The desire for natural and holistic medicine treatments for has been greater than ever before. Billions of dollars are spent on these types of treatments as many seek hope in alternative therapies where conventional ones have failed. One of these sought after healing modalities is homeopathy.
What is Homeopathy?
Homeopathy is an energy based, holistic system of natural healing that aims to heal people as a whole - mentally, emotionally, and physically. Founded in 1796 by medical physician Dr. Samuel Hahnemann, homeopathy is an over 215 year old field of healing that works to activate a person’s innate healing mechanisms in order to strengthen a person’s general constitution and enhance one’s psychological and physical health.
In homeopathy, the goal is to treat not just external disease, but more broadly the inner “dis-ease” that leads to chronic mental, emotional, and physical ailments. In short, the goal of homeopathy is address the inner core of what’s asking to be healed and what exactly is igniting the current pathology.
Similar to the philosophy of acupuncture and other energy medicines, homeopathy believes that ailments and pathology are ultimately caused by an overall imbalance in one’s vital force, the energetic life force that animates all living beings. When this energy is in balance, this results in optimum mental, emotional, and physical health. But when this energy is not in balance, this manifests in psychological and physical ailments,
Homeopathic remedies are derived from various types of substances such as plants, herbs, and minerals. Through a series of complex preparations known as succession and potentization, the energetic properties of these substances are converted into homeopathic remedies and used
Individualized Medicine
A key aspect of homeopathy is the fact that each and every remedy used is completely individualized to the mental, emotional, and physical needs of each person. Each remedy is gear tailored and specific to how a person’s issues are expressed.
For example, let’s say that there are 10 people with a given ailment, such as migraines or depression. The conventional approach to treating these 10 people would involve administering the same generic medicine for the ailment to all 10 people. In homeopathy, however, these same 10 people will likely receive 10 totally different homeopathic remedies that match the characteristics and the symptom expression of both the individual in general and their specific ailment.
An analogy I tend to use to explain this concept to my clients goes like this: A homeopath is very similar to a matchmaker. A matchmaker’s mission is to match the right guy to the right girl as marriage partners. This match is suggested based on common personality traits, life goals, culture, lifestyle, and other practical details. If these factors are similar between both sides, then the match is suggested; if not then it is worthless to attempt. Similarly, the homeopath is like the matchmaker. His job is to match the right person to the right remedy based on how similar the mental, emotional, and physical expressions of the person’s vital force are to the remedy.
Knowing the above idea, we are now better prepared in choosing the right homeopathic remedy for an individual that is properly tailored to them.
Homeopathic Remedies for Chronic & Acute Pain
Homeopathy is very well known in successfully treating cases of both chronic and acute physical pain. As a homeopath myself, I have witnessed countless cases of myself, my family, and the clients in my practices, where pain either decreased significantly or disappeared completely.
In fact, there are very positive clinical studies out there that provide scientific evidence of the homeopathic treatment of pain. From my own clinical experience as a homeopath, I have used homeopathy to treat various types of chronic and acute pains in men, women, and children. I've seen success both in cases where the pain was localized and/or affecting multiple areas at once.
For chronic pain treatment, it is proper and highly recommended for a person to make an appointment with a professional homeopath who will address their entire constitution and well being in prescribing a proper course of treatment that will lead to effective and efficient results. This is especially in cases where there are major mental/emotional ailments involved in a case where they are interconnected with the chronic pain.
For acute pain treatment, there are numerous over the counter homeopathic remedies that can be used for treatment. Here are some of the most commonly used remedies that you will likely encounter for acute pain:
Arnica
Arnica is the #1 homeopathic remedy for acute injuries and bruising, especially when the injury itself is traumatic. It is also very useful for pre and post surgery.
Bellis Perennis
Similar to Arnica, Bellis Perennis is also a wonderful remedy for acute injuries and should be considered if Arnica does not work. The remedy is generally indicated for injuries focused more on trunk of a person’s body, such as in the stomach, and in areas that consist of soft tissue, such as the buttocks.
Hypericum
Better known in herbal medicine as St. John’s Wort, homeopathic Hypericum should be highly considered for injuries affecting areas rich in the nerves, such as the fingers, toes, coccyx, and spine.
Aconite
For acute, traumatic injuries involving a lot of shock and fear, consider Aconite.
Calendula
Calendula is a very sought after remedy for the following wounds:
painful ragged lacerations
wounds that don’t heal or continuously reopen
infected, purulent wounds
post-surgical wounds
episiotomy
gum/dental surgery
cracks in skin
diaper rash
abrasions
infections of nails
diaper rash
abrasions
superficial burns
skin grafts
bleeding from cuts
other skin issues that need to heal
Calendula can be used both in topical and pellet form.
Ledum
Ledum is used primarily for spasmodic, bruised puncture wounds that feel cold. This is especially the case where there is a lot of swelling and strong vertigo.