ABOUT
HOMEOPATHY
Homeopathy is a system of natural medicine that seeks to cure a problem, not just manage it.
The way I look at it, a problem is cured when the symptoms are gone and there is no need for any more treatment. The mark of a good homeopath is always to give just as little of a remedy as possible, and in the lowest possible dose.
People often ask whether Homeopathy is a branch of Oriental medicine. Actually, no – it was discovered by a German physician, Dr. Samuel Hahnemann, in the late 1700’s; the first homeopathic book, Hahemann’s Organon of the Healing Art, was publishing in 1810.
Homeopathy does, however, have some similarities to Chinese medicine in that both seek to address the underlying cause of a problem rather than to treat each individual symptom one by one (I call this the “fly-swatter approach”).
Health is more than the absence of disease: A well-chosen homeopathic remedy acts on your chi, or vital force, to promote health and vitality on the deepest level. It addresses health problems by treating the reasons behind them.
In Europe, homeopathy is a standard part of most countries’ health-care systems. The famously-long-lived British royal family are great patrons of homeopathy and are probably its best walking advertisements.
The science of Homeopathy is based on the Law of Similars, which dates back to the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates. The Law of Similars is very simple and also very profound: Like cures like. This means that a substance that can cause certain symptoms in its full-strength state can also cure those symptoms (after it has been diluted many thousands of times and then “potentized” by being shaken in a particular way). As the Irish say, “The hair of the dog that bit you does you good.”
People are usually amazed when I tell them that one of our big insomnia remedies is Coffea Cruda — made from coffee! If coffee in its full-strength state keeps you awake, then coffee in a homeopathic dilution puts you to sleep.
How is this possible? The infinitesimally small dose of the remedy stimulates your immune system to cause your own body to heal itself. If you are having insomnia, for example, the tiny dose of Coffea Cruda “calls your bluff” in a way, saying to your body: “Insomnia? I’ll show you real insomnia!” Your body then pushes against the remedy’s stimulus and comes back to its natural, healthy state, which is to sleep at bedtime.
That is a simple example: The rigorous research done on every remedy before it is put into use covers not only physical symptoms, but mental and emotional ones as well with great insight and subtlety.
Homeopathy does not use any special diets or costly herbs or supplements. We only use homeopathic remedies — small white pills that are dissolved under the tongue. These are inexpensive, safe, and available over the counter.
There are about 2,500 remedies in use today. They have been researched and documented meticulously for 200 years, with new ones being discovered every day. And so modern homeopaths have at their disposal literally centuries of knowledge to draw on.