Homeopathy
The Greek physician Hippocrates (circa 460-350 BC) taught that there were two ways of treating patients – by either using ‘contraries’ or ‘similars’. In either case, he believed that the physician was merely creating the correct conditions for the individual’s natural healing power to restore balance.
An Introduction to Homeopathy Homeopathy is a system of medicine based on the principles of treating like with like. The name is derived from the Greek words’ homoios’, meaning’ like’ and ‘pathos’ meaning ‘suffering’. Orthodox medicine (also known as ‘allopathic’medicine) treats the symptomatic end in order to suppress the symptoms of the illness, but homeopathy by contrast aims at treating the other end of the scale by using infinitesimal amounts of substances which are known to produce the same pattern of symptoms. Dr Samuel Hahnemann (1755-1843) is acknowledged as the originator of the homeopathic method. He practiced for several years as a physician before becoming disenchanted with the treatments of the day. Having considerable knowledge of medicine, chemistry and linguistics he travelled and made a living from writing and translating. While translating a textbook by the Scottish physician Cullen, he found a section of which he disagreed. This led to him experimenting on himself and willing family and friends. Dr Hahnemann’s experiments became known as ‘provings’ from the German word ‘prufung’ meaning ‘testing’. Originally Hahnemann prescribed his remedies in standard doses. Unfortunately, however aggravations were very common so he began diluting the remedies to one tenth strength, then one- hundredth strength, then he observed that the aggravations disappeared, as did the therapeutic effect. It was then he noticed a curious phenomenon, if the progressive dilution was vigorously shaken, the resulting remedy became more dilute. This process became known as ‘potentisation’, another of the basic principles of homeopathy. In 1810, Hahnemann wrote the book – The Organon of Rational Healing, which was later followed by many articles, and a six volume work entitled – The chronic Diseases. There is growing evidence that a vital force or energy is responsible for controlling the body. It is postulated that it is a sort of energy field, like a constellation of ionised particles which functions as a complex information system. In homeopathy we use the term potency instead of strength, as it’s not the actual amount of the substance that is important but rather the energy level that matters. In the process of potentisation the remedy seems to accumulate more healing power, so that it effectively becomes more potent, so the remedy is less concentrated but more potent. Two methods are used to make homeopathic remedies. Firstly soluble substances are extracted in an infusion followed by filtration to produce a mother tincture. This is then diluted in forty percent alcohol to one in ten or one in a hundred, next it is vigorously vibrated for a few
seconds, ( a process called succession) to produce the first potency number.
(This would be 1X) To prepare the next potency , one part of the first potency would be taken and diluted 1:10 or 1:100, then succussed as before to produce the 2X or 2C potencies. By the sixth process on the decimal scale (6X) which is the equivalent of (3C), the mother tincture will be diluted to one in a million. (6C would be diluted to one in a billion). Soluble substances are extracted in an infusion followed by filtration to produce a mother tincture. The second method is for insoluble substances which cannot be made into mother tinctures. In this case they are mechanically ground together which lactose powder for several hours in the proportion of one in ten, which is a process called trituration. This process is repeated three times to produce the 3X potency, after which it can be dissolved in
alcohol and water and potentised in the usual manner. Low potencies include 1X, 1C, 3X, 3C, 6X,
6C, 30X; In general the decimal scale is used for low potency work, while the centesimal scale is used for high potency work. The law of cure usually means that we will feel better emotionally before the physical improvement occurs, also during homeopathic treatment improvement of symptoms take place from above downwards, from within outwards, from major to lesser organs and from the latest to the earliest symptoms. Therefore problems with the heart and lungs would improve before the stomach because they are higher and more major organs. The last
symptoms of an illness will go first, as the body almost literally ‘goes back’ through the illness as it cures it. It was Dr Constantine Herring, one of the founders of American homeopathy that formulated the underlying principles. By the time Hahnemann died in 1843, homeopathy had spread far and wide and by the end of the 19th Century there were homeopathic hospitals all over Europe, Russia, The Americas and Indian subcontinent, this spread continues today. It is a fundamental principle in homeopathy that the remedy should be taken for the, minimum amount of time and it should certainly NOT be taken once improvement has begun. Remedies are available as powders, granules, pilules, and tablets. Tablets should not be handled, but should be taken out with a spoon (or the lid of the remedy jar) and placed in the mouth and sucked not swallowed. (This is because the effectiveness of the remedy is only on the surface and not mixed all the way through) The tablets should also NOT be taken within half an hour of food or drink or brushing teeth.
