Posted in My Homeschool FAQs
I have promised at least a half a dozen people that I would write a post on homeopathy. So here it goes...Twelve years ago when my oldest son was one, my father passed away. My son and I spent 3 months in Kansas with family and during that time my son was sick with one thing after another. (We lived in California at the time so we were not use to the cold weather, exposed to different viruses and were under a lot of stress!) As I was caring for him I felt helpless. I am not a big fan of traditional medicine. It seems to me that you take one thing and it causes another side effect and then you need something else. I struggled through those few months without taking him to the doctor, but realizing if I didn't want to be camped out in the waiting room a whole lot I needed a plan.
In the back of my mind I kept thinking about homeopathy. My entire exposure to homeopathy was a little one paragraph blurb in one of the zillions of baby catalogs I had poured over before my son was born. It was a "natural" baby catalog and had a little Homeopathy for Baby starter kit in it. The blurb said something like "Keep your child healthy naturally by stimulating your child's immune system with homeopathy." Interesting?
So we got back to California and I started to investigate. This was back in the dark ages before the internet so I went to the phone book. There was one lone listing in the phone book for homeopathy. I called the number. I told the lady on the phone my story and asked if she could help me learn more about homeopathy. She said that she was a homeopath who dealt with chronic problems, and what i was looking for was acute care. (I had no idea what she was talking about honestly! LOL) She said acute care I could handle myself at home if I was willing to do some work. She gave me the phone number to the person who was the contact for a local homeopathy study group. (This person turned out to be a homeschool Mom and one of my very best friends in the world, Suzie! A HUGE THANKS to Suzie who edited this post for me to make sure I had my facts and my Latin right!) I made the call and never looked back!
For 7 years I studied homeopathy with a group of 4 precious ladies. We were part of The National Center For Homeopathy. We met monthly and worked through workbooks we got through NCH. (Think Bible Study format. Everyone has a book and does independent study through the month and they meets monthly to discuss.) Through the years we all became great friends and we learned to care for our families through homeopathy.
Here is how I can tell you that homeopathy works....In 13 years of being a parent NONE of my children have ever had a antibiotic. Only one has been to the doctor for an illness and it was for a chronic stomach problem. We did use one over the counter medicine for a few months after seeing the doctor. Then I was able to get him regulated on some herbs for the chronic condition and got him off the OTC medicine. Homeopathy works!
So what is homeopathy? First off Homeopathy is NOT Herbs! (Obviously I am not opposed to Herbs, but Homeopathy is a completely different system of healing than herbs. We do take a few herbs in our house too for ongoing things. But that is a whole 'nother post! LOL) Homeopathy is a form of alternative medicine developed in late 18th Century by Samuel Hahnemann. The term homeopathy comes from the Greek words homeo, meaning similar, and pathos, meaning suffering or disease. Homeopathy is different from Western medicine in that is seeks to stimulate the body's defense mechanisms to prevent or treat illness. Treatment involves giving very small doses of substances called remedies that in larger quantities would produce similar symptoms of the illness in healthy people. Here is an example:
Allium Cepa is the homeopathic remedy for "burning, watery eyes with with acrid nasal discharge and laryngeal symptoms." It is for the kind of cold you get when you nose and eyes are runny and teary. Burning and weepy. You know just like when you are cutting an onion? The reason Allium Cepa works for this kind of condition is because it is made from Red Onion! (Allium Cepa is Latin for red onion. You also learn a lot of Latin with homeopathy! LOL)
Homeopathy is also individualized. You know what when you have 3 kids who all have colds they can all be different? One may have a deep hacking cough, one has a runny nose and the third is congested. Homeopathy works within the law of similars meaning you treat with a remedy that would produce similar results if taken non-homeopathically in large doses. So each of the 3 colds above would get a different remedy
I know this is a lot to absorb! Homeopathy is a very different way of thinking than that of Western Medicine. It is not my intention for this post to be "Everything You Need To Know About Homeopathy" I just want to be "the little blurb" to someone else that might be seeking a way to take charge of their families health. Homeopathy is NOT for everyone. Quite honestly homeopathy is a lot of work! (Kind of like homeschooling!) But, it is doable! You can learn it and you can stay out of the Doctors office.
