical resources with the Internet as a communications medium. The result is AlternativesGateway.com.
Do you provide medical advice?
Absolutely not. We never provide medical advice or suggest one resource over another. That’s not our role. Only the consumer – in discussion with his or her physician – should make such decisions. Our goal is simply to offer ways for consumers to find helpful information and resources.
For example, we provide a directory with names and links to both holistic and traditional medical practitioners. This isn’t solely New Age-type material. We also offer Web links to major health organizations and other groups. We talk about massage therapy, spirituality and even the martial arts.
We give consumers concise descriptions of health and wellness options. We offer a menu of upcoming holistic events they might attend. We encourage them to share their experiences to assist others. We offer Featured Articles and an RSS feed with news articles provided by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
Bottom line? This site is about “consumer choices.” Web visitors make their own decisions. We just offer paths to information they might find useful, based on their needs and personal philosophy.
Is the site final?
We are newly launched (March 2007) and have a good foundation of information for consumers. But much more is planned. Throughout the coming months, we’ll add more resources, more feature articles, more practitioner names and other helpful features. So consider AlternativesGateway.com a “work in progress.” Let us know what you think.
We’re also seeking providers who want to advertise their services on our site – thus reaching a large group of readers who are interested in holistic, alternative and traditional options. Service providers (such as massage or spiritual therapists) who create a paid listing on the site will receive an online appointment scheduler for consumers to use.
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