Homeopathy, a five-syllable word pronounced ho-me-op-a-thy, where the root ‘homeo‘ means ‘similar to’ and the root ‘pathy‘ means “suffering’, is a federally recognized system of medicine backed by 1000’s of clinical trials.

And homeopathy is much more than that!

Homeopathy Delaware, with Afreen Kazi, met via zoom the first Wednesday in May to talk about what homeopathy is and what it isn’t.

Globally, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), homeopathy is the second largest medical system for primary health care! It is prevalent and widely accepted in many countries like Switzerland, India, Brazil and France to name a few.

MYTH: Homeopathic medicines are made by the homeopathic practitioner. FACT: Homeopathic medicines are considered drugs under U.S. Federal law, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates the manufacture, marketing, and sale of all homeopathic medicines.

Homeopathic medicines are made by pharmacies according to standards and processes outlined in the Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States (HPUS), the official US homeopathic medicine manufacturing manual. The HPUS contains information necessary for proper identification of raw materials, techniques for medicine manufacture and quality control measures.

MYTH: Homeopathy is herbal medicine. FACT: Although about two thirds of homeopathic medicines are derived from plants, homeopathy is not herbal medicine. Due to the dilution and succussion process required to prepare homeopathic medicines and the Law of Similars, inherent in the healing of a person or pet, homeopathy is unique in its system of medicine.

MYTH: Homeopathy is just a placebo. FACT: Homeopathy is a proven science and an evidence-based medical system discovered more than 200 years ago. The laws, or methods of homeopathy, along with the homeopathic medicines have been proved, reproved and clinically verified.

See below for the address to Homeopathy Research Institute and Compendium of Homeopathic Research.

An individualized medicine will undertake the healing of a child in utero and infants through adults, as well as our animal friends. In my career in midwifery, I witnessed breach babies, who were not responding to their mom’s position-changing exercises, make the desired head-down maneuver over several hours to several days with the help of the homeopathic medicine, Pulsatilla.

Virologist Dr. Luc Montaigne, Noble prize winner for his discovery of the AIDS virus, published a paper in 2010, DNA Waves and Water, which astounded the scientific and medical community. After filtering out all particles of bacterial DNA from a vial of water, he discovered that the solution, containing no material particles, continued to emit ultra-low frequency waves! The comparison to and implications for the potentized medicines in homeopathy are clear.

In 2020 Dr. Montaigne spoke at the joint American Homeopathic Conference, his revolutionary presentation being ‘Homeopathy- The Future of Science and Medicine’. I intend to find a recording of his talk to share with others.

MYTH: Homeopathic medicines act slowly. FACT: The medicine is extremely quick to act in a person with acute disease as long as it is similar to the disease.

My own case in point happened as a result of an auto accident where the car in which I was a passenger was T -boned on my side. My most distressful symptoms were concussion and neck injury as well as shock. Arriving at ER by ambulance, I was allowed one phone call which was expeditiously made to my friend, asking her to bring her homeopathy kit.

Can you guess the first homeopathic medicine I took? Arnica 200c for shock and injury was the sure choice but I felt worse with no improvement. We opted for Hypericum 200c, also a well-known homeopathic medicine for concussion.

Immediately, as soon as the tiny pellet began dissolving on my tongue, I happened to say out loud that I no longer was floating six feet above the gurney – I felt myself descend to a normal resting place. I had been in shock, not even able to conceptualize how my body, mind and spirit felt or where it was!

In persons with chronic disease healing takes longer. With homeopathy, Samuel Hahnemann’s treatise, the Organon of Medicine, explains how to address the root cause of disease, teaching the practitioner how to choose a medicine similar to the symptoms of the person.

In their search for help, people often come late to homeopathy which may mean they have experienced layers of suppression of their symptoms via allopathic drugs.

Understand, though, that the process of healing one’s chronic disease is rewarding in that you are an active participant in your healing as you describe and explain what it is like to feel as you do. Your most peculiar descriptions can be helpful to the homeopath in finding a medicine which will be your opening to a new and healthier way of being you.

As you feel and see the positive changes, your practitioner will fine tune the choice of homeopathic medicine in order to continue to move your healing forward. It is a life-affirming journey!

MYTH: You can stop prescription medicines while being treated by a homeopath. FACT: Do Not Stop prescription meds without the advice of the prescribing doctor and the knowledge of the homeopathic practitioner.

It is safe to take your prescription medicines while taking a homeopathic medicine. Allopathic drugs and homeopathic medicines act on different levels. Allopathic drugs are material doses of chemicals. A homeopathic medicine is a dynamic frequency which, when given to the individual, is matched to be similar (not the same) to the person’s symptoms of disease.

MYTH: There is no need for a diagnosis in order to pursue homeopathic healing. FACT: A diagnosis is needed – either from the doctor specializing in homeopathy or from another doctor.

A diagnosis helps the homeopathic practitioner in their understanding of how to manage the case and in understanding prognosis / progress of the disease.

RESOURCES:

National Center for Homeopathy – http://www.homeopathycenter.org – a new mission, new programming

Homeopathy Research Institute – http://www.hri-research.org

Compendium of Homeopathic Research – https://homeopathychoice.org/research/

1M: A Homeopath’s Podcast -https://1mpodcast.libsyn.com – hosted by Kelly Callahan is designed for the professional homeopath listener. She has a lot of great guests on, with topics ranging from methods of case analysis to homeopathic theory, to homeopathic regulatory bodies and the landscape for practitioners. She also does a short weekly reading of Aphorisms from Hahnemann’s The Organon if you want to tackle that book a little bit at a time.

Homeopathy for Mommies – https://homeopathyformommies.com – hosted by Sue Meyer presents friendly, accessible advice and learning on practicing homeopathy at home for your family. The information she provides often ranges beyond just homeopathy to include information about herbs and nutrition and holistic caregiving in general. She weaves in stories of how she’s used homeopathy over the years for her large family, so the learning is grounded in real-life stories.