WHAT IS HOMOEOPATHY

Homeopathy is a system of natural medicine introduced and developed by a German physician, Samuel Hahnemann, at the end of the 18th century. Recognizing that the whole person-mind, body, spirit-is affected when there is illness, homeopathy seeks to treat that whole person. The focus is not the diseased part or the sickness, rather the totality of the individual. Homeopathic medicines, or 'remedies', stimulate the body's self-regulating mechanisms to initiate the healing process. Homeopathic Philosophy When a person becomes ill, it is the whole that is sick: body, mind, spirit. The body manifests symptoms of illness but it is not the origin of the illness. Upon death, the physical body remains, but it is no longer curable. That which is curable, the 'vital force', has left the body. The origin of illness lies in an imbalance of the vital force. The symptoms expressed by the body, mind, and spirit are the manifestation of that imbalance. By matching the symptoms of illness with the appropriate homeopathic remedy, the vital force returns to balance. The symptoms disappear as the person heals themselves. Homeopathic Principles Homeopathy has 4 principles that are its foundation. They remain unchanged over the last 200 years as their truth is demonstrated through successful treatment of the sick. The cornerstone principle is Similia Similbus Curentur, "Let likes cure likes". Homeopathy actually derives its name from the Greek, homoeo='similar', and pathos='suffering'. Through research and practice Hahnemann verified cure through the use of similars. A substance that can produce disease in a healthy person is used to elicit a healing response in someone presenting with a similar disease. Each person shows symptoms of the body/mind/spirit when they are sick. Some of these symptoms are common to that sickness, others are characteristic of that person in their sickness. The homeopathic practitioner matches the symptom picture of the homeopathic remedy to the symptom picture of the person, with particular attention paid to those symptoms which are unique to the individual. The second principle of homeopathy is The Single Remedy. Only one homeopathic remedy is given at any one time. It would be difficult, if not impossible, to ascertain the action of multiple homeopathic remedies given all at once. The response of the vital force would be unpredictable and ambiguous. Though Hahnemann experimented with this approach he abandoned it as unsatisfactory. The third principle of homeopathy is The Minimum Dose. This refers to the infinitesimal doses of medicine given as well as to the repetition of dose only when necessary. Drugs given to individuals in material doses frequently cause side effects or adverse reactions. To curtail this problem, the homeopath administers the smallest possible dose so as to maximize beneficial effects and minimize side effects. Repetition of dose is determined by the individual's response to the remedy. Unnecessary repetition may lessen the response, even to the correct remedy. In homeopathy, less is better. The fourth principle of homeopathy is The Potentized Remedy. Homeopathic remedies, though made from natural substances such as plants, minerals, animals, etc., are manufactured unlike any other medicine. Through a process of serial dilution a very dilute extract is made. With every step of dilution the remedy is vigorously shaken-succussed. This process of succussion is designed to arouse the dynamic nature of the medicine. To affect the vital force, a similarly energetic, homeopathic remedy must be employed. Glossary terms dynamis - life energy, vital force potentized - usually refers to a substance prepared according to homeopathic pharmaceutical standards. This means that it has gone through serial dilution and succussion remedy - medicine, as in homeopathic remedy succussion - the process of forcefully striking a homeopathic remedy against a firm surface vital force - the energy that maintains life in the individual (see Organon aphorisms 9-12) BY Whole Health Now

