Q1: What is homeopathy?
There are many ways to answer this question. Fundamentally, homeopathy is a very unique healing art that stimulates the body’s core vitality to rid itself of illness and promote wellness.
In a more formal sense, it is a medical system based on a specific set of principles regarding health, illness, cure and pharmacology. It addresses the causes of acute or chronic disease through the use of highly diluted and energized substances specifically chosen to match the individual state of the person and stimulate an inner vitality.
Q2: What are the three levels of homeopathic therapy?
Level 1: First Aid
Homeopathy can be used in first aid to safely treat common ailments and occurrences, such as sprains and bruises, minor burns, skin irritations and reactions (including poison ivy, diaper rash and insect bites), teething pain, etc.
Level 2: Acute Homeopathy
Acute health problems are those in which the symptoms will eventually go away on their own. They are temporary conditions, such as colds, flu, coughs, sprains, etc. A homeopathic remedy can be useful and attractive because it is safe, gentle and has no harmful side effects. Homeopathy can also be used to assist sensitive conditions such as pregnancy.
Level 3: Constitutional Homeopathy
Constitutional homeopathy refers to the treatment of a person as a whole, including past and present symptoms. When accurately implemented, homeopathic constitutional care can elicit a profound healing response. Homeopathy can be extremely effective in treating chronic and long-term health problems. Recurrent ear infections, for example, can be treated with a homeopathic remedy for a longer period of time to strengthen the body’s immune system and to prevent future occurrences.
Q3: What is the difference between homeopathy and conventional medicine (allopathic medicine)?
Homeopathy’s Approach: Homeopathy believes that the human body is an indivisible unit, in other words homeopathy is based on a “whole person” approach. No organ or part can contract a disease or remain healthy independent of the rest of the body. So homeopathic physician prescribes a single remedy at a given time and that too in infinitely small doses.
The Homeopath’s Role as “Detective”: It has been said that the work of the homeopath is to observe the patient, process and reflect on the gathered information, and then determine the underlying disturbance. This process can be thought of as a mystery, wherein the homeopathic “detective” attempts to discover where the flow of energy in the body has been blocked or impeded. Each signal/symptom offered by the patient can be thought of as a clue to determine the correct remedy. The patient’s eye contact, body posture, breathing patterns, voice quality, and expressions are also noted as potential clues. Next, the data must be reconstructed, as it might be in a mystery novel or movie.
When all of the information about the patient’s physical, mental and emotional symptoms has been documented, then the final search for the answer begins. Unlike a detective — or medical physician for that matter — the homeopath’s goal is not only to remove the symptoms, but also to eliminate the essential causal problem by stimulating the body’s natural curative powers. This is the reason for obtaining such a detailed analysis of the patient.
The Homeopathic Treatment: The goal of the homeopathic treatment is to encourage the body to return to a natural state of balance and health. Like the missing pieces of a puzzle, homeopathic medicines help “fill-in” the gaps in the body to stimulate a person’s own healing potential and energies. When this occurs, the person will have access to the body’s natural strength and wisdom, so that more conventional medicines and chemical-based substances may not be needed.
Conventional Medicine (ALLOPATHIC) Approach: Allopathic system believes in disorders of single parts or organs of the body. Therefore various “SPECIALISTS” have come into existence. An eye-specialist treats only the eyes; a skin-specialist treats the skin only; a heart-specialist limits himself to problems of the heart and so on. We have seen many times a patient who is simultaneously under the treatment of a number of specialist doctors for disorders of different parts of the body. The fact is when each symptom or body-part is treated separately; large doses of different medicines are required. Powerful medicines are frequently overused and abused. This is an obvious disadvantage considering the possibility of side-effects of conventional medicine. These medicines bring problems of heart, damage liver, kidneys and impaired visual, auditory and sexual functions and throngs of malformed babies.
Conventional medicine believes that the symptoms are a part of the disease. This is why a large part of the conventional treatment is symptom relieving. For example, antipyretic medicines are given to forcibly bring down the fever; pain killers are given to drive away the pain; laxatives are given to combat constipation; anti-histamine is given to dry up the running nose and so on. Such measures throttle the body’s efforts to heal it. Patient’s symptoms represent the beginning of the healing process and homeopathic medicines generating the similar symptoms helps carry through the healing process to cure.
Q4: What is the relationship between symptoms and homeopathy?
Symptoms are the language of a disease — the body’s attempt to balance itself. Without symptoms, a person could have a potentially life threatening illness with no way of identifying it. There have been many cancer patients who reported that they hadn’t suffered from a cold or flu in years prior to their diagnosis. The explanation was probably not that they didn’t have infections during this period, but more likely that their bodies were unable to fight these infections by producing necessary symptom indications.
Many conventional drugs try to inhibit and suppress symptoms — sometimes leading to even more serious symptoms. Conventional (allopathic) physicians do not usually recognize the new series of symptoms as being related to the old. Thus, they treat them as new and unrelated problems.
Did you know that a fever is the body’s attempt to activate the immune system’s white blood cells and defend itself from infection? If a person is given a symptom-suppressing medication — fighting the fever — too soon, they will be less able to fight the actual infection.
