The homeopathic community and homeopathy course providers in the UK have worked together to create a series of interviews with experienced homeopathic practitioners. In these short videos they share details of previous careers and what led them to train as homeopaths, as well as what they love about the role they now do.

There are case examples given by the practitioners and they offer an insight into what it is like to work as a homeopath.

The videos are all accessible from the Homeopathy Course Providers Forum website.

Homeopathy has a long history of being used successfully in veterinary practice for both domestic and farm animals. The EU recommends its use in its regulations on organic farms and is funding research into veterinary homeopathy as a way of reducing antibiotic use in livestock. It is nonsense to suggest that responsible pet owners and farmers are unable to distinguish between effective and ineffective medicines; they continue to use homeopathy because they see its benefits.

Homeopaths are trained in how to recognise and advise the removal of what we refer to as ‘maintaining causes’ and ‘obstacles to cure.’ In simple terms, this means eliminating habits or changing elements of lifestyle that are clearly injurious to one’s health and will deter healing.

I am consistently shocked by people who complain about feeling unwell whilst not being able to recognise that often, their complaints are self inflicted.  Take for example the heavy smoker, who has a chronic cough or the person with a myriad of digestive issues, who insists on eating fast food most of the time.  These are obvious examples; others include people that are not even aware that their habits are causing distress to their body.  The patient who is underweight, with no energy and chronic health problems; on investigation, her diet consisted of nothing fresh, but all pre-packaged food with low nutritional value; her energy spent on looking after her young family, who unfortunately, also eat this diet. A result of this self neglect leads to the prescription of pharmaceutical medications, which can often exacerbate the condition in the long term, whilst possibly giving short term relief.  The sickness is therefore compounded and invariably some of these medications cause new illnesses, knows as ‘iatrogenic’ disease.  Hahnemann, in Aphorism 74 of The Organon of Medicine states: ‘Among chronic diseases, we must unfortunately include all those wide spread illnesses artificially created by allopathic treatments.’

So, the removal of what Hahnemann referred to as ‘causa occasionalis’ (maintaining causes) must surely make sense and pave the way for true healing to begin. Whatever medication, in whatever medical discipline, will not be fully effective until this is done. In Aphorism 77, Hahnemann states: ‘Diseases engendered by prolonged exposure to avoidable noxious influence should not be called chronic, they include diseases brought about by:

• The habitual indulgence of harmful food and drink


• All kinds of excesses that undermine health


• Prolonged deprivation of things necessary to life


• Unhealthy places, especially swampy regions


• Dwelling only in cellars, damp places or other close quarters


• Lack of exercise or fresh air


• Physical or mental over exertion


• Continuing emotional stress etc..

These self-inflicted disturbances go away on their own with improved living conditions if no chronic miasm is present, they cannot be called chronic diseases.’ There are several classifications of chronic disease (according to Hahnemann) which will be covered at a later date. Although the language here could possibly benefit from being updated, it is clear that the underlying message is to enjoy a healthy lifestyle suited to your unique constitution, which is balanced on every level.

What is important here is to recognise that through individualisation and the identification of circumstances peculiar to a patient, obstacles to cure can be removed; only then can true individualised homeopathic treatment begin.

The homeopathic approach, in its entirety is set out in Aphorism 3 of The Organon.

‘If the physician clearly perceives what has to be cured in disease, ie, in each individual case of disease (knowledge of the disease,) if he clearly perceives what it is in medicines, which heals, ie: in each individual medicine (knowledge of medicinal powers,) if he applies in accordance with well defined principles what is curative in medicines to what he has clearly recognised to be pathological in the patient so that cure follows, ie, if he knows in each particular case how to apply the remedy most appropriate to its character (selection of the remedy),  prepare it exactly as required and give it in the right amount (the correct dose,) and repeat the dose exactly when required ‘and lastly, if in each case he knows the obstacles to cure and how to remove them so recovery is permanent, then he knows how to treat thoroughly and efficaciously and is a true physician.’

Gill Graham, BSc (Hons), BA (Hons) RS Hom, DHMHS

As ever, professional homeopathic advice should be sought: http://www.findahomeopath.org/Search/Postcode

Concluding our series of blog posts around the principles of homeopathy, as developed by Dr Samuel Hahnemann, UK homeopath Gill Graham talks about the fourth principle of homeopathy and shares facts around the worldwide use of homeopathy:

Homeopathic remedies are made from natural substances such as plants, minerals, animals but the process of their manufacture is unlike that of any other medicine. A remedy made from a specific substance is put through a process of serial dilution, the end result being a very dilute extract is made.  Each step of this dilution involves the substance being shaken with force; homeopathically this is referred to as ‘succussion.’ It has been found that by succusing in this way the remedy becomes active and dynamic (generally latent in its crude form) and the degree of the succussion produces a final potency of a remedy which will be given in accordance with the presenting vital force.

