Homeopathy is effective for earaches and ear infections

I gave my sons homeopathic remedies when they had ear infections.  The remedies worked wonders.  I always used homeopathy as our first line of defence - and it certainly served us all well.  There are several remedies that could be used for ear infections so it is important to look carefully at your child's symptoms and try to match carefully the right remedy to your child's particular symptom picture.  If you have difficulty identifying the best one or you have tried one or two with no success, please consider contacting a professional homeopath.  Here is a post found at  Homeopathy Plus website about useful remedies to consider in the case of an earache or ear infection.

http://homeopathyplus.com.au/ear-infections-and-earaches-homeopathic-treatment-better-than-antibiotics/

A burn on the barbecue

A patient of mine contacted me one evening as she had just burned herself on the barbeque.  It was the evening and I told her if she wanted to come straight over I could give her a homeopathic remedy that would help.  However, she lives a good 25 minutes away and instead she chose to drop by the next morning on her way to work.  When my patient came the following morning she showed me the blister and told me that it was still smarting.  I gave her Cantharis 30C which works well for second degree burns when there is blistering.  She called me later in the day to say she couldn't believe how well the remedy had worked.  Within minutes the pain was gone and within 30 minutes the blister had also disappeared.  She said that if she hadn't experienced it herself she wouldn't have believed it - it worked so quickly and so well.

There are different remedies for burns depending on the degree of the burn and the modalities - i.e. what makes it feel better and worse.  For example, I might use Urtica Urens for a less severe burn and Causticum for a more serious burn.  It is important to know also that - Cantharis is for when there is a great amount of pain and the pain is better for a cold compress whereas Urtica Urens and Causticum are usually worse for cool/cold bathing.

It is really important to consider carefully what the most predominant symptoms are and what makes them better or worse.  This can help one to find the best homeopathic remedy for any given issue.  Individualized prescribing is necessary if one is to have optimum results. Too often people choose a homeopathic remedy that doesn't quite fit the picture and then when it doesn't help they claim homeopathy doesn't work.  Take the time to try to get the whole picture and to match it to the best of your abilities to the closest matching remedy picture.  Take the remedy 3 times.  If it doesn't help then move onto your second choice - the next remedy that seems to closely match the symptom picture.

Some possible books to start with for basic information on prescribing for yourself and your family are:

Miranda Castro's Complete Homeopathic Handbook

http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Homeopathy-Handbook-Effective-Complaints/dp/0312063202/ref=la_B001ILOCZO_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1404757344&sr=1-1

Homeopathic Prescribing by Steven B Kayne and Lee R Kayne

http://www.amazon.com/Homeopathic-Prescribing-Pocket-Companion-Steven/dp/0853696977/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1404757511&sr=1-2&keywords=homeopathic+prescribing

Irritable Bowel Syndrome and homeopathic treatment

A three-armed trial was conducted in the UK in which three forms of treatment for irritable bowel syndrome were compared:  usual care, homeopathic treatment plus usual care, and supportive listening plus usual care.  By the end of the 26 weeks there was a significant difference in favour of homeopathic treatment plus usual care, in comparison to usual care alone.  62.5 percent of patients in the homeopathic treatment arm achieved a clinically relevant change in irritable bowl symptom severity -- compared to 25.0 percent of those in the usual care arm.


http://www.homeopathyjournal.net/article/S1475-4916(14)00051-4/abstract

Motion sickness

Getting sick on the way to your holiday destination can make for a miserable start to what should be a good, fun and relaxing time.   Motion sickness (AKA travel sickness) is an acute issue that can come on while travelling in a car, boat or plane.    It is far more common in children and is often out-grown.  But in the meantime there are some homeopathic remedies that can help alleviate the symptoms of motion sickness  no matter the age of the patient or the mode of transportation.

Symptoms of motion sickness include:  dizziness (vertigo), sweating, headache, pale skin, increased salivation, stomach pains, nausea, and vomiting.

Take a look at the most common remedies for motion sickness listed below.  Consider carefully what symptoms are present and what makes the patient feel better or worse.  This will help you choose the appropriate remedy.  Use a 30c potency and only repeat 3 times.  If there is no improvement move onto your second choice remedy.