Homeopathy does not seek to remove or suppress symptoms. Its goal is to recognize and remove the underlying cause of these symptoms. This is why a homeopath will work toward understanding the whole person — including their body, mind and emotional state — before prescribing a remedy.
Q5: Why homeopathy is attacked by (allopathic) conventional doctors?
The biggest reason is- conventional medicine is a multi-billion dollar industry. On the other hand, millions of people worldwide who have used homeopathy say “It works, they can’t be wrong”. Homeopathy is very safe. It has the efficacy to work even for chronic and serious conditions.
In 1845, when the French Minister F. Guizot was asked by an allopathic committee of France to suppress homeopathy, he replied, “If Homeopathy is a method without any value, it will disappear on its own. If it is a hoax, it will die, no matter what is done towards encouragement. But if it is true, if it represents a progress, it will survive no matter what is done to suppress it. The government should desire, above all, to stimulate scientific advances and to encourage discoveries.”
Q6: What training do homeopaths receive?
There are different systems in different countries. In India there are 190 institutes for homeopathy, which are churning out more than 2000 doctors every year. Now-a-days these institutes are offering a Bachelor’s Degree in Homeopathy (BHMS) of “five-and-a-half” years. Thereafter, there is a “three-year” MD program in Homeopathy. Presently, 23 institutes are offering MD course in India. There are more than 300,000 homeopathic practitioners in India.
Q7: What kind of conditions or diseases can be treated homeopathically?
Homeopathy is applicable to a broad range of maladies including acute inflammations, systemic imbalances, chronic degenerative diseases and mental/emotional disturbances. By its very nature, homeopathic treatment is not specific to a particular illness, but is directed at the underlying state of the person suffering from that illness. By addressing this state, the appropriately chosen remedy effectively addresses the illness.
Q8: Are there harmful side effects from taking a homeopathic remedy?
Since the remedies are highly diluted, they do not contain significant amounts of the original substance from which they are made. Therefore, they do not have the toxic effects associated with many conventional medications or other substances. They are, however, powerful energetic stimuli and must be used with discretion. Sometimes, as part of the curative process, a person will experience a temporary intensification of symptoms.
Q9: Can homeopathic remedies be taken along with conventional medications?
Yes. Many people who seek out homeopathic care are already taking conventional medication with the goal of reducing or eliminating the medication. With the proper remedy and treatment plan, this is often possible.
Q10: Should I change my diet?
Different homeopaths may advise differently on this issue. Diet is not strictly speaking an issue in homeopathy. There is an understanding that the right remedy will facilitate more appropriate food choices. When one is healthy, the body more naturally is able to extract the nutrients it needs to function optimally. Eating sensibly, that is consuming appropriate quantities of properly balanced natural ingredients, is always a good idea. Your homeopath can help guide you in this area if you request.
Q11: What is the patient’s role?
Open Communication & Observation: While it is the homeopath’s job to elicit relevant information by asking probing questions, the patient can expect a higher chance of receiving an effective homeopathic remedy if he or she is open and truthful in describing their physical and psychological symptoms. It is also important to be observant of the changes taking place in your system. To that end, you might want to keep a journal or notes on any noticeable changes or shifts in your symptoms or health.
Q12: Do I need to faith in medicine, for it to work on my sick condition?
No, you don’t need to have any faith in medicine, for it to work on the sickness. Homeopathic medicines are tested and proven on human beings irrespective of any faith. Otherwise, how it will work on infants or children, since they don’t know any thing about faith.
Q13: Are there any tests/investigations required for the diagnosis?
Yes, tests/investigations are required for the proper diagnosis of the disease and to know about the prognosis. These tests and investigations help in the treatment of the patient. For example if a patient suffers from fibroid uterus the size of fibroid should be known for the prescription of the medicine. The size of the fibroid can only be known through the tests.
Q14: What is the time duration of the treatment?[
There is no specific time duration of the treatment. If the patient is suffering from a chronic disease i.e. suffering from long time the treatment may take time.
Q15: Are there steroids or hormones used in homoeopathy?
No, there are no steroids or hormones in homoeopathy. Medicines are prepared from vegetable (Plant) kingdom, animal kingdom, minerals, nosodes, sarcodes etc. We do not even use combination of drugs because they are against the basic principles of homoeopathy.
Q16: Is a combination of drugs or multiple drugs given in homoeopathy?
No. It is the basic principle of classical homoeopathy that a single medicine is given to the patient depending upon the totality of his symptoms.
Q17: What is the role of Homeopathy in mental diseases?
As our day to day life has become fastidious and materialistic, we live in anxiety and stress, which is the basic reason for insomnia, hypertension, diabetes and peptic ulcer etc. Homeopathically, these diseases are the products of sickness.
Here, the disease is in the mind and soul, which is effected by stress and feelings. Homeopathy has a good hold over these incurable diseases. It can help in psychiatric disorders like mania, delirium, delusions and hallucinations. Even the habits and behaviors can be changed with homeopathic treatment.
In our approach the process is very simple and highly accurate. A patient while talking about his disease gives us clues for the selection of the medicine through his body language, gestures, facial expressions, behavior, version etc. His relation with the people in his contact, his business, his fears, his daily routine, his likes dislikes etc. govern his mental state. In case of a disease, our mind is the first to react. That is why we treat patients on the basis of mind symptoms only.
