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Homeopathy is founded on the basic principle, similia similibus curentur “like is cured by like”, recognized by Samuel Hahnemann. He sought to cure the patient rather than simply suppress the symptoms of disease. The treatment provided goes along with rather than against the body’s own efforts to regain health. The essential requirement is a very close similarity between the remedy and the pattern of the disease. The active ingredient is given in such dilute form; unwanted side effects are seldom seen. This gives the advantage of a treatment method that stimulates and accelerates natural healing forces without causing side effects.
Homeopathic therapies require the healer to recognize that symptoms do not represent the disease, they point to the presence of abnormalities. Symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, sneezing, coughing, etc. are ways for the body to defend itself from insult. Eliminating a symptom without affecting the cause of the problem is like disconnecting a warning buzzer without finding the cause. The problem may be solved only to reappear as a bigger problem. A smoke detector is beeping because of a low battery and no new ones are available. Removing the battery cures the beep and the family is able to sleep while the house burns down. A runny nose is dried up with antihistamines, but the cause of the upper respiratory disease is still present. The discharge from the nose contained dead virus particles, bacteria, and white blood cells that are a result of the body fighting the infection off. This discharge is not able to leave the body because the mucous discharge has been artificially decreased. This results in head and chest congestion and possibly leads to pneumonia. Is this always the result of antihistamine therapy for runny noses? No, but enough times to cause the homeopath to be concerned.
Some patients with chronic ailments may experience a healing crisis when treated with the proper homeopathic remedy. This is a temporary worsening of the symptoms before a significant improvement is seen. You should be ready for this and know that you are on the right track when you remember that homeopathic remedies mimic rather than suppress the innate healing of the body.
There are over 2000 homeopathic remedies made from a wide variety of natural occurring substances. These materials are used to prepare “mother tinctures” according to guidelines set out in the Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States. These tinctures are subjected to successive dilutions according to the decimal or centesimal scale. Repeated dilutions and successions yield higher potencies releasing more energy in the process. It should be appreciated that homeopathy is a system of medicine that concerns itself with energy and not with material doses of a drug. Dilutions based on the decimal or 1:10 ratio are labeled with an X and those diluted on the centesimal or 1:100 ratio are labeled with a C. A 1X homeopathic preparation is a 10 fold dilution, a 2X has undergone a 100 fold dilution, a 3X is diluted 1,000 times, etc. A 1C dilution represents a 100-fold dilution, a 2C preparation has undergone a 10,000-fold dilution, and 3C preparations have been diluted 1,000.000 times. After a dilution of 3C has been reached all of the poisonous or harmful effects of any substance are lost and only the curative properties remain. Most commonly used remedies will range in potency from 6X(1/1,000,000) to 30C(1 times 10-6). In homeopathic medicine less is better so the more dilute a remedy the more effect it will have on the body. Homeopathic remedies are available in liquids, pellets and tablet form for oral usage; creams, ointments and sprays for topical use. We have the best luck administering the liquid to animals. The remedy can be succussed prior to administration to allow for maximum vibration at each administration, may be placed on the nose or in the mouth where it will be absorbed into the blood stream. When using pellets or tablets in animals it may be difficult for the owner to administer the remedy without touching the remedies. When tablets and pellets are handled some of the vibrations in the remedy will be transferred to the handler decreasing their effectiveness.
Three questions that must be answered when using any remedy are dosage, frequency and duration of treatment. The duration of the treatment will be determined by the response of the patient. Therapy with homeopathic remedies should be no longer than needed for return to health. In acute attacks this may last 1 to 2 days. With chronic problems it may be necessary to treat for a time as long as the problem has been there. It takes time to get sick and it takes time to heal. Frequency is determined by the dynamics of the disease. In acute problems the remedy may be repeated as often as every 10 minutes or when the effects of the previous dose have worn off. Treatments for more chronic problems will be given 2 to 3 times daily. A dose is usually 1 to 2 drops or pellets. The dosage is the same no matter how small or large the animal is.
When using homeopathic remedies, diagnosis of a specific disease is just a starting point in determining a treatment. Different animals experience diseases in different ways. One animal may seek the warmth of a stall while running a fever and another may look for a cool spot to rest. Using the symptoms being shown by the animal one must find a remedy that fits the whole picture of the animal. The biological diversity of each individual is recognized with homeopathy.
If a remedy that is close to the proper remedy is chosen then some of the animal’s symptoms may get better while new ones show up. If this happens you should look at your choice of remedies again. The remedy selected must closely match the spectrum of symptoms found in the patient. The deeper the level of the match of symptoms that are selected the deeper and more thorough the cure can be. Success with homeopathy depends on removals of the obstacles to healing (poor diet, bad husbandry, etc.), selection of the correct remedy, and the ability of the body to heal. Some injuries may be too violent or extensive for full recovery. There are some organs in the body that can not regenerate new cells and damage to these organs will allow for only palliative treatment of the patient.
There are many over the counter homeopathic combination remedies on the market. These are mixtures of two to eight remedies in different dilutions. These combination products are broader spectrum than single remedies. Any remedy included in these combinations that the body doesn’t need will be excreted. These should provide symptom relief but may not provide the deeper cure associated with homeopathy.
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