	Symptoms	Better for	Worse for
Cocculus	#1 remedy for motion sickness  Great nausea, dizziness, faintness, loss of orientation Can have increased saliva	Cool air Lying still	Loss of sleep After eating Emotional excitability
Petroleum	Persistent nausea - empty feeling in stomach Accumulation of saliva in the mouth, stiffness at the back of the head or neck, vomiting and giddiness  Possible heartburn and burping	Eating Warmth	Smell of gas Dampness Llight Noise Sitting up from a lying down position
Tabacum	Nausea, giddiness, vomiting, icy coldness (cold sweats) Sinking feeling in stomach Yellow or yellow-green vomit Headache like a tight band around the head	Fresh air Eyes closed	Smell of tobacco smoke Extreme hot or cold temperatures Sightest movement
Borax	Fear of falling or worse from downward motion e.g. change in altitude in airplane;descending in flight; turbulance with falling sensation; on landing. In car – going down a steep hill.  On a boat – when exposed to big waves. There can be dizziness, nausea, abdominal distension and a great sensitivity to sudden noises	Cool weather	Noise Tobacco smoke
Nux vomica	With possible sour taste in mouth, much retching, and constipation	After sleeping Better vomiting although finds it difficult to vomit	Eating, especially spicy food.

Gentle, effective homeopathy during pregnancy, labour and beyond

Homeopathy is safe during pregnancy, while breastfeeding, for newborns, infants and children.  It works well for those issues that you want addressed during pregnancy without using drugs - e.g. morning sickness, breast tenderness, backache, heartburn, constipation etc.   There are also wonderful homeopathic remedies that can help during labour and other remedies that are useful immediately afterwards for speeding recovery and addressing issues to do with breastfeeding.  Here are links to the British Homeopathic Association's information sheet on homeopathic remedies for pregnancy and labour, as well as their factsheet about babies and children.

http://www.britishhomeopathic.org/bha-charity/how-we-can-help/articles/pregnancy-and-labour/

http://www.britishhomeopathic.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/babies-and-children-factsheet.pdf

I highly recommend Miranda Castro's book Homeopathy for Pregnancy, Birth and Your Baby's First Years.   This book is great if you want to learn how to use homeopathic remedies at home for yourself and your baby. You can buy it directly from Miranda's webite or Amazon

http://mirandacastro.com/main/books.html

Postpartum depression and homeopathy

Postpartum depression (AKA Post-natal depression) is a depression that comes on within the first year of the birth of a child.  There are a number of symptoms including sadness, grief, feeling overwhelmed, feeling inadequate, a sense of not being able to bond with the infant, fatigue etc.  Many people have heard of postpartum depression but not many might expect to feel this way.  Usually an expectant mother (and father) is excited about the forthcoming arrival of her child and therefore is surprised to feel these difficult emotions after the birth of her baby.  There are numerous theories about what causes postpartum depression and as it can also appear in men it is not only hormonal, as many have theorized.  Naturally there is a desire to help the parent with postpartum depression to overcome it so that he or she will feel better able to take care of the needs of the infant.

There is a body of evidence supporting the homeopathic treatment for mental and emotional health.  Furthermore, homeopathic remedies are safe, effective and non-toxic.  They can safely be taken while pregnant, nursing or by young infants.  They work quickly and they do not cause side effects.  While self-prescribing of homeopathic remedies is fine for certain issues, it is recommended to seek professional homeopathic treatment for postpartum depression.

Here are two links to articles for more information about homeopathy for post-partum depression:

http://www.britishhomeopathic.org/bha-charity/how-we-can-help/articles/post-natal-depression/

http://www.mothering.com/community/a/four-great-homeopathic-remedies-for-postpartum-mothers

                                                       © Olga Vasilkova | Dreamstime Stock Photos

Spring = Allergies (for many people)

It seems that this year the allergy specialists are reporting a bad season ahead for those inflicted with seasonal allergies.  So if you have allergies perhaps you want to try homeopathy.  I have had a number of patients improve dramatically with homeopathic treatment.  Within a very short time they are symptom free and often times subsequent years these clients don't even need to repeat their remedies as they no longer experience the same symptoms.

If you are interested in reading more about homeopathy for allergies and seeing some evidence of its effectiveness in relation to allergies - here is a great article to start with:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dana-ullman/homeopathy-for-allergies_b_320998.html