Ita Wegman

Mary Ita Wegman ( born February 22, 1876 in Karawang, West Java today, Indonesia, belonging, † March 4, 1943 in Arlesheim, Switzerland ), life called Ita Wegman was as a doctor together with Rudolf Steiner founder of the Anthroposophical medicine.

In 1921 founded the socially committed woman doctor the first anthroposophic clinic in Arlesheim, which is now named after her: the Ita Wegman Clinic. The elaborated in anthroposophic medicine for independent classical rhythmical massage therapy by Ita Wegman still bears her name. Ita Wegman developed more specialized forms of care such as special winding and liniments.

Life

Ita Wegman was born in 1876 as the first child of a Dutch colonial family on Java. After her schooling there and partly in Arnhem they finally came with the family to Holland in 1899 and settled in Amsterdam and Berlin trained in physiotherapy and massage Classic. By 1896 they had established initial contacts with the theosophy of the Theosophical Society Adyar in Indonesia. At the age of 26 years Ita Wegman in 1902 met in Berlin for the first time Rudolf Steiner and joined the then guided by this German Section of the Theosophical Society. After the founding of the Anthroposophical Society Wegman joined this. In 1906 she began studying medicine at the University of Zurich, where she graduated in 1911 as a specialist in gynecology.

In 1917 she made ​​her first private practice at the suggestion of Rudolf Steiner an anticancer medicine from mistletoe ago. From the so-called Iscar the mistletoe preparation Iscador oldest later developed. From 1919 she operated with two other doctors in Zurich a common practice. In 1920, she acquired the property Hirsland 198 in Arlesheim and opened in 1921 Private Hospital Clinical Therapeutic Institute there. Here for the first time the young Anthroposophic medicine was developed in close collaboration with Steiner and practically applied. In 1922, Wegman the curative Home Sonnenhof for " soul care - needy " children, also in Arlesheim. In the same year also took place under their substantial participation by the foundation of today's Weleda AG.

After the burning of the first Goetheanum in New Year's Eve 1922/23, Ita Wegman became the chief assistant of Rudolf Steiner, the ( " Karmic " ) saw in cooperation with the doctor probably fateful relationships. Your question regarding " Mystery healing art " for the present time allowed Steiner also work in the medical field. Almost daily he came from Dornach over to the hospital to take patients in inspection and to make suggestions for their treatment. Since Steiner did not understand as a " healer", the medical treatment was in each case the object of the doctors. In 1923 he convened Ita Wegman as Secretary together with Marie Steiner, Elisabeth Vreede, Albert Steffen Guenther Wachsmuth and in the founding Board of the new General Anthroposophical Society (AAG ). Together with him, she led after the founding meeting ( the so-called " Christmas Conference " ) at the Goetheanum in Dornach, the first class of the newly founded School of Spiritual Science. She was also co-founder and first director of the Medical Section. In this role, initiated and accompanied them the foundation of numerous medical and special education institutions worldwide. From September 1924 she used Rudolf Steiner on his sickbed until his death. The end of 1925 they were posthumously with the Steiner jointly authored book Understanding of Therapy Science of the Spirit out. Broke soon after Steiner's death between the members of the Board of numerous conflicts over the continuation of the anthroposophical work in the AAG 1935 led to that Ita Wegman and Elisabeth Vreede and their followers were expelled from the society.

1934 Ita Wegman had a serious illness survived only briefly and decided during their convalescence on a trip to the " Holy Land ". In her last years she mostly stayed in the annex her clinic, founded in 1936, the Casa Andrea Cristoforo in Ascona, on. In 1943, she died at the age of 67 years in Arlesheim. Your urn was in one of the artist and art therapist Liane Collot d' Herbois - buried in a chapel designed Brissago - a close friend Wegmans. The extensive heritage Wegmans now houses the " Ita Wegman archive" of the Ita Wegman Institute in their former home on the grounds of the Ita Wegman Clinic in Arlesheim.

Works

  • For knowledge of the return cases in scarlet fever. Dissertation, Zurich 1912 ( digitized Gallica )
  • Fundamentals of Therapy Science of the Spirit ( with Rudolf Steiner). Philosophical- Anthroposophical Publishing, Dornach 1925; Paperback ibid., 1991, ISBN 3-7274-7010-0
  • At the Dawn of the action for an extension of the art of healing by the humanities anthropology. The collected essays from the "Natura". Natura, Arlesheim 1956; 2 A. 1974, ISBN 3-85817-120-4
  • To the friends. Essays and reports from the years 1925-27. Natura, Arlesheim 1960; 3 A., 1986, ISBN 3-85817-062-3
Physician Kinesitherapy Marie Steiner-von Sivers Peter Selg Integrated Authority File
421059
de