Differing approaches to regulation worldwide has resulted in great difficulty in determining the specific number of Traditional & Complementary Medicine (T&CM) practitioners. Within developing countries T&CM practitioners are the sole providers of healthcare, however in other countries they can be divided into a number of categories based on training, education and registration status. Within Europe there are 160,000 non-medical practitioners while India has over 785,000. India has a successful institutionalised education systems with more than 500 colleges with annual admission of 25,000 undergraduate students and out of these colleges 117 are also admitting 2,493 postgraduate students.  In India students learn about general medicine, healthcare and disease and then either specialise in homeopathy or pharmacology.

In Europe T&CM regulation and registration is not well established, with insurance being partially covered by public and private insurance companies. However there are an increasing number of medical professionals who are interested in T&CM. In France many doctors are specialist in Homeopathy and Acupuncture. Belgium’s Socialist Mutual Insurance of Tournai-Ath, will partially reimburses complementary and alternative treatments such as homeopathic remedies.  In Finland these treatments are covered by social insurance, and in Germany public and private insurance provides the same coverage for some alternative and complementary treatment. Vietnam TM practitioners can practice in public & private hospitals, also in clinics where government insurance fully covers them.  In many countries T&CM is well integrated into their national health symptoms, for example Switzerland.

The WHO Traditional Medicine Strategy was established to promote the safe use of products, practices and for practitioners. It is the key responsibilities of the Member States to protect the health of their populations ensuring the safety of T&CM practices by managing any described risk effectively. Differences between countries are apparent in the type of supervisory structures put in place by governments in order to develop policies and regulate T&CM products, practices and practitioners.

See more here: http://www.who.int/medicines/publications/traditional/trm_strategy14_23/en/

With the party season just about to begin (if it hasn't already!) it seemed a good time to share some self help tips for the season. For long standing or chronic ailments, it’s important to see a practitioner, but there are several homeopathic remedies which might help with minor symptoms of over indulgence over the festive period:




Nux vomica: this is known as “the hangover” remedy but can also be used for the general symptoms of over-indulgence. Symptoms include heartburn, indigestion, and nausea, a headache, sensitivity to noise and light, and irritability. Particularly suits people who tend to burn the candle at both ends, who keep going with coffee and feel the cold.

Arsenicum: this remedy comes into play when the symptoms are like that of food poisoning, with vomiting and diarrhoea, loss of colour in the face and anxiety. Could also be used when the diarrhoea is anxiety-induced, worse at night with burning in the stomach and a desire to sip water. It suits restless people who are fearful worriers, need to plan and feel the cold.

Sulphur: symptoms include offensive diarrhoea which drives the patient from bed in the morning, excessive sweating, and burning feet. Suits stubborn people who need praise, worry about their health, can be peevish with lots of big ideas they find difficult to actualise. They crave sugar and spicy food.

Lycopodium: symptoms include bloating with wind, a huge appetite, and waking as if from a fright. There is heartburn with sour burping. Suits fearful people lacking in confidence who don’t like undertaking new news. But can be bragging and assertive at home.

Arnica: this is a great remedy to help with bruising and that “battered” feeling you get after last-minute Christmas shopping or bargain hunting in the January sales.

Wishing you a sparkling season of goodwill,

With very best wishes from us all at Find a Homeopath!

If you need assistance from a homeopath then have a look at www.findahomeopath.org to find a practitioner near to you.

One thing that delights me about homeopathy is how so much of it makes sense. From the time of Hippocrates, it was recognised that symptoms often have something worthwhile to express to us and as homeopaths (along with other health professionals), we take this into account daily.

If you've a car and there's a warning light on, there's at least two ways to fix this situation. One would be to remove the warning light bulb. No longer a warning light showing = car fixed? Maybe not quite. A homeopath would want to look at why the warning light was visible. What was going on when it started showing? Any other symptoms there? What was the root of the problem, the cause of the light showing initially? Then, ideally, these, as well as other symptoms, would be addressed, leading to the light no longer being needed as a warning.

A simple enough analogy perhaps and frequently this often a part of what we do as homeopaths. We may look to the causation of the problem that is being expressed and attempt to help it without suppression of symptoms. As the person gets better the symptoms that had been upsetting them may well fade. There may also be learning from particular symptoms we can do, and in consultation with a homeopath this can help us to move to a place of better health and greater awareness of ourselves.

On the Find a Homeopath home page you can search for a homeopath nearby to you by postcode (or use the advanced search feature to search by town) in the UK. Alternatively if you've experienced homeopathy working for you and would like to share your account then have your say here.

 

 

As the kids head back to school in newly bought uniforms, freshly shined shoes and the autumn envelops us with misty mornings, plump blackberries and the tinge of frost in the air, it could be time to think about going back to school too.

The Alliance of Registered Homeopaths has recently launched an online guide for prospective students to finding a training course in homeopathy which meets their particular needs.  The site is easy to navigate to find the different courses offered in the UK and to discover more from the colleges too. Click here to find out more.

If you'd like to see a little more about the potential of homeopathy have a look at the testimonials people have left here. Or if you'd like to share your experience of homeopathy then you can tell us more at www.findahomeopath.org.uk/HaveYourSay.