Fundamentally, potentization means that a substance has been prepared according to homeopathic philosophy and homeopathic pharmaceutical standards, through serial dilution and succussion.

To conclude.

To show the extent of its popularity, even in the wake of fanatical sceptisism by institutions of often dubious repute, over 200 million people worldwide use homeopathy on a regular basis, which undoubtedly is testament to its effectiveness. It is included in the national health systems of a number of countries e.g. Brazil, Chile, India, Mexico, Pakistan, Switzerland, United Kingdom. 10% of people in the UK use homeopathy, an estimated 6 million people. There are over 400 doctors in the UK that use homeopathy, regulated by the Faculty of Homeopathy and promoted by the British Homeopathic Association. In the NHS approx. 40,000 homeopathic prescriptions are provided to patients per year by doctors working within the homeopathic service. There were originally 5 homeopathic hospitals (Glasgow, Liverpool, London, Bristol and Tunbridge Wells). Tunbridge Wells closed in 2007 and in 2010, the Royal London Homeopathic Hospital changed its name to the Royal London Hospital for Integrated Medicine. There are more than 1,500 professional homeopaths (non-medically qualified homeopaths) in the UK, regulated by the Society of Homeopaths (65%), Alliance of Registered Homeopaths and Homeopathic Medical Association. They largely operate in private practice outside the NHS. In addition, there are many vets that use homeopathy as an integral part of their practice. Randomised controlled trials, clinical outcome studies and observational studies are ongoing via The Clinical Outcome Research in Homeopathy data base (CORE-hom).  It currently comprises over 1015 clinical trials in homeopathy and is updated regularly as new trials are completed. (Source: Homeopathy Research Institute.) In addition, there are many other research projects continuously being performed throughout the world by a variety of eminent institutions.

The objective of summarizing the underlying homeopathic principles was to help and clarify philosophy and practice, whilst also discussing the extent of its popularity as a system of medicine world wide. Even though homeopathy is over 200 years old, confusion still exists as to its foundations, its underlying philosophy, and its role in health care; hopefully any grey areas are now clearer. Please feel free to share if you think others would benefit.

Gill Graham, BSc (Hons), BA (Hons) RS Hom, DHMHS

As ever, professional homeopathic advice should be sought: http://www.findahomeopath.org/Search/Postcode



References

Homeopathy Research Institute

Available at:

https://www.hri-research.org/resources/homeopathy-the-debate/essentialevidence/use-of-homeopathy-across-the-world/ [Accessed: 20 May 2016]

Healing according to Hahnemann should be done ‘rapidly, gently and permanently; to remove and destroy the whole disease in the shortest, surest, least harmful way, according to clearly comprehensible principles.’ (Aphorism 2)

The minimum dose of a remedy, (one of these principles) simply means the minutest amount of a substance to nudge the vital force in the direction of healing. Too high a potency of a remedy or unnecessary repetition can result in unwelcome aggravations.  In homeopathy, less is more. The body has a way of signaling through the manifestation of symptoms, when a higher potency is needed or more frequent repetition of a remedy.

If there was one ‘principle’ in homeopathy that people had a problem with understanding, it would be the infinitesimal doses of a remedy given; in other words, the perception is, there is nothing in a remedy. This has been said to me on many occasions. However, it remains the case that empirically and in thousands of studies, both observational and through clinical outcome and randomized controlled trials, homeopathy has been seen to heal many people worldwide.

For those who cannot come to terms with the fact that homeopathic remedies do not contain any active material because of the molecular limits of Avogrado’s number, the current scientific evidence suggests that homeopathic remedies are nanoparticles and not ordinary conventional bulks of source material. Given this, intense scientific consideration must be seriously focused now on how nano particles can act in the body to stimulate a healing process. Much of this research is headed by Dr Iris Bell (MD, Ph.D) from the University of Arizona College of Medicine, and for those who would like more detailed information, please read and study the research: (Bell, I, Koithan, M, 2012. ) Research in this area is ongoing and is constantly being updated, by various eminent scientists and homeopaths throughout the world.



 

 

Bell IR and Koithan M. (2012) A model for homeopathic remedy effects: low dose nanoparticles, allostatic cross-adaptation, and time-dependent sensitization in a complex adaptive system. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2012; 12(1):191(epub) Available at:

http://bmccomplementalternmed.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1472-6882-12-191  [Accessed: 20^th May 2016]