AN INTRODUCTION TO HOMOEOPATHY

by Frederik Schroyens, M.D. translated by Joan Bielunas edited by Karl Robinson, M.D. Basic facts of unitary homeopathy The founder of homeopathy was Dr. Samuel Hahnemann (1755-1843). Based on his observations, he formulated the so-called PRINCIPLE OF SIMILARITY, which states that a given substance can cure in a diseased person the symptoms that it produces or causes in a healthy person. Homeopathy is a well-described, scientifically based system of approaching health and disease. "Scientific" because the insights are based on reproducible experiments. "Well-described" because from these observations a number of precise basic fundamental rules became evident, first among them the "similarity principle." Hahnemann published his ideas and experiences in a book called the Organon. The first edition appeared in 1810 and he wrote the last edition (which appeared posthumously) in 1842. As was the custom in those days, he gave numbers to each paragraph in which he explained his different concepts. What is so striking is that Hahnemann’s fundamental concepts still hold true today nearly 200 years later. This is not to say there has been no progress in homeopathic thought but rather to the fact that subsequent investigators have been able to confirm and reconfirm these basic principles. Every serious study of homeopathy even today begins with a study of the Organon. What is unitary homeopathy? Although homeopathy is only 200 years old, it is now practiced in a variety of ways, most of which bear little resemblance to what Hahnemann taught. In the public mind the word "homeopathy" has become so vague that for some it means only an "alternative medicine" and for others a combination of homeopathic medicines that you buy in the health food store, one mixture for allergies, another for headache, etc. Unitary homeopathy (often called classical homeopathy) must be differentiated from all other so-called forms of homeopathy. The hallmarks of unitary homeopathy are: A thorough interview to discover the totality of signs and symptoms. This total picture is our most important guide to the medicine. By "signs" we mean that which can be objectively assessed by the physician. By "symptoms" we mean what the patient himself feels subjectively. How a homeopathic medicine acts is found out by administering it to healthy volunteers and recording the symptoms the volunteers report. By repeating these trials often, we get a complete profile of the medicine. Such trials are known as "provings." All homeopathic medicines have been "proved" on healthy volunteers to learn how they act. The total picture of the patient should be as similar as possible to the drug picture of the selected remedy. This is known as similia similibus curentur (let similars be cured by similars). The medicine should match the so-called characteristic (striking, unusual, and uncommon) symptoms of the patient as closely as possible. Since a homeopathic remedy corresponds only superficially to a particular disease, it must be customized to match the individual with that disease, a process we call "individualization." The very same illness in another patient will most often be cured with an entirely different remedy – thus we could have two different remedies that cure two different patients with the same disease. According to the homeopathic way of thinking, a disease originates from a disturbance of the patient’s "vital force." This is the life force energy that sustains life. As the origin of disease occurs on this energetic level, the homeopathic remedy has also to be on this level. Such an energetic medicine is made by diluting the remedy and succussing (shaking) it. All homeopathic medicines are "potentized", i.e., diluted and succussed. This method of preparation imparts considerable energy to each substance. "Unitary" homeopathy means that only one remedy is given at a time because only one remedy can correspond perfectly to the total picture of the patient. A prescription that does not aim for this totality is not homeopathic. Taking the homeopathic remedy Homeopathic medicines can be administered in drops, grains (approx. 3mm in diameter) or globules (approx. 1mm in diameter). The medicine is taken once, meaning that a given number of drops, grains or globules are taken on a single occasion and only once. Sometimes the medicine is repeated, e.g., two times a day or every three hours, etc. You must follow the instructions carefully. Usually the remedy is repeated until a reaction occurs. When a dose is taken can be important. Usually you will be instructed to take it before a certain meal, usually breakfast. It is best is to eat no food, alcohol, tea or coffee before taking the remedy. Also do not brush your teeth at that time. After a couple of minutes the remedy is absorbed and you can eat breakfast. How to take the medicine Follow the instructions of your physician. Drops can go directly into your mouth or be dissolved in water and then administered in teaspoonful doses. Grains and globules can be placed under the tongue. It is better not to touch the remedies, so use the cap of the vial or tube. Store your homeopathic remedy in a place where there is no sunlight or strong odors and where it is neither too hot nor cold. This way it will remain active for a long time. Homeopathic remedies are sufficiently diluted so that no poisoning will occur if a child should accidentally ingest a tube of granules, though it is possible that he might prove the medicine so you might have to consult your homeopathic physician. After you have taken your medication it is important to observe yourself. Be sure to keep the follow up appointment which will be two to eight weeks after the initial appointment. Typically in the treatment of a chronic illness the follow up will be one to two months later. The better the treatment goes the longer will be the intervals between appointments until you are eventually cured. Cure is not simply the disappearance of one or several complaints but an optimally stable equilibrium physically as well as well as psychologically.

