HOMEOPATHY – A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE

The nature of health and disease

We are probably all familiar with the term ‘holistic’ but perhaps have never really stopped to consider what it means. In conventional medicine for instance, if we develop symptoms of a cold, we automatically reach for LemSip or its equivalent to bring down the fever, ease any joint pains and keep our head clear so that we can carry on with our daily lives. Disease in general is seen as something to be feared – it strikes without warning, makes us feel dreadful and disrupts our routine. We may even be angry with our body for “letting us down” (always at the most inconvenient time!) and the pressure is on to resume normal functioning as soon as possible.

 In the parallel universe of complementary medicine however, such symptoms are actually welcomed! Working from the premise that our bodies are capable of making masses of adjustments to match the changes around us (we eat when we’re hungry, sleep when we’re tired); we believe that our body is the expert on what is good for us. So instead of ‘malfunctioning’, symptoms act as a natural alarm call that something is out of balance – a tribute to millions of years of learned survival instincts. Fever after all is the body’s natural response when it is killing bacteria and flushing out poisons. Repeatedly I hear from patients who have “never thrown off” the last bug and continue to feel sluggish and in low spirits weeks later, but who had dosed themselves with over the counter medicines so never really developed the full blown runny nose or chesty cough that would have allowed them to eliminate the ‘nasties’ naturally.

Any conditions affecting the skin are a perfect example of such differences in approach. Parents for instance are often distraught that the conventional creams that they have been applying to their baby with eczema, are only producing short-lived relief. Typically the pressure is on to get them ‘sorted’ ready for the christening photos, so they are surprised to hear that from a homeopathic viewpoint, the problem is not the skin (which is actually performing its function as an overflow system perfectly adequately) but rather that the liver and/ or kidneys are under-functioning. Often by addressing the underlying issues, it therefore becomes possible to effect gentle yet permanent relief.

If you are keen to use first aid homeopathic remedies to treat common childhood ailments, but are keen to avoid inadvertently suppressing healthy responses, consider the Laws of Cure. These say that symptoms tend to disappear: from inside to outside and from head to toe. This makes sense in terms of the body being programmed to protect the organs in terms of their level of importance (brain – heart – lungs – liver – skin). A key feature is that symptoms will also disappear in the reverse order to which they appeared, so for instance a case of asthma might improve, but the patient experience a flare up of their original eczema. With careful management however, this ‘return of old symptoms’ should mean that each episode is shorter and less intense as the body becomes stronger.

As with all treatments it is important to follow and seek medical advice when appropriate.