Another thing I want to tell you about homeopathy is that it is cheap! You can easily get started with your 1st book and a couple remedies for $25.00. I highly recommend you buy a kit of remedies if this is something you are serious about. You will save a lot of money and be very happy you have what you need on hand at 3:00 in the morning when you most need it!
Last but not least...if you decide to investigate this I will tell you up front there is a lot of information both pro and con for homeopathy online. People who have spent their lives pursuing traditional medicine are most likely NOT going to support something so different. In part this is because is is very cheap and can be handled at home without a specialized education! How could unskilled, untrained person take care of their families health at home inexpensively? (Huh, kind of like sounds like an argument against homeschooling I have heard?)
Here are some of my favorite resources to get you started:
National Center for Homeopathy - Excellent source for all kinds of info on homeopathy. You can also look for a study group in your area.
ABC Homeopathy - Has an online Remedy Finder! You can type in your symptoms and it will help you locate a remedy. (This is a very nice thing, but it has made me lazy! I use to know a zillion remedies in my head. Now I just click over to abchomeopathy.com! LOL)
Homeopathy Overnight - Great place to order kits. I have had wonderful customer service with this company. So I always recommend them! Unfortunately their website is not too good. You will probably want to request a catalog before ordering. (The BIG kit I have is the DOLISOS HOUSEHOLD 6C
SNGLREM51_6C which is $79.95. and can be ordered HERE.)
1-800-Homeopathy - Another good source for kits
Everybody's Guide to Homeopathic Medicines - My 1st and favorite homeopathy book
Homeopathic Medicine at Home - My friend Suzie's 1st book and her favorite!
A Christian's Guide To Homeopathy - Great Book! Will answer a lot of questions if you are concerned this might be a "new age" type thing.
Minimum Price Homeopathic Books - The best price on almost every book on Homeopathy! (And the main reason I have soooooo many books! LOL)
Homeopathy Books Online you can read for FREE! - Look on the left hand column for Read Free and click to correct page. This is a great place to start if you want to delve deeper into the study of homeopathy!
Homeopathy Today - A good Homeopathy Magazine
Hpathy - Online site with tons of great info for those who want to study homeopathy.
Below are some remedies I would start with. As I mentioned above there is no one right remedy for everyone, but the ones below generally fit the symptoms I have listed. Each will also treat a plethora of other symptoms! I will never forget the time I took my oldest son, (then 2) over to a non -homeopathic friends house to babysit. I left for her the remedy he was taking at the time for a cough, which was Pulsatilla. Later she calls me and says "You realize this medicine you left says on the bottle it is for PMS!" LOL
Here is the list:
Allium Cepa - Common cold (See description above.)
Apis Mellifica - Bug bites, swelling and puffiness, stinging. (Made from Bumble Bee!)
Arnica Montana - Bumps, bruises, aches and pains.
Arsenicum Album - Exhaustion
Belladonna - For anything that comes on suddenly. Take at 1st symptoms.
Chamomilla - For calming and relaxing inconsolable cranky kids! (And the occasional Mom!)
Histaminum - Allergies (Think antihistamines! This is probably the least common remedy on this list. But I do use it often for myself.)
Ipecacuanha - For persistent nausea and vomiting
Kali Bich - For green ropy discharge! Gross!
Oscillococcinum - Overall flu symptoms (Fever, chills, body aches and pains.)
Podophyllum Peltatum - For diarrhea
Pulsatilla - PMS
Rhus Tox - Poison Oak/Ivy & rheumatic pains
There are over 2000 Homeopathic remedies so you will never have them all. I have about 50 and I find they cover our needs nicely! It takes time to figure out which ones best fit your family. I have built up my supply over a 12 year period. You don't need 50 to start!
I told you I was outside the box!
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