Some people say alternative medicine is quackery. Chelsea Strayer (GRS’12), a doctoral candidate in anthropology, disagrees.
She has worked with the Asante people of Ghana for the past seven years and has found evidence that their healing rituals lower stress levels, allowing the body to become more relaxed. Her research examines how traditional Asante drumming elicits a “relaxation response,” a physiological reaction to external stimuli that helps the body cope with stress, both physical and emotional.