LAWS OF CURE

There are three laws of cure, They are: A remedy starts at the top of the body and works downward A remedy works from within the body outward, and from major to minor organs Symptoms clear in reverse order of appearance. Application of the three principles of cure means that you will feel better emotionally before you will feel better physically. Homoeopathy is not a 'pill for every ill', but it can offer a safe alternative to conventional medical treatments for a vide range of diseases and complications. BY WHEEZAL

SAFE BUT WHY EFFECTIVE

According to homoeopathic doctrine , the more diluted the solution, the more potent it is. But how does the information in such a minute amount of substance get transferred to the body? Some theorists suggest the repeated succussion creates an electrochemical pattern that is stored in the water carrier and then spreads like liquid crystallization through the body's own water; others say the dilution process triggers an electromagnetic imprinting that directly affects the electro-magnetic field of the body. This concept is used in other therapies also. For example, Ayurveda suggests taking water that has been potentizated by precious metals such as gold. The water is believed to possess curative power as a result of coming in contact with gold and other gemstones although no molecular transfer takes place. The effects of micro-doses have been known for a long time, and there are a number of examples that support the idea that very diluted concentrations of a substance will have a measurable and sometimes profound effect. Scientists call this phenomenon: hormesis. Scientists from Michigan State University have shown how hormesis work in nature. They used microdoses of a fertilizer to stimulate crop production. In a dose equivalent to a 9x dilution, the fertilizer increased tomato yield by 30 percent, carrots were 21 percent bigger, and corn yield increased by 25 percent. Our own bodies secrete minute amounts of hormones that have powerful effects. Thyroid hormone is present in our blood at only 1 part per 10 billion-yet this is enough to regulate the rate of our entire metabolism. It is all based more or less on the theory of the atomic bomb. The bomb gets its energy from the splitting of the nuclei (central cores) of uranium or plutonium atoms. The relationship between mass and energy put forth by the great mathematician Albert Einstein explains how the fission of heavy atoms can produce energy. Similarly, in homoeopathy the drug substances, that is small atoms, are split into even smaller atoms generating more and more energy. BY WHEEZAL

HOMOEOPATHY V/S ALLOPATHY

Clinical Bacterial and Viral complaints are the end result of everything else being out of balance; and to only eradicate the bacteria or virus, is not getting to the cause of the disease! Although it usually gives a temporary relief, until the body is further run down and exposed to more bacteria or viruses. Don't you think that a better approach would be to strengthen the vital healing force so that when the body is exposed to bacteria etc, it does not become infected. The Allopathic approach to curing Disease is to "Suppress" the symptoms of disease with strong chemical drugs, against the bodies own natural healing force. This is the opposite too, and against the Natural Healing Laws of Nature! When you suppress the symptoms of disease with strong chemical drugs, you are actually preventing the body's own natural healing force from working the way it naturally should. By using strong chemical drugs you are just masking the symptoms, which gives temporary relief of the symptoms, but does not cure. This can be observed as, when the drugs are stopped the symptoms come back, in all their glory and sometimes in a much aggravated state, as well as a depressed feeling of well being. Now because you have used synthetic chemicals to force the body to act differently to it's natural function, over time you will further weaken the body's Vital Healing Force and Immune System to make the body more susceptible to further disease in all their various forms. In contrast the Homoeopathy system of medicine is built around the natural healing laws of nature, and believes if you have a disease you have an imbalance to the Vital Healing Force of your body. This Vital Healing Force is an energy force which is connected through meridians (channels) in the body. When this energy force goes out of balance, you then get "disease", in all their various forms, Genetic, Psychological, Emotional, Functional (Metabolic) and Clinical (Bacterial & Viral). The patient is nowadays more enlightened than ever and has for a long time been no longer prepared to "swallow", in the truest sense of the word, every side effect. Thus, in recent times there has even been a gratifying change in the prescribing habits of doctors in favour of natural, homoeopathic drugs. This may even be described as a world-wide renaissance of homoeopathic remedies , allowing prophylactic and therapeutic intervention in relation to the human organism in the form of holistic drug treatment , without having to take side effects into account.

WHAT IS HOMOEOPATHY

Hippocrates (460 BC – 370 BC), the father of medicine, had insisted that the physician has to study the patient, not just illness. In treating patients, he should do everything to assist the nature, the great healer, to affect cure. He advocated similimum. Rig Veda, the source book from which ayurveda originated, states that ‘a cure for poison lies in the poison itself’. It was by an accident that the German physician Dr. Christian Fredericke Samuel Hahnemann came across a similar statement by Dr. Cullen that the Cinchona barks’ decoction (which helps to relieve the symptoms of malaria) causes intermittent fever in healthy persons. To understand the effects of Cinchona bark in intermittent fevers, Hahnemann experimented on his own self. Intake of Cinchona resulted in occurrence of condition simulating intermittent fevers. This effect that Cinchona bark produced on him gave birth to the idea of homoeopathy. Hahnemann continued to experiment on himself and on others, close to him, noting that every substance he took produced definite distinct symptoms. He further noted that no two substances produced, exactly the same set of symptoms. Each substance provoked its own unique pattern of symptoms, both on physical and mental plane. At first, Hahnemann tested substances commonly used as medicines in his time (such as Antimony and Rhubarb) and also, poisons like Arsenic and Belladonna. To avoid harmful effects from normal doses of the substances he diluted each medicine until he reached the greatest dilution that would still produce a response. These experiments were called provings and led him to observe and describe the basic principles of homoeopathic medicine. One can observe the similarity of basic concepts of homoeopathy for curing diseases with Hippocrates’s statement and the Rig Veda. Dr. Hahnemann today is considered as father of experimental pharmacology and father of homoeopathy. According to World Health Organisation, homoeopathy is the second largest system of medicine in the world. The etymological origin of the word homoeopathy, which means ‘Similar sufferings’, is from Greek words hómoios (similar) and páthos (suffering). Homoeopathy is also spelled as Homœopathy and Homeopathy. As per the primary principle of Homoeopathy, the ‘Law of Similars’ or the ‘natural law of healing’, diseases are treated by medicines, which are capable of producing symptoms similar to those of the disease in healthy persons. The term "homoeopathy" was coined Dr. Hahnemann himself and first appeared in print in 1807. The term allopathy was also coined by him to differentiate homoeopathy. Key concepts of homoeopathy include (i) homoeopathy seeks to stimulate the body's defense mechanisms and processes so as to prevent or treat illness, (ii) treatment involves giving very small doses of substances called remedies that, according to homoeopathy, would produce the same or similar symptoms of illness in healthy people if they were given in larger doses and (iii) treatment in homoeopathy is individualized (tailored to each person). Homoeopathic practitioners select remedies according to a total picture of the patient, including symptoms, lifestyle, emotional and mental states, and other factors. BySchwabe India

INTRODUCTION TO HOMOEOPATHY

Which homoeopathic remedy is good for this condition ? What is this homoeopathic remedy good for ? These are the most important and frequently asked questions about homoepopathy. Collecting all the information about a health problem, getting a clear understanding of what is going on and looking for the right remedy are skillful tasks which professional homoeopaths have spend years learning to do. Clearly, this beyond the ability of untrained individuals. At the same time, the underlying principles are quite simple and there is much that people can do for themselves. Homoeopathy has wonderful healing powers, some of which can only be appreciated by long study and observation of its effects. Yet even experienced homoeopahs are sometimes obliged to work with little more than hunches and the most tentative explanations. This text aims to be clear and frank about the limits of both self prescribing and professional help with homoeopathy for the conditions covered. It is hoped that is will help you to get the best results out of both HOW DOES HOMOEOPATHY WORKS? Life-energy and matter Try a simple thought-exercise. Think of a dead body, then of a living person. Compare the two. That which is present in one and absent from the other is what homoeopathy and all systems of medicine are concerned with. Oddly enough we rarely think about it carefully and there is even some disagreement about what i should be called. Perhaps the best name for it is simply 'Life' As you can see, Life is a kind of energy while the body on its own is inert matter. An essential thing about energy is that in itself it is invisible, we are only made aware of it by observing the effects that it has on matter. On the other hand the essential thing about matter is that in itself it does nothing, it only moves or changes when energy causes it to do so. The homoeopathic view of health and illness From these certainties it is known that whenever our health changes it is the life energy that has changed, although the effect on the material body are all that can be observed. It is worth stressing this because it is the central point on which all the theory and practice of homoeopathy is based. The only way of observe the changes in their body (including the subtle body called mind)simply because matter on its own cannot change or do anything. The cause and the real nature of the illness are a change in the life energy, and it is this change that has to be identified and removed in order to restore the patient to health. The whole business of medicine is how to use medicinal substances in order to achieve this. There are of course some conditions caused by violent damage to or deformity of the body, when physical intervention is essential. This is the domain of surgery and emergency procedures. Homoeopathy is a system of medicine concerned with the treatment of medical conditions, in the strict sense of that word. The need for surgery and its frequently wonderful results have no bearing on the validity or otherwise of homoeopathy in its own sphere. Medicine clearly has a support role in relation to surgery, and the benefits if homoeopathic medicine during and after surgery are well known. BY PAUL HOUGHTON (A Guide to Homoeopathic Remedies)